Castle of Santa Catarina

The climb is worth it but would suggest to do it in the evening in time to see the sunset as temperatures could be extremely high and the climb is quite steep. The castle is beautiful and you can see a room with Second World War radios which is untouched since, so very surreal. There is an abandoned palace too next too it which is a bit spooky but again totally worth paying a visit. The views are also incredible and you can see 360 of the island. Elena & Maciej

If you want the best views of Favignana go there, amazing and spooky location. At sunset is just magical and - when we visited - not crowded at all. There is a very steep climb but easily done in 25 mins.

Spectacular views, very good path, bring water, ideally a bottle of wine and cicuterie and catch the sunset, cause DAMN what a spot, lots to explore up there ....if the walls could talk, would love to camp overnight.

Absolutely amazing! Nice hike up and the views are breathtaking... ww2 history inside to explore:-)

Hopefully an investor will safe this place from falling apart. Really nice walk and amazing to be there at sunrise.

Nice view from the top. You can find a remains of military installations inside. Make sure you take some water for the hike in the sunny days.
For those expecting souvenir shops, ice creams and car parking at the top, please go to the Etna or other commercial places and leave this castle alone.

The stairs had a stop sign on it, but we found a track 300m farther up the road, took us to the castle. Wonderful view and a really nice castle! Took the stairs down, no warning signs from the top.

Unforgettable view from the castle 🏰 😍

Quite a steep walk up but well worth it. Definitely go inside the building and up into the roof for the best views

nice walk

The best place to see the sunset in Favignana 🥰

This castle is derelict and there are no facilities at the top so be sure to take water for the trek.
Whilst it's sad the castle itself is in a state of disrepair, the views from here are worth the walk. You have nearly Levanzo to the North, Marettimo to the West and the main island of Sicily to the East, as well as fantastic views across the whole of Favignana.

Great place to discover. I went in low season it was only me and my wife. I did some great aerial shots with the drone if you want to check out on my Instagram @eldreyleal. It takes good physical condition to do the trail 50 min of climbing.

I recommend this place for enjoying the beautiful panorama!

Less than a mile west of San Giacomo Castle on the island of Isloa di Favignana is Forte di Santa Catarina. When the Saracens took over the island in the 10th century AD, they built a signal tower on the site, one of three that served as a communications system during disasters. The Normans also considered it a pretty steep strategic point when they arrived in the 11th century and made some kind of fortifications there as well.

The current Forte di Santa Catarina, named after someone named Catherine (who may have been Catherine of Siena (1347-1380), patroness of Italy ... by the hands of evil pagans in the 4th century), was built around the same time as and Castello San Giacomo (1498), and by the same people (arrogant Aragons). Like Castillo, Forte was a standard four-bastion pointefort with two drawbridges connecting the fort to the rest of the world through a deep moat. The lower level was carved from the rock below, which was also used to imprison the enemies of the current administration.

The fortress of Santa Catarina was severely damaged in 1860 by the rebels against Bourbon, when Italy was struggling to gain de facto statehood. Fortunately, Sicily became part of the Kingdom of Italy in 1861 and the days of Forte's prison were over.

The Italian navy took possession of Forte di Santa Catarina after World War II. In the late 1950s, the navy was still in charge of the fort, but soon after that it was completely abandoned. Recent visitors report that Forte is in a rather sad state, but thanks to a recent competition called Art Prison, budding architects are encouraged to reimagine Forte di Santa Catarina as an "open-air contemporary art space."

Great for sunset

Owesome landscape!!!

Quaranta minuti circa di salita a piedi (200 scalini, ma molti sono distanti anche 20 metri fra loro). Una salita con dislivello di circa 250 metri (il castello è a 314 m s.l.m.) in un sentiero ben lastricato che verso la cima si riempie di arbusti, anche se la salita rimane agevole. Il Castello è una n pericolo di crollo, anche se aperto. Il panorama è meraviglioso. Si spazia sulle tre isole delle Egadi, verso Trapani ed Erice, Marsala è tanto, tanto mare. Il porto di Favignana e la pianura è dominata dal castello, mentre nel retro si vede la parte ovest dell’isola fino a Punta Sottile.
La fatica vale i panorami che si possono godere.

La salita, interamente sotto il sole, richiede circa 30 minuti anche se ovviamente dipende dal passo. Ne vale totalmente la pena. Il castello è una piattaforma sul blu da cui si vedono tutte le isole e la costa Siciliana. Bellissimo il contrasto di colori tra la lussureggiante macchia mediterranea e il blu del cielo e del mare.

Acchianata ☺ :
Salita faticosa ma rigenerante per fisico, mente e spirito.
Una bella sfida! Io e il compagno stavamo per rinunciavi:non fatelo! Non fatevi spaventare dalla sua altezza perché arriverate e aria fresca e nuova vi sorprenderà!
Salire in montagna è sempre prezioso.
Meditate e salite.

Castello posizionato sulla vetta di Favignana, oasi di pace e di una bellezza infinita. La
Salita richiede circa 30 minuti, ma ne vale totalmente la pena! Una nota negativa del luogo è la poca cura di un patrimonio di questo genere da parte dell’amministrazione locale. Una risorsa di questo genere non può essere abbandonata a se stessa.