Depart from Palermo by car with an English-speaking driver to Castelvetrano, a Sicilian town well-known for its high-quality extra virgin olive oil production. Arrive at the “Antica Tenuta Becchina” to visit the oil mill in the heart of the Valle del Belice, which once enclosed the hunting grounds of the Spanish Princess of the Pignatelli Aragona Cortes family: there are 70 acres of orchards – about three thousand trees – nestled among the hills. Visit the workshop and taste the “Becchina Green Oil”, an authentic extra virgin olive oil, made with methods that ensure the freshest, highest quality olive oil. Then, enjoy lunch in the gardens.
On the way back to Palermo, a special tour is planned along the coast from Trapani and Marsala. This coastline is characterized by the salt-pans. These are large salt water pools divided by narrow strips of land where, for centuries, salt has been produced. This route called “la via del sale” (the Salt Road) is remarkable for its many Dutch-style windmills used to pump sea water and grind the salt. The many mounds of salt (piled up salt creating little white hills) are then covered with terracotta tiles to prevent the rain from melting them. The salt-pans were probably established by the Phoenicians who set these basins to collect the salt. Today, this thousand-year-old salt culture is still in use. Before returning to Palermo, you will stop at the Florio winery where you can taste the traditional Marsala wine.
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