Marsala (Maissala in the local dialect, Marsala in Sicilian) is
an Italian town of 82 220 inhabitants. It is the first municipality
by population of the free municipal consortium of Trapani.
The city is famous for the landing of Garibaldi and the Thousand on
11 May 1860 and for the production of the homonymous Marsala wine,
for which, since 1987, it has been a City of Wine. It stands on the
ruins of the ancient Punic cities of Lilibeo (Lilybaeum in Latin),
from whose name comes the nickname of Lilibetani for its inhabitants
and of Mozia, located within the "Isole dello Stagnone di Marsala"
nature reserve.
Cathedral of St. Thomas of Canterbury - Mother Church: building
completed in the 17th century with the dignity of a cathedral, built on
a Norman layout dating back to 1176 on a basilica basis. It preserves an
organ with 4,317 pipes.
Church of Santa Maria dell'Itria: place of
worship dedicated to the Madonna Odigitria with adjoining convent of the
Fathers of the Order of barefoot Augustinians.
Church of the Carmine
and convent of the Order of the Blessed Virgin of Mount Carmel under the
title of the «Annunziata» (deconsecrated, now a representative office
and Municipal Art Gallery - Exhibition of contemporary painting)
Church of San Giovanni Battista.
Sanctuary of Maria Santissima della
Cava di Marsala.
Church of Purgatory, seat of the primitive
Congregation of the souls in Purgatory.
Church of San Giuseppe, built
by the Archconfraternity of San Giuseppe.
St. Matthew's Church.
Church of the Addolorata.
Church of San Pietro and monastery of the
nuns of the Benedictine Order. After decades of neglect, the buildings
have been renovated and transformed into a cultural center which
includes: the Salvatore Struppa Municipal Library, the Civic Museum
(Garibaldine Risorgimento section, archeology and popular traditions),
the International Center for Risorgimento Studies and the International
Phoenician - Punic and Roman.
Church of Sant'Antonino and convent of
the Franciscan Order.
Church of San Francesco d'Assisi and convent of
the Franciscan Order.
Church of Sant'Anna
Church of Santo Stefano
and monastery of the Reformed Augustinian Order. The church is part of
the monastic complex built between 1603 and 1607 on the site of the
ancient residence of the noble Ferro family, probably the seat of the
ancient Roman praetors - where Pontius Pilate also allegedly stayed -
then used by the Saracens as the seat of government. In the 16th century
the site was purchased by the grain merchant Stefano Frisella who,
embittered by the fact of not having had a male heir, founded a
monastery for his daughter Francesca, excluded, due to her bourgeois
origins, from the more prestigious monastery of San Pietro which it
welcomed only noble girls together with the monastery of San Girolamo.
Frisella entrusted the convent to the Augustinian Scalze, Francesca was
named abbess. The church with a single nave has a decorative stucco work
by the Marsala sculptor Vincenzo Giglio inspired by the style of Giacomo
Serpotta. Today the monastery houses the "Vincenzo Pipitone" school and
the "Giovanni XXIII" classical high school. Of the primitive building, a
tower on the corner between via Lombardi and via Frisella, and the
square cloister with portico are still preserved. The nuns' cells have
been transformed into classrooms.
Church of San Girolamo and
monastery managed according to the rule of Sant'Agostino (reformed
barefoot Augustinians). The institution welcomed orphan girls from noble
families. Work to build the monastery began on 12 September 1587. The
temple was destroyed by air raids on 11 May 1943. The archaeological
area of San Girolamo is located a short distance from the church of
Purgatorio, halfway along the axis that connects the Cathedral of San
Tommaso di Canterbury in Piazza Carmine.
Palazzo VII Aprile (16th/17th century), built on the site of the
previous Loggia dei Pisani.
Cine Teatro Impero, from the fascist era
Monument to the Thousand
Skyscraper building
Tonnara of San
Teodoro
Marsala Castle
Gates and fortified walls (Porta Garibaldi, Porta
Nuova)
Spanish military district (today seat of the town hall of the
municipality of Marsala)
Wine establishments
The production of wine on an industrial scale
was introduced in the city in 1773 by the Englishman John Woodhouse.
