18/07/2026
Marettimo is the westernmost and most mountainous of Sicily’s Egadi Islands — and it has much more than clear water.
I went around the island by boat, passing sea caves, steep limestone cliffs and small coves that are difficult or impossible to reach from land. The coastline is said to have more than 400 caves and rocky inlets, so seeing Marettimo from the water is almost essential.
The island was also strategically important for centuries. Around 150 BC, the Romans established a military post here to watch the sea routes between Rome and North Africa. Its remains, known as the Case Romane, still stand above the village beside a small church rebuilt during the Norman period.
On Punta T***a, there was once a Saracen watchtower. It was later fortified under the Norman king Roger II, and the site eventually became a castle and, for a time, a prison.
Today, Marettimo still has only one small village, while most of the island can be explored only on foot or by boat.
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