Experience package

Salt and Its Many Forms – From the Sea to the Table

Private tour in western Sicily

The story of the trip

We will see it born from the meeting of sea, sun and wind. We will meet those who still work in the salt pans today, discover why not all crystals are equal and follow salt out of the pans, to the kitchen and the ancient systems for preserving the catch.

We will cross Trapani, Paceco, Bonagia, Marsala and Mazara del Vallo to understand how this small white crystal has linked nature, food, trade and coastal communities. It will not be just a journey through the salt pans. It will be a journey to understand what happens after the sea becomes salt.

The programme

+Day 1 · Trapani and Paceco | Where the sea becomes salt

Arrival and check-in at the selected accommodation.

Our journey will begin in the Trapani and Paceco Salt Pans Nature Reserve. Before even talking about production we will observe the landscape: pans, canals, mills, white mountains and waterbirds.

We will understand that a salt pan is not simply a place from which salt is harvested, but a system built around the balance between sea water, evaporation, sun and wind.

The salt worker - The hands behind the landscape

Through a guided visit or a meeting with someone who knows this trade we will follow the path of the water through the different pans. Depending on the period and the availability of operators, we may also get close to the tools and gestures of salt-pan work.

Lunch will be devoted to local cooking and the area's products. In the afternoon, return to Trapani and time to get to know the historic centre and its relationship with the sea.

Dinner at leisure or traditional dinner depending on the formula chosen. Overnight stay in the Trapani area.

+Day 2 · Nubia and Bonagia | Salt preserves the sea

Breakfast and departure by private vehicle.

We will continue to follow salt, but this time we will look for it outside the pans.

We will reach the Nubia area and then Bonagia, an ancient fishing village tied to the history of the tuna traps.

Before refrigerators

We will discover one of the reasons why salt was so important for coastal communities: preserving what came from the sea.

Tuna, bottarga, fish and other preparations will let us understand how the availability of salt contributed for centuries to the transformation and preservation of food.

Through the spaces and testimonies linked to the tuna trap we will also get to know the world of the tonnaroti, the boats and the rais. When possible we will meet those who still keep the memory of local fishing.

The day will end with a gastronomic experience devoted to the catch and its preparations. Overnight stay in the Trapani/Valderice area.

+Day 3 · Marsala and the Stagnone | Hands in the salt

Breakfast and departure for Marsala.

We will reach the Stagnone, where shallow water, islands, salt pans and mills make up one of the most characteristic landscapes of the western coast.

From the sea to the crystal

We will enter a salt pan and follow the journey of the water again, this time exploring more deeply the stage at which the crystal is born.

Depending on the season we will be able to have two different experiences: Salt Workers for a Day, in the harvest period and according to the arrangements set by the operator, or Tasting Salt, with a guided tasting devoted to unrefined sea salt, fleur de sel and different grain sizes.

In the late afternoon we will wait for sunset in front of the salt pans.

Dinner at leisure and overnight stay in Marsala.

+Day 4 · Marsala | From the salt pan to the pantry

Breakfast.

Today salt will definitively enter the kitchen.

We will meet a chef, a traditional cook or a producer and tackle the subject of food preservation. Capers, olives, catch and other preparations may become concrete examples.

We will not just watch. Depending on the experience selected we may clean, prepare, salt or preserve a product.

White meets gold

In the afternoon we will enter a historic winery in Marsala. Salt and wine seem to belong to different worlds, but both have generated trade, work and relationships with distant lands.

The visit will end with a wine tasting accompanied by local products.

Overnight stay in Marsala.

+Day 5 · Mazara del Vallo | Salt meets the Mediterranean

Breakfast and departure for Mazara del Vallo.

We will cross the Kasbah and the historic centre, discovering a city in which fishing, cooking and the meeting of cultures have left deep traces.

We will then reach the harbour area.

The Mediterranean catch

When possible we will meet a fisherman or a figure tied to the local fishing fleet. We will talk about catch, seasonality, preservation and what happens before a product reaches the table. The final lunch will be devoted to seafood cooking.

Five days earlier salt was just an ingredient. Now it will be sea, wind, work, preservation, trade and cooking.

At the end, transfer to the agreed location and end of services.

The price includes

• 4 overnight stays with breakfast
• Private transfers provided in the programme
• Experiences in the salt pans
• Gastronomic experiences indicated
• Experience devoted to tuna-trap culture
• Hands-on experience on preservation
• Winery visit with tasting
• Meals expressly provided
• Sicilia da Scoprire organisation and assistance

The price does not include

• Travel to reach Sicily
• Airport transfers not expressly indicated
• Tourist tax
• Meals and drinks not included
• Optional insurance
• Tips and personal extras
• Everything not indicated under "What the price includes"

Accommodation

4 overnight stays in selected accommodation in the Trapani/Valderice and Marsala area.

Important to know

Activities in the salt pans are tied to seasonality and weather conditions. Salt harvesting is possible only in the periods and in the ways set by the operators. Meetings with salt workers, fishermen, cooks and producers depend on their actual availability.

Would you like to enjoy this package?

Tell us the dates of your trip and the number of travellers: we will check the availability of the experiences, the accommodation and the private services and prepare a proposal built around the needs of your trip.