There are many important establishments including those of
Ingham-Whitaker, the Florio, Pellegrino, Cantine Bianchi and Donnafugata
cellars.
In the heart of the historic center stands the Archaeological Park of
Lilibeo, while 2 kilometers to the north is the Nature Reserve of the
Stagnone Islands, including the Island of Mozia. The city park,
bordering the historic center and located near Capo Boeo, in the
historic center, is an area facing the promontory, which overlooks the
sea, surrounded by the modern city and the seafront. In the historic
center of Capo Boeo, in the Portanuova district, there are important
archaeological remains: the "Roman Insula", dating back to the late
Roman-Imperial age (4th century AD) includes the remains of private
houses set in blocks between paved streets. The large rooms, which came
to light in 1939, have floors with rich mosaic decorations, depicting
fight scenes between wild animals and mythological figures. There is
also a spa environment. In the 2000s, after carrying out geomagnetic
prospecting throughout the area, the Superintendency of Trapani planned
new archaeological research in the state-owned area of Capo Boeo, which
documented the presence of an imposing paved road axis (the "Decumano
Massimo") . Furthermore, in 2005 a marble statue depicting Venus
Callipige (2nd century AD) was brought to light in the churchyard of San
Giovanni al Boeo, during the restoration works. The various stages of
construction of the church have been better clarified in relation to the
underground part, the so-called "Grotta della Sibilla", which
incorporates a fresh water spring, considered by scholars to be
fundamental for the foundation of the city of Lilybaeum. In July 2008, a
building dedicated to the cult of Isis was discovered, a fragmentary
marble statue depicting Isis, and several epigraphs: in one the presence
of a temple of Hercules is attested. The archaeological area of Porta
Nuova is destined to occupy a central position in the context of the
Punic cities of Sicily (Mozia and Lilibeo). Between 2007 and 2014 works
were carried out to enhance the archaeological park and the structures
of the Lilibeo Archaeological Museum at the Baglio Anselmi. In 2019, two
important mosaics were found in the basement of the Cine Impero, which
can be visited by accessing the Archaeological Park of Lilybaeum.
Archaeological sites:
Punic ship
Hypogeum of Crispia Salvia
(old court area)
Punic moat
Punic road to Linga island
Caves of
the Madonna della Cava
excavations of San Gerolamo
remains of
settlements at Porta Mazara
necropolis (Capo Boeo)
Baglio Anselmi
archaeological area
avenue Isonzio
via del Fante necropolis
piazza Peppino Impastato necropolis
Of great attraction is the regional nature reserve of the Stagnone
Islands which takes its name from the homonymous lagoon, as well as an
archipelago comprising several islands including Mozia.
The
Stagnone is a lagoon that has become a nature reserve because it is an
ideal habitat for reproduction and refreshment for many animal species;
among these the pink flamingos which increasingly – and in increasingly
numerous groups – choose the Stagnone and in particular the Isola Grande
(commonly known as Isola Lunga) as a resting place. The Stagnone is one
of the very few natural habitats in the world for Posidonia, a rare
quality of marine plant. Isola Lunga can be reached on foot from the
Birgi promontory, exactly from the ancient San Teodoro watchtower. On
the long island there is an abandoned Romanesque-style villa. The
archipelago of islets in front of the city of Marsala is completed by
the Schole, a very small islet where there are two buildings, in the
past used as a hospital for the city struck by the plague in medieval
times.
In 2015, on the occasion of Expo 2015, the salt marshes
and the lagoon of the Stagnone were chosen, through a competition
organized by Expo and FAI, as a place of the heart of Italians.
Baglio Anselmi Archaeological Museum. It is the largest museum in
Marsala, in terms of importance and number of exhibits. It was set up ad
hoc to house a find among the major attractions of Marsala, namely the
Punic ship of Marsala, a ship found at Punta Alga, on the north coast.
According to some studies it was used during the battle of the Egadi
islands, which concluded the first Punic war, according to others it was
a cargo ship. In addition to it there are numerous artifacts found in
the Marsala area and documentation on some Roman houses scattered around
the city, proof of the intense building activity that affected the town
during the Roman imperial age. The Roman ship of Marausa is also
preserved and exhibited in the museum.
Flemish Tapestry Museum, with
sets of 16th-century tapestries depicting the Jewish War
Baglio
Biesina Agriculture Museum, located in via Salemi to the east of the
city, is housed inside the Baglio Biesina, an ancient block surrounded
by a beautiful typically Sicilian garden, full of palm trees. Inside the
tools and utensils used by farmers, some dating back to the early
nineteenth century.
Civic Museum of Marsala:
Archaeological Museum
Section;
Giacomo Giustolisi Garibaldi Risorgimento Museum section
Section Museum of Popular Traditions:
Maundy Thursday Museum Section
of Marsala;
Sicilian Puppet Museum section ethno-andropological
section all sections housed in the monumental complex of San Pietro.
Municipal Art Gallery - Institution for the Exhibition of Contemporary
Painting of the City of Marsala, at the Carmine convent.
New
Municipal Art Gallery, at Palazzo Grignani.
New Garibaldi Museum,
hosted together with a conference room, the headquarters of the Pro Loco
and an infopoint at the Monumento ai Mille.
Wine Museum, housed
together with the municipal wine shop in Palazzo Fici.
Mirabile
museum of peasant traditions and arts - C.da Fossarunza, 198
Municipal Library "Salvatore Struppa";
Tree of Stories (children's
bookshop);
"Prof. Gianpietro Ballatore" library (library of the Abele
Damiani state agricultural technical institute).
Sacred traditions
Holy Week
On Holy Thursday the Procession of
the Living Mysteries takes place, an itinerant sacred representation
with nine groups of figures on the passion of Christ. The following day,
Good Friday, the Procession of the Dead Christ and Our Lady of Sorrows
takes place. Furthermore, for some years now the rites of Holy Week have
been enriched with new events. The evening city Via Crucis takes place
on the last Friday of Lent, on Palm Saturday there is the sacred
representation of Jesus' entry into Jerusalem, on Palm Sunday after the
Holy Mass there is the cutting of the statue of Our Lady of Sorrows
which then it will be carried in procession on Good Friday, while on
Holy Wednesday the Sacred representation of the last supper takes place.
Our Lady of the Quarry
January 19 in Marsala is a local and
patronal feast. On this date we celebrate the main patroness and special
protector of the city of Marsala, Maria Santissima della Cava. Every
year for January 19, the date of the discovery of the statue of the
Madonna della Cava, a procession takes place and the statue is carried
to the Cathedral of Marsala, where the solemn Eucharistic Celebration is
celebrated presided over by the Bishop of Mazara del Vallo and
concelebrated by the Archpriest of Marsala and by all the priests of the
forania. After mass, the statue is taken back to its shrine.
In
2018, on the occasion of the 500th anniversary of the discovery of the
statue, the final procession culminates for the first time with
pyromusical games. For the occasion, the extraordinary Marian jubilee of
the city of Marsala was announced, which ended on 19 January 2019. The
feast of the Municipal Police is also celebrated on 19 January, because
the Madonna della Cava has also been proclaimed Patroness of the Police
municipality of Marsala.
St. John Baptist
Every 24 June the
Municipality with the Parish of St. Thomas of Canterbury (Mother Church)
organizes the feast of St. John the Baptist co-patron of Marsala,
celebrations that include a procession that culminates with fireworks on
the city seafront. For some years the celebrations have been joined by
other events including conferences, debates on some current issues (such
as bullying, violence against women and feminicide), and musical
performances. Furthermore, every year the street markets are held on the
seafront. Each year the party has a different theme.
Cicero there was quaestor between 76 and 75 BC. when the city was
called Lilybaeum, and famous was the phrase he dedicated to the
city:
"Splendidas civitas Lilibetana"
"Splendid
Lilliputian city"
Because of his honesty and skill in his
work he was highly appreciated, and as he was also an excellent
lawyer he was recalled two years later for the lawsuit brought
against the owner Gaius Verre accused of stealing from citizens and
the state. This cause was won by Cicero. A half-length portrait of
Cicero is exhibited at the Lilibeo Baglio Anselmi Regional
Archaeological Museum and a street has also been named after him.
