Anywhere Italy
Stemma di Pantelleria

Sicily · Trapani

Pantelleria

A volcanic island closer to Tunisia than Sicily, where dry-stone dammusi sit among bush-trained Zibibbo vines listed by UNESCO.

Known for

  • PASSITO

    Passito di Pantelleria DOC, sweet wine of sun-dried Zibibbo grapes, with the alberello pantesco cultivation on the UNESCO Intangible Heritage list.

  • DAMMUSI

    Square dry-stone houses with thick volcanic walls and white domed roofs, technique dating to the tenth-century Zirid emirate.

  • MONTAGNA GRANDE

    836-meter volcanic summit at the center of the Parco Nazionale Isola di Pantelleria, with steam vents and a thermal lake at its base.

When to visit

Best · May–Oct

  • J15°
  • F15°
  • M15°
  • A16°
  • M19°
  • J22°
  • J26°
  • A27°
  • S25°
  • O23°
  • N20°
  • D17°
  • Best
  • Hot or crowded
  • Quiet
  • Mostly closed

Daytime averages, 2020–2024. The sea is warmest in August at 27° and coldest in February at 16°. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.

The festa: Fortunato di Casei, 16 October

Why come

Pantelleria lies 110 kilometers southwest of Sicily and 70 east of Tunisia, a fifteen-kilometer island that is the emergent summit of a largely submarine volcano. Montagna Grande rises to 836 meters; the coast is black basalt cliff with almost no sand. The dammusi, square dry-stone houses with thick walls and white-painted domed roofs, were built from local volcanic rock, the technique dating to around the tenth century when the island was part of the Zirid emirate.

The vineyards are planted in the alberello pantesco, vines trained low in shallow pits dug into the volcanic soil to catch wind and dew, the only agricultural practice on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage list. The Zibibbo grape, also called Moscato di Alessandria, arrived with the Phoenicians and produces Passito di Pantelleria DOC, made from sun-dried bunches. The Specchio di Venere, a thermal lake fed by springs at 35 to 58 degrees, sits in an elliptical crater in the north of the island.

The Sunday letter

We haven’t written Pantelleria’s letter yet.

One town every Sunday, with the photo, the food, the festa. Be there when this one comes up. Free, by Peter & Sophia from Pietrasanta.

How to get there

Pantelleria is on an island and is reached by ferry.

There is an airport on the island (PNL), so you can fly in rather than take the ferry.

Pantelleria — photo 1
Pantelleria — photo 2

What to see

  • Arco dell'Elefante

    Basalt sea arch on the east coast resembling an elephant lowering its trunk into the water, between Cala Levante and Cala Tramontana.

  • Specchio di Venere

    Thermal volcanic lake in a 450 by 350 meter elliptical crater, fed by three springs running between 35 and 58 degrees.

  • Montagna Grande

    Island's highest point at 836 meters, an extinct volcanic cone with hiking paths and steam vents inside the Parco Nazionale Isola di Pantelleria.

  • Dammusi

    Traditional square stone houses with thick walls and white-painted domes, built from black volcanic rock, the oldest dating to the tenth century Zirid emirate.

  • Vigne ad alberello pantesco

    Bush-trained Zibibbo vineyards in shallow pits in volcanic soil, the only cultivation practice listed by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage.

The slow-trip planner

Building a trip? Find where Pantelleria fits in a slow Italy circuit.

Answer five questions. We will shape a geographically coherent slow trip from the 1,000 Italian towns most travelers skip. Yours to save and share.

Plan your trip

We recommend

Where to eat

Not our picks, but places the guides put their name to: a Michelin star, a Gambero Rosso fork, a Slow Food snail, a Michelin Key for the hotels. Worth a table, a counter, or a night when you pass through.

Living here

  • Population 7,352
  • Very remotei
  • Pharmacy in town
  • High school within a 30-minute drive
  • Regional capital Palermo, 24 h 12 min drive

Thermal baths in town: Sorgenti Acque Calde San Gaetano, Terme di Gadir.

Common questions

What is Pantelleria known for?
Pantelleria is a volcanic island closer to Tunisia than Sicily, where dry-stone dammusi sit among bush-trained Zibibbo vines listed by UNESCO.
Where is Pantelleria?
Pantelleria is a comune in the province of Trapani, in Sicily, at 8 meters above sea level.
What is the nearest airport to Pantelleria?
There is an airport on the island (PNL).
How do you get to Pantelleria?
Pantelleria is on an island and is reached by ferry.
When is the best time to visit Pantelleria?
Best in May–Oct. August is the warmest month, averaging 27 degrees, and January the wettest, with about 10 rain days.
Is there a sagra or a festival in Pantelleria?
The town keeps its patron saint's day: Fortunato di Casei, 16 October.
Which other towns are like Pantelleria?
Lampedusa e Linosa, Ustica and Lipari.
How many people live in Pantelleria?
7,352 at the 2023 count.
Tags & datadesignations · numbers · sources

The numbers

  • Elevation: 8 m
  • Population: 7,352
  • Surface area: 84.53 km²

These figures were compiled from public directories: ISTAT, OpenStreetMap and Wikidata, and from the official listings of the guides named on this page. Town details change; verify with official sources before you travel.

Similar

Towns like Pantelleria

🌲 Parco Nazionale

More Parco Nazionale towns