Arancini and granita, monasteries that look like royal palaces, and an entire city hidden underground… with Mount Etna watching over it all in the distance. Here’s what to see in Catania in three days, from the historic center to local markets and unforgettable day trips.
Catania with kids is a fantastic experience. The city is beautiful, rich in culture, and surprisingly easy to explore as a family. In this guide, we’ll share what to see and how to plan the perfect three-day stay. If you’re traveling as a family, this is your complete Catania family travel guide, packed with practical tips and ideas.
Catania with Kids in 3 Days: A City to Explore Slowly
Many travelers land in Catania and immediately head to Sicily’s stunning eastern coastline. That’s a mistake. The city deserves your time.
From the Airport to Central Catania
If you fly into Catania Airport, the bus is the most convenient option. It departs right outside the terminal, reaches the center in about twenty minutes, and runs every half hour.
You might also consider renting a car. This is useful for moving around Catania, reaching Mount Etna, or starting a broader tour of Eastern Sicily. Rental costs in Sicily can be high, so we always use DiscoveryCars. It’s a portal that compares providers to find the most reliable and affordable deals. We often save money and find better cars by booking through them. Rent your car here
Where to Stay in Catania
We found a very comfortable apartment on Booking located on Via dei Crociferi. It is right in the heart of the city but in a quiet, traffic-free area. In general, this is one of the best places to stay in Catania for families. You’ll be within walking distance of all major attractions.
Getting Around Catania
Catania’s city center is easy to explore on foot. Via Etnea, the main street, has wide sidewalks and is partly pedestrianized, making it stroller-friendly.
Some streets in the historic center are a bit uneven, but nothing too challenging.
If it’s hot or the kids are tired, consider a hop-on hop-off bus. It’s a convenient way to see more with less walking. Book your tickets here
Things to Do in Catania with Kids: Day 1
Before you start exploring, we highly recommend a guided “play tour” with Sicily Voyages. This fun, family-friendly visit made our stay much more enjoyable. It taught us things we never would have discovered alone and gave us great tips for the rest of our trip.
Start Your Catania Adventure… with an Arancino
The very first thing you must do in Catania—just as we did—is grab an arancino and enjoy it while looking at Mount Etna in the distance.
Note: Here, it is called arancino (ending in ‘o’), unlike in nearby Palermo where it is arancina. We “sacrificed” ourselves to test several spots for you. Here below there’s our list.
After whetting your appetite—be sure to scroll to the end of the article for more food tips—let’s get back to exploring Catania in three days.
Here are the must-see highlights for your first day in the city.
Via Etnea
Via Etnea is the city’s main street, lined with elegant buildings and shops. Even just the stretch from Villa Bellini to Piazza Duomo is worth strolling.
You’ll pass Piazza dell’Università with its distinctive bronze lampposts. Along the way, stop for a quick snack—another arancino or some gelato.
You’ll immediately notice the black lava stone used for streets and buildings. It tells the story of Catania’s deep connection with Mount Etna.
Piazza Duomo
At the end of Via Etnea lies Piazza Duomo. Here you’ll find the city’s icons: the elephant obelisk (known as u Liotru), the Palazzo degli Elefanti (City Hall), and the beautiful Amenano Fountain.
The Cathedral of Sant’Agata
Located in the main square, this cathedral is dedicated to Sant’Agata, the city’s patron saint. The building is a Baroque masterpiece, rebuilt after the 1693 earthquake on the site where the martyr died in 251 AD.
Underground Catania
We have always had a passion for underground cities. When we discovered that Catania also offers a chance to explore beneath the streets, we went to find it immediately. Surprisingly, everything is very accessible and easy to reach.
- The first stop in underground Catania is the Achillian Baths, located directly under the Cathedral of Sant’Agata. The entrance is to the right as you enter the gate in front of the cathedral. With an affordable ticket, you descend through a long tunnel leading to ancient Roman thermal chambers.
- The Amenano River flows beneath the city and is visible on the surface at the fountain in Piazza Duomo. To see it underground, head to Piazza Currò. Here, you’ll find a bar with a bohemian vibe called “L’Ostello.” By asking the bartender and paying a small fee of €1 per adult (free for kids), you can descend a staircase to see the river flowing in the opposite direction of the sea. it is a truly unique experience.
- Some Roman sites, like the amphitheater in Piazza Stesicoro, are only visible from above. However, consider that the part hidden below street level is still massive; it was once second only to the Colosseum in Rome.
- You can see other ancient parts of the city during a visit to the Benedictine Monastery, which is absolutely unmissable—we will tell you more about it shortly. Other visitable areas of underground Catania include Gammazita’s Well, the Crypt of Saint Euplius, and the Grotto of San Gaetano. These are not always open to the public, so check the “Catania Sotterranea” website to see available guided tours.
La Pescheria (The Fish Market)
The fish market is a must-see. It is a sensory explosion of colors, shouting vendors, and authentic atmosphere. It’s a great place to see local life and find affordable, fresh food away from tourist traps.
Even if you don’t eat here, the colors, voices, and atmosphere make it unmissable.
Panoramic Views of Catania from Badia di Sant’Agata
One of the best things to do in Catania in three days is seeing the city from above. The most beautiful panoramic view is from the dome of the Badia di Sant’Agata. It is located behind the Cathedral, with the entrance on Via Vittorio Emanuele II.
With an entry ticket (€5 in 2024, for adults only), you climb a series of staircases to reach the terrace. Be careful, as the stairs are narrow and used for both going up and down.
From the top, the entire city lies at your feet. You can see the sea on one side and Mount Etna on the other, which might be smoking or still covered in snow. We highly recommend visiting at sunset.
Exploring Catania with Kids: Day 2
Via dei Crociferi
Start your second day with a breakfast of brioche and granita before walking down Via dei Crociferi. In less than 200 meters, you will see four stunning churches packed together: San Francesco Borgia, San Benedetto, San Francesco d’Assisi, and San Giuliana.
Monastery of the Benedictines
For us, this was the most surprising discovery in Catania. We still wonder why it isn’t promoted more. The recommendation came from Elena of Sicily Voyages, who during our kid-friendly guided tour shared many useful tips for continuing to explore the city on our own.
The Monastery of the Benedictines—whose full name is Monastery of San Nicolò l’Arena—was built in 1558 to house the sons of Catania’s noble families who had become monks. Rather than a traditional monastery, it feels like a royal palace, both in size and in the grandeur of some of its rooms. At its peak, the complex covered nearly 100,000 square meters and housed about 50 monks and more than 200 staff members.
Destroyed by the 1693 earthquake and rebuilt a few years later, the monastery is now home to the University of Catania. However, it can be visited through guided tours offered almost daily at different times. The tour is well organized and engaging. You’ll walk among students, past university classrooms, the cafeteria, and even the underground library spaces.
Over the course of about two hours, you’ll explore rooms from different historical periods. You’ll also descend into the library area to see the remains of a Roman building—a domus decorated with beautiful mosaics.
Children are given a small illustrated map with explanations designed just for them, which is much appreciated. The guides also make an effort to involve kids with simple explanations and small interactive activities.
We highly recommend it as one of the top family things to do during three days in Catania with kids.
To book a visit—always recommended—check the official website.
Piazza and Teatro Massimo Bellini
This elegant, centrally located square is dominated by the Teatro Massimo Bellini, Catania’s opera house, named after the city’s most famous composer.
The Roman Theater
The Roman Amphitheater in Piazza Stesicoro, also known as the “Black Colosseum,” has unfortunately been closed for years and can only be viewed from above.
However, you can visit the Roman Theater, with its entrance at Via Vittorio Emanuele 260. We weren’t able to go inside, but from what we’ve read, it is well preserved and worth seeing.
