West Coast Sicily Day 14 Trapani beaches

Trapani has a beautiful historical centre and is an ideal base to visit the surrounding area but a quick look at the map of the city also reveals that the north coast is full of beaches. So, is Trapani a good place for enjoying the beach? We have explored Trapani's beaches.

Torre di Ligny is located where the two seas of Trapani meet and has a small and rocky cove of flat rocks which provides access to the sea. There are always a few people sunbathing or fishing, but it's more a place for pottering around among the rocks. Rubber shoes would be useful. We walked around and explored and watched the fisherman and sat and read on the benches but didn't venture into the water from there.

The Mura di Tramontana beach is located under the walls of ancient Trapani and can be accessed from Porta Ossuna or from steps that descend from the promenade on the walls. The beach is quite small but the water looks transparent. A bit too overlooked for our liking, we didn't go down.

The main beach used by tourists is the one in front of Piazza Vittorio Emanuele, it's clean, the sand is nice and the water is shallow, it's a free beach and a little further along there are beach facilities where you can rent sun loungers and umbrellas. We were there at the beginning of October and the weather was definitely warm enough for enjoying the beach. 

After that the further you go along the beach, the less inspiring it becomes, narrower and especially not so clean, perhaps because it's low season.

However, this is Sunday morning and we set off from Piazza Vittorio Emanuele along the sea front at a brisk pace and in good company of quite a few other people out walking, jogging or running. Our destination is Lido San Giuliano and it's quite a long walk but that's the whole idea.

About half way there we meet two or three dogs which greet us joyously and unfortunately decide to accompany us. We try crossing the road to lose them, but they cross with us and when we cross back again look at us reproachfully and follow us patiently. Oh dear, a stop on the beach with three dogs is not enticing! Also, talking of reproachful looks, other people coming in the other direction with and without dogs on leads also look at us reproachfully for  such unsociable behaviour. Yes, but they're not my dogs! We go past a shopping centre and some wasteland but the dogs seem to have decided it's their duty to keep us company. Finally , when we have given up hope it's the beach itself to save us. As soon as we reach the beach they zoom off towards the waves and we accelerate along the promenade and manage to lose them.

We carry on right down to San Giuliano and past the luxury hotel where our Airbnb host works, there's also a small public park near the windmill. Having safely lost the dogs we walk back along the beach and find a strategic position a little way from the hotel facilities. 

The beach is clean, the sand is nice and the water shelves gently making it perfect for the uncertain swimmer. San Giuliano is undoubtedly the best beach area in Trapani and we spend most of the rest of the morning there before walking back home. We walked both ways and enjoyed it despite our canine company but San Giuliano is also easily reached by a short bus  ride from Trapani.

The dogs are the other side of the road at the point we originally met them but there's quite a bit of traffic now and they fortunately decide not to bother.

We have a late lunch and a rest and then pack and tidy up the apartment. Later we venture out for a last ice-cream and stroll around Trapani. As we come out of church it starts to rain and we scurry home, we have been so lucky with the weather, the smell of the rain in the warms streets is refreshing, it's time to move on tomorrow.