Sicily – Agrigento (Valle dei Templi), a true gem of Sicily

Valley of Temples is the place to fly to Sicily for! The best preserved temples, impressive in size, have survived much and are memorable for a long time.

For a long time we wondered whether it was worth going to the Valley of the Temples(Valle dei Templi) and the “Steps of the Turks”(Scala dei Turchi). The arguments “for” were many, but we put the long and tiring route on the other side of the scale. Is it worth it to drive more than three hours one way and then return the same amount? Three hours by car with a toddler to spend an hour-two on the spot. That doesn’t sound very enthusiastic, does it?

Until now, we don’t know what drove us to decide after all; maybe it was that innate instinct of the traveler? ;) And those who know us at least a little, know that we try to make the most of every trip, so we decided to give it a try.

The road turned out to be not too bad. We drove much of the route on the highway, heading from Syracuse toward Catania and from there to the west of the island. Alternatively, you can bypass the highway and drive directly west from Syracuse, but we this time, exceptionally chose a faster route over nice views (we assume so, because we don’t quite know how it would be).

An added attraction was the opportunity to observe Etna. Etna active, splashing from time to time to show who is in charge ;) We wanted to stop a few times to take photos, but there are no viewpoints anywhere along the route. Sad, but we drive on, console ourselves with a few photos from behind the car window and threaten to come back to her yet.

The road was getting mercilessly long. After exiting the highway, it was even worse, as various road obstructions began, so it was not light. We decided to see the temples later, and went to the scenic “staircase” to begin with.

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Scala dei Turchi

Scala dei Turchi, in Polish“Stairs of the Turks” is nothing more than high (reaching 90 meters) limestone cliffs that look just like…. stairs! :) Well, we have the stairs explained :) And why Turkish? Since this was the place where Turkish pirates took shelter, ot the mystery solved.

We recommend going to a nearby viewpoint from which you can admire these fabulous cliffs. They were also admired by our new Sicilian four-legged friend :)

Valley of the Temples in Agrigento

Ok, not the valley and not in Agrigento, but this is easier :) Don’t expect to see temples in the city center or in the valley. On the contrary! Going around Agrigento, our eyes saw large temples on a hill, so until we began to wonder if this was definitely the famous Valle dei Templi.

We drove to the parking lot at the entrance on the east side. The parking lot, of course, paid, empty, and there were obviously so many cars standing on the street on the ban that the proverbial needle would not penetrate. At this the crowd of tourists ended, and after going inside we found that it was probably the cars of the employees :)

Entrance to the archaeological park costs €10 per person and it was probably the best spent €10 during our entire trip! Of course, one can spend and more as one feels like it, investing in a ride in a vehicle that will take one all the way (until now, we don’t know if it stops at the temples along the way at all) ;-)

“The Valley” is an impressive area of 1,800 hectares, where you will find some of the best preserved Greek temples! They survived in very good condition (even the earthquake!!!). The park is divided into two parts: eastern and western, and their boundary is marked by a road over which a bridge is built for visitors.

The temples you need to see here are:

The Temple of Concord (Tempio della Concordia) – the best preserved, the prettiest, the most impressive! Built in the 5th century BC (!). It is puzzling that it has survived so many centuries in such good condition. This is likely due to, among other things. the ground on which it was built, or more precisely, the clay deep in the earth, which cushioned earthquakes. Optimists claim that the Greeks were aware of this at the stage of building the temple, but how it was in truth we will probably never know :)

And of course the panorama :)

Temple of Hera (Tempio di Giunone) – the first temple if you visit from the east. Somewhat hidden behind the trees, to see it in its full glory you have to climb the stairs a bit. It is not so well preserved, having been destroyed in the earthquake, but still what we see is impressive. Red colors can be seen on the columns – these are the results of arson by the Carthaginians in the 5th century BC.

Temple of Heracles (Tempio di Ercole) – this is the oldest temple in the area.

Temple of Zeus (Tempio di Giove) – the temple is located in the western part of the park. This infinite structure was to be the world’s largest Doric temple. Here we won’t see the preserved, standing 20-meter high columns, but unlike other temples in the park, here we can almost look inside. There is a marked path among the ruins of the temple.

In addition to the temples, the park area includes. Kolymbetra garden, Villa Aurea, the necropolis and a small restaurant.

The Valley of the Temples is a place we highly recommend. We were there in the afternoon, hit the fantastic weather and managed to take some photos without other visitors, which is probably impossible in high season. We were able to walk unhurriedly, enjoy the views of the area and learn about the history of this unique place.

It was definitely worth the 3 hour drive :)

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