Piano Battaglia, a fraction of Petralia Sottana

Battle Plan

In the Madonie area, a hamlet of Petralia Sottana is very famous: Piano Battaglia, a mountain resort that has seen a very important influx of tourists in recent years. It is a place waiting to be discovered: in the following guide there are some indications on what not to miss during a weekend in this mountain town.

A fraction of Petralia Sottana: the Battle Plan

Piano di Battaglia is a hamlet of Petralia Sottana and is considered the ideal place to experience the mountains in Sicily. One of the most particular aspects of this area is the climate as in summer it is pleasantly warm while in winter it is they also reach two degrees below zero. This allows you to have snow-capped peaks and be able to ski and carry out all the other activities that you usually think you can do in the mountains.

Today it is a place much appreciated not only by people Palermo and the Madonites but also by all those who want to experience an unusual mountain, made up of snow-capped mountains and paths along which to take walks, good food and luxury facilities that can also accommodate high-level tourism. Piano Battaglia, however, has the particularity of offering a solution for every need and for this very reason tourist flows increase significantly every year.

Among other things, in the immediate vicinity of Piano di Battaglia you can find many historical and cultural attractions, so it is not the classic mountain destination where you can only ski but also a place where you can find very interesting ideas for a truly complete holiday.

The history and development of Piano Battaglia

Piano Battaglia was discovered by winter tourism in fairly recent years. It dates back to early fifties, in fact, the construction of Marini refuge, a historic local institution as well as the first accommodation facility ready to welcome skiers who preferred these snowy slopes.
Until the Seventies, then, the area was affected by a process of construction of villas and residences in pure mountain style, which began to make it an ideal winter holiday destination for both Palermitans and Sicilians in general.

Between the mid-XNUMXs and the mid-XNUMXs, the first one was built Mufara cable car, then the two ski lifts of the same facility: this innovation began to make the resort known to an increasingly wider public and in a short time Piano Battaglia became the only ski resort located in Western Sicily.

In 2017, after a few decades of neglect, the area and the facilities underwent a major renovation project with the creation of a luxury resort and the expansion of the ski slopes. Today the area is the scene of numerous regional sporting events but is also much loved by simple tourists who want to experience the mountains in a different way.

What is possible to do in the surroundings of Piano Battaglia

Piano Battaglia is not only a renowned ski resort but is a place where you can discover many other beauties. For example, in the area there is a beautiful beech forest which is the ideal route for those who want to walk in nature and follow trekking.

Geology enthusiasts will also find a geological path that allows them to closely observe spectacular coral formations which in reality are nothing more than fossils from the Mesozoic period. The same path also crosses a so-called polje, which is a sort of karst hill, within which a sinkhole of truly remarkable depth has formed.

Finally, it should not be forgotten that Piano Battaglia is located in the immediate vicinity of Petralia Sottana where it is possible to visit some monuments of great historical and artistic value such as the Mother Church which is actually the Cathedral place that is dedicated to Our Lady of the Assumption, or the church of the Holy Trinity which has a beautiful inlaid door dating back to the fifteenth century.

In the church of Monte di Pietà, however, you can admire a huge and beautiful nativity scene that has been put together over the centuries. Finally, in the historical-ethnographic museum known as 'u Parmintieddu you can discover many secrets about Petralia Sottana.

How can you get to Piano Battaglia

To reach Piano Battaglia you need to take the A 19 motorway which connects Palermo to Catania. There are three possible reference exits, all convenient for reaching your destination easily: the first is Buonfornello after which it is necessary to continue on the SS 113; the second is that of Scillato, which continues on the Polizzi Generosa road until reaching its destination; finally the third is that of Tre Monzelli, from which you continue along the SS 120 which leads first to Petralia Sottana and then to Piano Battaglia.
The town is also connected by a private bus service that shuttles daily between Palermo, Villabate, Bagheria, Termini Imerese and Piano Battaglia.

© Andreadipiazza, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons; Peppesev, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons