The white marl cliff of Realmonte: how to visit it today, what you really see and where to get down to the sea.
Photo Enrico Strocchi, CC BY-SA 2.0
per person
Card only, at the entrance
opening time. Last entry at 19:40
the visit, in groups of 50 people
entries a day at most
The upper part is closed to visitors: you walk only on the lower area, along a fixed route
From the road you see it from above, but there is no direct entrance. This is the walk down to the rock, with the times reported by visitors.
Paid car parks, privately run according to guides and reviews, with very different rates.
A steep staircase down to the sea, or a paid Apecar (a small three-wheeled vehicle) to the start of the beach. According to one visitor the Google Maps pin is about 400 metres from the entrance: look for the Discesa Scala dei Turchi.
10 to 20 minutes on sand, with no shade.
You pay for the ticket at the entrance. Groups of 50 people every 20 minutes.
About 20 minutes on the open part. The steps above are closed and cannot be climbed.
Where to start, where to leave the car, when to go, where to swim and how to combine the visit with the Valley of the Temples.
Independent guide to Scala dei Turchi, the Turkish Steps near Agrigento: tickets, beach, how to get there, best time to go and tips before you visit.
Where to park for Scala dei Turchi: paid car parks, campervan areas, prices reported by visitors, the walk to the entrance and options without a car.
Best time to visit Scala dei Turchi, month by month: sunset times, weather, sea temperature, crowds and closures, and the best hour before the last entry.
Can you swim at Scala dei Turchi? The beach below the cliff, beach clubs, water quality, kids, and nearby beaches such as Lido Rossello and Giallonardo.
How far is Scala dei Turchi from Agrigento, how to get there by bus or taxi, and how to combine it with the Valley of the Temples in one day. Times, tips.
From Porto Empedocle to Eraclea Minoa it is 25 kilometres as the crow flies, past marl cliffs, watchtowers and nature reserves. The Scala is only the best-known spot.
Camilleri's Vigata, the harbour and the Tower of Charles V.
The archaeological park with the Greek temples.
WWF reserve: long beaches and loggerhead turtles.
The Greek theatre by the sea and the white marl of Capo Bianco.
5.3 millionyears: the age of the base of the Trubi, the white marl of this coast
Each pair of light and grey layers, about a metre thick, marks one cycle of the Earth's orbit of about 21,000 years. On these rocks geologists calibrated the time scale of the Pliocene.
