Sicily is increasingly earning brownie points as a top spot for film and TV locations, which isn’t surprising when you consider the island’s geography. Rugged coastlines, mountainous interiors, rolling hills and charming hilltop towns combine to provide an enormously varied and often dramatic landscape. Throw in a few ancient archaeological sites and a sprinkling of offshore islands and the possibilities are endless.
If you’re a fan of Andrea Camilleri’s Inspector Montalbano or one of the many millions who watched The White Lotus season 2, you’ll already be familiar with some of Sicily’s best-loved film and TV locations. Others are less well-known so read on to check out some of the best Sicily filming locations to mark on your holiday map and where to stay for easy access to them.
Taormina filming locations
The White Lotus season 2 has produced a wave of interest in Sicily as a tourism destination. Anyone who watched it – and there were millions! – couldn’t fail to have been bewitched by the charm of Taormina. The series was set largely in the luxury San Domenico Palace hotel but the medieval streets of the town, the Greek theatre and gorgeous beaches also enjoyed a starring role. Noto also made an appearance when characters Daphne and Harper took a day trip there.
But this isn’t the first time that the area around Taormina has found fame through its filming locations. Close to Taormina, the mountain towns of Savoca and Forza d’Agrò have long been associated with their part in the filming of The Godfather (1972): Savoca – and specifically Bar Vitelli and the San Nicolò church – in the first film, and the beautifully preserved medieval hilltop town of Forza d’Agrò for parts II and III.
Where to stay: Casa dei Sogni (sleeps 13) is a stylish, high-tech villa with a pool and outdoor children’s play area, half-way between Catania and Taormina.
Filming in Palermo and surrounding towns
Several scenes from The White Lotus season 2 were also filmed in Palermo, as well as the elegant streets of nearby Mondello. Palermo also features in the original 1963 film of The Leopard (Il Gattopardo) and in the more recent 2024/5 Netflix production of the same story. This glorious recent adaptation of one of Italy’s great classics takes us into the heart of historic central Palermo, to the Quattro Canti, the Piazza Pretoria and into 18th century palaces that dazzle and sparkle. Close to Palermo, the town of Bagheria is home to the stunning Baroque Villa Valguarnera, the Salina family residence. The real Palazzo Valguarnera-Gangi in Bagheria was used for filming in both the 1963 film and the 2024 series and is today a historic private residence.
The region around Palermo also played a starring role in one of Italy’s cinema greats – Cinema Paradiso. Bagheria was the birthplace of the film’s screenwriter and director, Giuseppe Tornatore, and the fictional village of Giancaldo was loosely based around it. However, the real location for the village square in the film is Piazza Umberto I in Palazzo Adriano, to the south of Palermo. The coastal towns of Cefalù and Termini Imerese, in addition to Castelbuono in the mountainous Madonie, also feature.
Where to stay: Stylish Olivia (sleeps 8) is set among the olive groves close to Bagheria, home to The Leopard’s Villa Valguarnera.
Montalbano in southeast Sicily
The TV serialisation of Andrea Camilleri’s Inspector Montalbano books has been a huge success, with actor Luca Zingaretti proving to be as captivating as some of the locations in which the series was filmed. Filming was concentrated in several of southeast Sicily’s baroque towns including Ragusa Ibla where the Piazza Duomo often appears as fictional Vigata and the city’s piazzas and winding lanes also pop up in scenes. Visit Scicli where the real police station is used for fictional Vigata’s police headquarters, and Noto where the Ducezio Palace became Montelusa’s Town Hall and San Tommaso monastery appeared as Vigata’s prison. Even more iconic is the seaside house overlooking Punta Secca beach which was Montalbano’s home.
While the recent version of The Leopard was primarily filmed in Palermo, Catania – and specifically the Palazzo Biscari – provided the setting for several spectacular ball scenes. Syracuse’s historic centre on the island of Ortigia was used for the fictional Donnafugata estate.
Where to stay: Rocca di Pietra (sleeps 12) overlooks southeast Sicily’s rural landscape, perfectly positioned between coastal Punta Secca, Ragusa and Scicli.
Film locations in northeast Sicily
While many of the Montalbano episodes are filmed in southeast Sicily, one story, A Trip to Tindari (La Gita a Tindari, 2001) stands out for its striking images of the Sanctuary of Tindari and its coastline, including the Marinello Lakes. Often overlooked by tourists, Tindari offers a fascinating insight into Sicily’s history, with a main archaeological site and amphitheatre, remains of Roman baths and the magnificent Sanctuary with its Black Madonna.
Where to stay: La Nave is a beautifully furnished contemporary villa with private infinity pool and views of the Sanctuary of Tindari.
Sicily’s offshore islands – filming and TV locations
Sicily’s offshore islands – the volcanic Aeolian Islands to the northeast of Sicily, the Egadi Islands to the west, and Pantelleria – have been cast in a number of films since as far back as the 1950’s. On the Aeolian Islands, Stromboli caught the public imagination after the film of the same name came out, starring Roberto Rossellini and Ingrid Bergman. So too Salina, and specifically Pollara Bay, after the iconic Oscar-winning Il Postino hit the big screen in 1994. Meanwhile, in 2016, the international film, A Bigger Splash, featuring Tilda Swinton and Ralph Fiennes, had viewers swooning over the island of Pantelleria. Watch out in 2026 for the new production of The Odyssey which features several locations on Lipari, as well as the Egadi island of Favignana.
Where to stay: Check into super-stylish new villa Panarea (sleeps 8) and hop over to the Aeolian Islands from nearby Milazzo.