In the waters around its sea, in 241 BC, a naval battle of the
First Punic War was fought, of which the Punic ship of Marsala is
preserved in the Archaeological Museum Baglio Anselmi.
In 397
BC the Phoenician colony of Mozia, which flourished 8 centuries
before Christ on the island of Mozia, was invaded and destroyed by
the tyrant of Syracuse Dionysius I. The survivors took refuge on the
Sicilian coast and strengthened the coastal settlement to which they
first gave the name of Lebum which in Phoenician it means "towards
Africa" and then the name of Lilibeo, from Lilýbaion that is "the
city overlooking Libya", because Lybia was then called the whole
northern coast of Africa. Some very ancient local popular beliefs
link the name of Lilibeo to a Princess, daughter of a ruler of
Motya.
Lilibeo passed into the hands of the Romans, who
called it Lilybaeum, in 241 BC. to become one of the most important
centers of the Mediterranean: nucleus of trade and commerce, seat of
the praetor and the commissioner, it was enriched with villas and
public buildings, so as to deserve the appellation of splendidissima
urbs given to it by Cicero, quaestor between 75 BC that during his
operation in Lilybeo, he managed to drive out the viceroy Verre who
had brought Sicily and the Sicilians themselves to the limit. During
the war with the Romans, several sieges and battles went down in
history, which went down in history with the name of "Siege of
Lilibeo".
From the Arabs to the Spaniards
Devastated by
the Vandals at the beginning of the 5th century AD, it was annexed
to the Justinian empire in the 6th century and lived through dark
centuries, marked by the disinterest of Byzantium and by pirate
raids. The arrival in the eighth century of the Arab-Berbers under
the contiguous Mount Granitola also marked the resumption of
commercial traffic and the beginning of the rebirth of the city,
which was called مَرْسَى عَلِيّ (marsā ʿaliyy) that is "port of
Alì", site near Punta d'Alga, to then be called مَرْسَى اللّٰه
(marsā llāh) that is "port of God", even if it is a translation
error since the Arabs would never have named Allah's name in vain,
hence the current name. Economic and demographic growth led to an
important urban development, marked by the Arab model. From the end
of the 11th century, the Norman, Swabian, Angevin and Aragonese
dominations followed. Under the domination of the Spanish house,
Marsala was able to enjoy a period of development and well-being,
thanks to the port and the cultivation of the fertile hinterland.
The city experienced a new phase of expansion and became one of the
most important Sicilian strongholds. But the burial of the large
port of Punta d'Alga (today attributable to the stretch of water
located in front of the Salinella seafront), arranged in 1575 by the
Emperor Philip II to stop the Saracen raids, marked the end of this
flowering.
From the eighteenth century to the present day
From this moment it is necessary to wait two centuries to have
another turning point in the history of the city. At the end of the
eighteenth century the Englishman John Woodhouse considered the wine
produced by local farmers to be of excellent quality, defined in
perpetuum, given the use of topping up the barrels being emptied
with new wine, in order to keep the levels unchanged. Characterized
by a natural high alcohol content, the Marsala wine was not suitable
for transport and, to overcome the problem, Woodhouse successfully
experimented with the addition of high alcohol content, thus
guaranteeing its stability and creating Marsala. We owe to the
Woodhouses the explosion of the Marsala economy and the
implementation with their own funds of numerous infrastructural
works, including the current port.
Following the birth of the
Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, with a law passed on 11 October 1817,
King Ferdinand I of Bourbon included it in the Province of Trapani.
On 11 May 1860 the landing of Giuseppe Garibaldi with his
Thousand took place and from here began the unification of Italy.
Following the new reorganization into provinces of the kingdom, it
will be reinserted in the new Province of Trapani.
At the
beginning of the 20th century, Marsala was fertile ground for many
entrepreneurs interested in wine production, including the
Whitakers, the Inghams and the Florio's.
On 11 May 1943, an allied bombing raid on the town caused numerous casualties among civilians and permanently scarred the baroque historic center of the city. The May 13, 1943 edition of the New York Times reported the event with the title "Marsala Wiped Off the Map".
It rises on Capo Boeo and overlooks Favignana, with
the other Egadi Islands (Levanzo and Marettimo) a little further
away.
It boasts a very large territory, on which two large
geographically opposite sea coasts insist. The north coast, which
starts from Hangar Nervi and encloses the lagoon of the Stagnone
Islands ending in Birgi, and the south coast, of sandy formation
where the Sossio river flows in the immediate hinterland within the
urban area of Strasatti.
The hinterland develops around the
SS 188, towards Salemi, up to a metropolitan limit set by the Paolo
Borsellino hospital. Until the end of the 1970s, the fraction of
Petrosino (which later became an autonomous municipality with a
popular referendum, carried out on 1 July 1980) also counted within
its territory, and reached almost 95,000 inhabitants.
The
Marsala area is classified in seismic zone 2 (medium seismicity). In
the last 200 years, three medium-high intensity earthquakes have
been detected, including the Belice earthquake of 15 January 1968.
The climate is mild with peaks of 40 degrees in summer and rainy winters ranging from 0 to 17 degrees.
Christmas
During the Christmas holidays, the municipality sets up
the Christmas markets in Via Roma, the miniature nativity scene in the
excavations of San Girolamo (adjacent to Piazza Purgatorio) and in the
Convento del Carmine: "The Village of Santa Claus", created under the
patronage with the local proloco and in the Granatello district, the
living nativity scene is created.
Goblets of stars
Every year
in summer, the municipality together with the cellars organizes Calici
di stelle, an oenological event. Tastings are available.
CiancioFest
Every year in the Contrada Ciancio the CiancioFest event
takes place in August, a village saga where there are other events of
various kinds inside, and they are: a singing festival, a cake
competition, and sagas about some food products. Furthermore, in the
various evenings there is no shortage of concerts, musical performances,
theater and begin. The celebrations in honor of Maria SS. Mother of the
Church which include the scinnuta of the simulacrum, a novena and a
triduum, the procession and fireworks.
Marsala Expo
The
Marsala Expo is a trade fair held in the area used for the market, every
year in the month of October.
Garibaldi demonstrations
Every
year in the month of May, Garibaldi's demonstrations take place for a
week which recall the landing in Marsala of Giuseppe Garibaldi and the
Thousand which took place on 11 May 1860 and which culminate on that
day.
Anniversary of the Marsala bombings of May '43
Every year
on May 11, in addition to Garibaldi's demonstrations, the anniversary
ceremony of the bombings of Marsala which took place on May 11, 1943
takes place and which provide for the surrender of military honors to
the military and civilian dead of Marsala with the deposition of the
crown of laurel at the war memorial in Villa del Rosario and the
execution of the silence of the order, as well as conferences on the
Second World War.
Instruction
Given the strong winemaking and
agricultural vocation, agricultural education is guaranteed by an
agricultural technical institute with an Oenology School founded by the
Marsala patriot Abele Damiani and which bears the name of its founder,
and by a degree course in Viticulture and Oenology from the Department
of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Sciences (SAAFE) of the Polytechnic
School of the University of Palermo based in Marsala.
In the municipal area there are:
57 nursery schools;
41 primary
schools;
7 lower secondary schools;
8 upper secondary schools,
offering 10 different specialisations:
economic technical institute
for tourism (formerly commercial);
technological technical institute
(formerly industrial technical institute);
classical high school;
linguistic high school;
scientific high school;
high school of
human sciences;
Agricultural Technical Institute;
oenological
school (specialization course in Viticulture and Oenology and
oenological specialization of the agricultural institute);
professional institute for agriculture and the environment of Strasatti
(section of the agricultural institute - merged into the agricultural
institute in 2000);
professional hotel institute (section of the
agricultural institute)
From an urban point of view, Marsala is made up of heterogeneous and
different inhabited centers spread throughout its territory, such as to
define it as the only example of a city-territory in Sicily. About
35,000 inhabitants live in the city, while 47,000 are spread among the
hamlets and districts. They are distinguished:
the historic centre,
enclosed within the perimeter of the medieval city, where almost all the
monumental, cultural and administrative structures are located.
the
urban center, which grew up around the ancient historic center, which
extends south on the road to Mazara del Vallo up to the Casabianca
district, north on the road to Trapani up to the Santa Venera district,
east on the road to Salemi up to the San Sylvester.
the districts,
which constitute the real peculiarity of the municipal area. There are
about 100 of them and they are from 1 to 15 km from the centre. These
are residential areas that arise along the most important road axes
without interruption. Most of them have no real center, but wide roads
into which dozens of small inhabited streets lead to the so-called
"chianu" (in Italian, flat), i.e. a residential nucleus of ancient
houses facing a common square where a water well was located for the use
of the families who lived there.
