I have always heard only positive things about the Sicilian Zingaro Reserve – both from Polish and Sicilian tourists. However, I have to honestly admit that the older I’m getting, the more and more and I love spending time in the bosom of nature more. Nevertheless, I would never call myself a special #freak of hiking, trekking or visiting hard-to-reach places in wildlife. Culinary experiences and absorbing culture through being among locals has been always first for me 😉 That’s probably why I procrastinated a bit with the trip to the famous Riserva dello Zingaro.
But when I moved to Palermo for 3 months this year, I decided to get to know the western part of Sicily inside out (I already knew the eastern part very well) and form my own opinions on the greatest attractions of this part of the island.
And what can I tell you, my dears… I’m completely lost! I take full responsibility for these words, but in my opinion, the Zingaro Reserve is the most beautiful place in Sicily. And you need to remember that I’ve seen a lot of extremely great places in the last 5 years! But let’s start from the beginning…
How to get to Riserva dello Zingaro?
One of the reasons why it took me so long to get to this place is certainly the fact that the Zingaro reserve is not particularly easily accessible to non-motorized people. I heard many opinions that it is possible to get there from Castellammare del Golfo by bus of the Russo carrier (here you can find the exact timetable). I haven’t tested it myself, but from my experience I know that reaching such far corners of Sicily can be very problematic and requires great organization on our side. And you know how it is – sometimes things can just go wrong.
Therefore, for peace of mind, I would suggest renting a car or taking someone who has one 😉 If you fall in love with Sicily, you will return there more than once, not twice. And you will be able to see Zingaro, not necessarily the first time! I got there only after 5 years of traveling around Sicily.
The entrances to the Zingaro reserve are located on two sides: one is from San Vito Lo Capo, the other is from Scopello. I decided on the second option, which is why I spent the night before the trip to the reserve in the charming Castellammare del Golfo, from which it is very close to Zingaro 🙂
Visiting Zingaro – practical information
The entrance ticket to the reserve costs 5 euros, and you can leave your car in the free parking lot located right in front of the entrance to it. Zingaro is open all year round, with the difference that in the summer months between 7:00 and 19:30, and in the winter months from 8:00 to 16:00. The length of the reserve is about 7 km and if you start your trip around Scopello, after about 2 hours you should be at the entrance from San Vito Lo Capo. However, take into account the breaks along the way, or actually many breaks for swimming in lovely bays (as many as seven!).
What you must be necessarily equipped before the trip? Do not go there without a 1.5 liter bottle of water, a hat / headscarf, sports shoes, food and cream with a high filter! It’s a really wild area where you can’t find any food or drink shops. The last shop with such things is a few meters from the entrance to the reserve and as you can guess, the prices there are not very friendly to the tourist wallet 😉
Riserva dello Zingaro, or paradise on earth, really exists!
As my visit to the reserve took place at the beginning of July, when temperatures in Sicily can reach even 40 degrees, I had some doubts if it is a good idea to do it at this time of the year. Apparently, the most pleasant walks there are in May, June or September 🙂
That’s why we went to Zingaro early in the morning to make it before the midday heat. We were on the route around 7:30! As I mentioned before, I’m not a fan of long walks and I had some concerns about if it is not going to be too demanding for me. However, I must admit that the difficulty level of the seaside trail (Sentiero Costiero) is moderate even for novices like me 🙂
After less than 15 minutes of pleasant walking, we reached the first beach accessible from Scopello – Cala Capreira. As chance would have it that it was also the only beach we were able to reach. We decided to spend a few relaxing hours on it, and then return to the car, because we had an intense day of further sightseeing ahead of us.
So I was wondering for a long time if Cala Capreira would be beautiful enough to reflect the charm of this extraordinary place? I had just read on the Internet that the most beautiful beaches are those hidden in the middle of the reserve, less accessible to people. I was afraid that we might be a bit disappointed and we should try to reach at least the second or third bay.
None of these things! If you are limited in time or you are afraid of walking around the reserve in the greatest heat, I want to inform you that the first beach of the Zingaro Reserve – Cala Capreira will meet your expectations, and in fact, there are high chances it will exceed them significantly. For me, it was definitely one of the most beautiful beaches I’ve ever seen in my life.
Light-colored sand, impeccably clean, intensely turquoise water through which you can admire the underwater fauna and flora even without special glasses (although it is probably worth taking snorkeling equipment with you, you will have your experience increased), no noise, only the chirping of birds and the sound of the sea, wow! When I feel stressed and have to imagine a relaxing place, I move there in my mind. After a few hours spent in the sun and swimming in the sea at such early (for me) morning hours, I began to wonder whether it was reality or a dream…
A stay in the Zingaro reserve is simply a magical experience. Never before have I had such close contact with nature! And I started to understand why people are looking for such places in the world and do all these trekking or other activities 🙂
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Have you ever been to Zingaro? How did you like it? Share your impressions in the comments!
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