Vilnius to Catania, Sicily from €84

🌍 About Catania, Sicily

Catania is built from black basalt — the lava Mount Etna has thrown down over the centuries — so the streets, churches and grand baroque palazzi are all a dark grey-black, rebuilt after the 1693 earthquake leveled the city. The thing to do is La Pescheria, the morning fish market behind Piazza del Duomo, where swordfish and prawns are sold by shouting under tarpaulins; eat at one of the no-frills osterie wedged into the stalls. Order pasta alla Norma, the local dish: fried eggplant, tomato, basil and salty ricotta salata, named after the opera by Bellini, who was born here. Come April–May or September–October for 20–25°C and Etna day-trips without the crush. Skip July–August, when the city regularly tops 35°C and the black stone radiates heat all evening.