The center of Marsala still
retains the original articulation of the road axis, developed according
to a typical design of the Hellenistic age (for strigas, parallel and
orthogonal streets, in contrast with the Roman model for cardi and
decumani).
This quadrilateral, formerly bounded by a wall of
which four sixteenth-century bastions remain, encloses the historic
center with the Spanish quarter, which today houses the offices of the
municipality. The current name of the Cassaro is Via XI Maggio. It is
the main street of the city and starts from Piazza Matteotti and ends at
Porta Nuova, one of the ancient gates of the city.
The origins of
the districts, on the other hand, date back to the end of the 19th
century and the beginning of the 20th century and originate from the
marked agricultural activity of the area; many peasants lived in the
center of the city but the agricultural estates were also hours away by
road that could be traveled with carts or donkeys and this constituted a
considerable logistical problem in periods of intense activity (grape
harvest, harvest, etc.); the need to stay in the place of activity for
long periods gave rise to the origin of the "chianu", a temporary and
subsequently definitive residential place from which the current
districts originate.
The territory of Marsala in 1978 was divided
into administrative districts due to the need to manage the
administration and services in a capillary manner over a very
articulated territory. The municipality was divided into 7 urban
districts and 7 extra-urban villages, later reduced to 5 (San
Leonardo-Birgi, Paolini-Bosco, Strasatti, Terrenove-Ciavolotto,
Amabilina-Ciancio) each consisting of a large number of districts. The
districts were then abolished in 2003.
A peculiarity of the municipal territory of Marsala is that it
includes a very high number of small inhabited areas that arise along
the most important road axes without interruption. Most of them have no
real center but have a "chianu" (in Italian piano, courtyard), that is a
common square around which the inhabited nucleus has extended. The
territory of Marsala includes over one hundred districts, more or less
inhabited due to their distance from the city, distinguishing between
them areas of building expansion in the immediate vicinity of the urban
center, villages welded to the city by urban expansion along the main
streets and more distant districts with a few scattered houses.
Below is a list of the traditional districts: Abbadessa, Addolorata,
Alfaraggio, Amabilina, Bambina, Baronazzo Amafi, Bellusa, Berbarello,
Berbaro, Biesina, Birgi Novi, Birgi Vecchi, Birgi Nivaloro, Bosco,
Bufalata, Buttagana, Canale, Capofeto , Cardilla, Carinume, Casabianca,
Casazze, Catenazzi, Guitar, Ciancio, Ciappola, Ciavolo, Ciavolotto,
Colombaio Lasagna, Conca, Cozzaro, Cozzogrande, Heart of Jesus, Cutusio,
Dammusello, Dara, Digerbato, Ettore Infersa, Falconiera, Florio, Fiumara
Sant'Onofrio, Fontana di Leo, Fontanelle, Fornara, Fossarunza,
Genodolfo, Giaccatello, Giammabella, Giardinello, Giunchi, Granatello,
Gurgo, San Pantaleo Island, Isola Grande, Santa Maria Island, La Scuola
Island, Madonna Cava Bufalata, Madonna dell 'Alto Oliva, Mamuna,
Mandriglie, Matarocco, Messinello, Misilla, Musciuleo, Nasco, Paolini,
Pastorella, Pecorume, Perino, Pellegrino, Pispisia, Ponte Fiumarella,
Porcospino, Pozzillo, Rakalia, Ranna, Rassameli, Rinazzo, Roccazzello,
Salvaggi, San Giuseppe Tafalia, San Nicola, San Silvestro,
Sant'Ambrogio, Sant'Anna, Santa Venera, San Filippo e Giacomo, San
Michele Refuge, San Leonardo, Santo Padre delle Perriere, Scacciaiazzo,
Sinubio, Spagnuola, Stazzone, Strasatti, Sturiano, Tabaccaro ,
Terrenove, Torrelunga Puleo, Ventrischi, Zizza.
