Open daily from 10 am - 6.30 pm and costs €4 per person. Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata | Located on Via Corrado Nicolaci, this beautiful 18th century palace with the prettiest balconies, was built as a residence for the Nicolaci family (hence the name) and is considered one of the best examples of Sicilian Baroque architecture in Noto. It cost €3 to enter the palazzo, but this is a combination ticket also allowing entry into Sala degli Specchi (the ‘Salon of Mirrors’ on the ground floor and the nearby Teatro Tina Di Lorenzo). Inspired by the palaces of 17th century France, the upper level offers a chance for visitors to enjoy a panoramic view, at eye-level with the cathedral - especially beautiful during the later part of the day. Palazzo Ducezio | Directly opposite the cathedral is the stunning Palazzo Ducezio, now Noto’s Town Hall.

Very much part of the town’s active landscape, it is particularly beautiful at night, when artfully placed lighting brings its limestone walls to life and the steps are a social meeting point for groups of friends and families. Built almost immediately following the devastation of Noto Antica, it required significant restoration in the early part of this century following a further earthquake. Noto Cathedral | We seen a lot of churches, cathedrals, monasteries and chapels in Italy, but Noto Cathedral is almost certainly one of the most impressive - both in size and design. You can, of course, begin your wanderings at any point, but the first time you set out and explore, we’d recommend beginning at Porto Reale, the gateway to the historic centre before heading along Corso Vittorio Emanuele, a wide and beautifully elegant walkway flanked by iconic Baroque plazas and churches, stopping to gaze up in wonder, photograph everything and enter whatever takes your fancy (providing they’re open, of course!). So, as we’ve mentioned above, what really sets Noto apart from many other places in Sicily is its stunning architecture - it’s the reason why its a UNESCO heritage site. In this guide you’ll find all you need to plan the perfect trip to this noto-riously beautiful place (sorry) the sites and architectural wonders you can’t miss, the best day trips, where to eat, where to stay and the very best things to do in Noto. That’s why it’s also such a perfect base from which to explore this truly unique region in south-eastern Sicily - it is ideally situated to visit the area’s best sand beaches as well as a number of other stunning Baroque towns, so you can out and about and explore during the day and then be back in time to enjoy Noto at its finest! Noto is meant to be enjoyed in the late afternoon glow, over cups of icy granita and cones of famous ice cream. When the steps of Rosario Gagliardi’s cathedral are not only a way to get closer to God but a meeting point for the young, the plazas a resting place for the old, and all around you, the air fills with rapid and heavily accented Italian. Instead, this is a town to explore as the sun begins to fall, when the sandstone walls of these 18th century masterpieces glow ochre and Noto comes alive. Epitomising the definition of Sicilian Baroque, so perfect, so elegant is its historical centre, it’s somewhat easy to forget that this is a thriving town, and not a museum or some eerily accurate film set - a feeling that can be accentuated if you choose to roam its streets under a bright midday sun.

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