3 Best Sights in Sicily, Italy

While you can see examples of Caltagirone's long ceramic tradition throughout the city, the most impressive display can be found in the 142 individually decorated tiled steps of this monumental staircase leading up to the neglected Santa Maria del Monte church. On July 24 (the feast of San Giacomo, the city's patron saint) and again on August 15 (the feast of the Assumption), the stairs are illuminated with candles that form a tapestry design. Months of work go into preparing the 4,000 coppi, or cylinders of colored paper, that hold oil lamps—then, at 9:30 pm on the nights of July 24, July 25, August 14, and August 15, a squad of hundreds of youngsters (tourists are welcome to participate) spring into action to light the lamps, so that the staircase flares up all at once.

This wonderful little winery is run with passion and energy by three young locals. Many wineries run tours, but few make the experience as personal and interesting as the Valle delle Ferle. Call ahead to book a personal tour of the vineyards, where Nero d’Avola and Frappato—the two grapes used to create Cerasuolo di Vittoria wine—are planted together, a traditional practice that has died out as newer joint plantings are not permitted. Guests are encouraged to taste blind, in order to demonstrate how the wines produced in these heavy clay hills are characterized by a far longer life and softer palette than those produced at lower elevations in the sandier soils closer to the sea. Tastings are accompanied by carefully selected local cheeses and salamis, so guests can experience the way the wines work with a salty or fresh cheese, or a fattier or chill-spiked salami. Tours also take in the cantina, where there is often a chance to taste immature wines straight from the tanks.

Caltagirone was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site for its ceramics as well as for its numerous Baroque churches. Although the museum offers little information in English about the beautiful items displayed in its many glass cases, you can still see one of Sicily's most extensive ceramics collections, ranging from Neolithic finds to red-figure pottery from 5th-century BC Athens and 18th-century terra-cotta Nativity figures.