The city's economy is still today strongly linked to wine-growing
activities, even if tourism has grown year by year in recent decades.
The industrial productions in the mechanical, metallurgical,
robotic-automatic and glass working sectors are important. Other
important industrial food productions concern the confectionery sector
and the production of coffee. As a side dish to wine and confectionary
production, numerous companies operating in food packaging have sprung
up in recent years. The agriculture of the Marsala hinterland, almost
monopolized by the vineyards, still leaves room for important tomato and
strawberry productions.
However, tourism, for years now, has
become a very important source of income for the city. With its 14 km of
coastline with fine white sand beaches, its crystalline sea, easy
connections with the adjacent Egadi Islands and the natural beauty of
the Saline and Stagnone, Marsala represents an important tourist resort.
Since 2009, "Siciliamoexpo" has been held, an exhibition in which
Sicilian food and wine, artisan and tourism companies and foreign buyers
are involved, organized by the Trapani Chamber of Commerce. The event
takes place in the historic center of Marsala, in Piazza della
Repubblica, in the month of June.
In 2013 it was named European
Capital of Wine. In 2015, the name of the city was combined with the new
color produced by the leading company in graphics and in the production
of Pantone color types, which created a new color based on the
homonymous wine produced in the country.
Local public transport
Local public transport is guaranteed by the
SMA (Servizio Municipale Autotrasporti Marsala) which manages the urban
buses that connect the various districts of the historic center and the
city center, and the peripheral and extra-urban areas of Marsala, the
hamlets and also the nearby city of Petrosino with the urban and
historical center of Marsala, with a bus station located in the city
centre.
Future realization
TIMAV Marsala Viagiatori Intermodal
Terminal (new bus station at the former railway station freight yard);
Surface light rail, with three stations and stops.
Road and rail
connections
Marsala is home to one of the major bus transport
companies serving the Trapani area. It is crossed in the north-south
direction by the SS 115 South Western Sicula state road which connects
it to the north with Trapani and the Marsala motorway junction on the
A29 motorway and to the south with Mazara del Vallo. The city is also
the starting point of state road 188 Centro Occidental Sicula which
crosses it in a west-east direction until it connects it with Salemi.
Both the SP.21 and the Scorrimento Veloce Marsala-Birgi connect the city
to the nearby Trapani-Birgi airport.
Highway 115 South Western
Sicula
State Road 188 Western Center of Sicily
Provincial road 21
Trapani-Marsala
Fast Scrolling Marsala-Birgi
The railway line
that crosses the city from north to south is part of the Alcamo
Diramazione-Castelvetrano-Trapani line. There are several train stops
within the Marsala area:
Mozia-Birgi
Spanish
Marsala
Terranova
Petrosino-Strasatti
Air and sea connections
The
city is served by the Vincenzo Florio airport (whose runway, in the west
end on the sea side, falls partly in the municipality of Marsala, while
the east end of the same runway and the terminal fall in the
municipality of Misiliscemi), with connections to major Italian and
European cities, about 13 km from the city centre.
From the port
of Marsala the only scheduled connections are the ferries to the Egadi
islands, which can also be easily reached by private boats.
The Sport Club Marsala 1912 football club has its headquarters in the
municipality, which competed in Serie C1 as its best result and which,
after its re-foundation in 2006, played in amateur championships.
Women's football is represented by the A.S.D. Marsala Calcio
Feminine, a club founded in 2000.
The city has 2 women's
volleyball teams: Marsala Volley, founded in 1972, which currently plays
in Serie A2 and Fly Volley Marsala which plays in Serie B2.
The
basketball team Pallacanestro Marsala, founded in 1972, is based in the
municipality, heir to the Fiamma Marsala company founded in the 1960s.
Marsala hosts the handball club A.S.D. The Youth. Sailing, Brazilian
jiu jitsu and kite surfing are also practiced.