Castello Ursino
Castello Ursino was the ancient residence of the Aragonese family, rulers of Sicily. Although it was originally built on a cliff overlooking the sea, the 1669 lava flow gradually pushed the coastline farther away.
The castle survived almost miraculously—like the Monastery of the Benedictines—both the 1669 eruption and the devastating 1693 earthquake. Today it houses the Civic Museum, with a rich collection of archaeological artifacts, ancient religious art, and temporary contemporary exhibitions.
To be honest, the castle itself is beautiful, but the museum is quite traditional and not very interactive. For children, it may feel a bit boring unless you turn the visit into an imaginative exploration of an ancient castle. We recommend visiting if you have extra time or if the weather doesn’t allow for outdoor walks or day trips.
What to See in Catania in Three Days: A Day Trip to Mount Etna
You can’t visit Catania without going up Mount Etna. Period.
The black volcanic soil, the bright green vegetation emerging from it, and the thrill of walking on a volcano—or even rolling down its slopes—make it unforgettable.
Climbing a volcano over 3,000 meters high might sound complicated. But even with children, you can enjoy incredible experiences that younger kids love too.
Our first advice is to consult your pediatrician about the appropriate altitude for your children’s age. With our two-year-old, we were advised not to exceed 2,600 meters (about 8,500 feet), so we skipped the cable car that goes higher.
How to get to Mount Etna?
After asking for information, we learned that public transportation exists but is limited. In our opinion, when visiting Catania with kids, the best options are two: if you have a car, you can explore independently (which is why we recommend renting one at the beginning); alternatively, you can book an organized tour with transportation included.
In the first case, you can choose either the north or south side of Etna, where you’ll find great trails and beautiful landscapes to explore.
Alternatively, there are many tour operators. Some are specifically designed for kids, while others are more general, but the guides usually know how to adapt their explanations for younger visitors.
Organized tours (half or full-day) also have the advantage of taking you to places that are hard to reach alone, like a lava tube cave, complete with helmets. Guides enrich the experience with explanations and even small experiments. Ours, for example, used a thermal scanner to explain to Tommaso (and to us!) how volcanoes work.
If you have extra time and are on the north side of the volcano, don’t miss the stunning Alcantara Gorges. They were formed when lava cooled rapidly, creating dramatic rock formations.
There’s an entrance fee, often included in organized tours. You can swim in the river or simply dip your feet in the water—although be prepared, it’s very cold.
Which tour do we recommend? The Viaggiapiccoli family has tried several, and these are our suggestions:
- With Claire in Sicily
- With Sicily Voyages for a “play tour” on Etna
- Not specifically for kids, but still very suitable: Etna Experience (Etna and Alcantara Gorges)
What and where to eat in Catania
We’ve reached the end of this guide, so you’ve earned our tested list of places to eat in Catania.
We arrived well prepared on this front, with a clear plan. Here are our recommendations.
Where to eat the best arancini in Catania
A necessary disclaimer: it’s a matter of taste. Every arancino we tasted was delicious, but here are our favorites:
- Spinella: On Via Etnea. The pistachio one was excellent, but the others are great too.
- Savia: Right next to Spinella; they are the city’s historic rivals. For us, the “al burro” (butter) arancino is unbeatable for pure indulgence.
- Prestipino: Another historic spot near the Duomo. The ragù arancino was particularly rich.
- Canusciuti: A modern, youthful spot. We loved the “Catanese” with eggplant and buffalo stracciatella. Try the sweet versions too: the pistachio one is delicious.
- Scirocco: Something different. Located inside the Fish Market, it’s famous for fried fish but also offers fish arancini served in cones of four flavors. They are smaller than the classic size and very tasty.
These are, in our opinion, among the best arancini in Catania, though we still had others on our list to try… give us time! Our family is divided between Team Ragù and Team Butter (with cheese and ham). Which side are you on?
So, have we convinced you that visiting Catania with kids is absolutely worth visiting for three full days?
