Sicily · Siracusa
Buccheri
The highest village in the province of Syracuse at 820 meters on Monte Lauro, world capital of Tonda Iblea olive oil at the 2015 Sol d'Oro.
Known for
TONDA IBLEA
World Capital of Quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil at the 2015 Sol d'Oro in Verona; Monte Lauro DOP groves produce a peppery monocultivar oil.
MONTE LAURO
The highest peak of the Iblei at 986 meters rises directly above the village; central watershed for the Anapo, Tellaro and Irminio rivers.
NEVIERE
Ancient snow-storage caves in the surrounding hills, oldest in the Iblei, used for centuries to ice Syracuse and Catania granitas.
When to visit
Best · May–Oct
- J
- F
- M
- A
- M
- J
- J
- A
- S
- O
- N
- D
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
The festa: Sant'Ambrogio, 7 December
Why come
Buccheri sits on the northern slopes of Monte Lauro at 820 meters, the highest village in the province of Syracuse and one of the highest in the Iblei. Sicels, Greeks, Romans and Byzantines all left traces on the ridge above the village. The 1693 Val di Noto earthquake leveled most of what stood; the rebuild produced the high baroque façade of Sant'Antonio Abate at the top of its long staircase and the Chiesa di Santa Maria Maddalena, where a 1508 marble Magdalene by Antonello Gagini survived.
The neviere, snow-storage caves in the surrounding hills, are among the oldest in the Iblei and supplied granita ice to Syracuse and Catania into the early twentieth century. Buccheri took the title World Capital of Quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil at the 2015 Sol d'Oro competition in Verona, for its Tonda Iblea oil from the slopes around Monte Lauro. The Olio e non solo festival each October fills the village with producers and tastings.
The Sunday letter
We haven’t written Buccheri’s letter yet.
One town every Sunday, with the photo, the food, the festa. Be there when this one comes up. Free, by Peter & Sophia from Pietrasanta.
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What to see
Chiesa di Sant'Antonio Abate
Eighteenth-century baroque church at the top of a long staircase in the upper village, rebuilt after the 1693 earthquake destroyed the medieval original.
Chiesa di Santa Maria Maddalena
Baroque parish church with a façade by local architect Michelangelo Di Giacomo; holds a 1508 marble Magdalene by Antonello Gagini that survived the 1693 quake.
Monte Lauro
986-meter peak above the village, the highest point of the Iblei and the central watershed of southeastern Sicily; trails climb to the summit from the town.
Neviere di Buccheri
Snow-storage caves cut into the hills around the village, among the oldest in the Iblei, used for centuries to supply ice to lowland Sicilian cities.
The slow-trip planner
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Living here
- Population 1,729
- Off the beaten pathi
- Pharmacy in town
- Nearest high school over ~30 minutes away
- Nearest airport Sicily, 1 h 18 min drive
- Regional capital Palermo, 3 h 39 min drive
Tags & datadesignations · numbers · sources
Recognised as
The numbers
- Elevation: 820 m
- Population: 1,729
- Surface area: 57.83 km²
These figures were compiled from public directories — ISTAT, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata — and from the official listings of the guides named on this page. Town details change; verify with official sources before you travel.
Close by
More towns near Buccheri
Ferla
Province: Siracusa
A baroque village at 500 meters on the Monte Lauro slopes, the western gateway to the UNESCO necropolis of Pantalica eleven kilometers downhill.
Palazzolo Acreide
Province: Siracusa
The Iblei plateau's UNESCO Baroque + Greek twin — 8,000-resident hilltop town at 670m, founded over the Greek Akrai colony (664 BC), rebuilt entirely in late Baroque after the 1693 earthquake (inscribed on the Val di Noto UNESCO listing 2002), with the original Greek theatre + the unique Santoni rock carvings of Cybele just outside the modern centro.
Sortino
Province: Siracusa
The eastern gateway to UNESCO Pantalica at 438 meters in the Iblei, Sicily's city of honey and home of the stuffed Sortino pizzolo.
Catania
Province: Catania
Sicily's second city and the cultural anchor of the Ionian coast — a UNESCO late-Baroque centro storico rebuilt in lava-black stone after the 1693 earthquake, sitting at the foot of Etna with a 17th-century elephant fountain (U Liotru) as its civic symbol.
Caltagirone
Province: Catania
Sicily's ceramic capital at 611 meters on the Erei ridge, 142 majolica-tiled steps to Santa Maria del Monte and a Val di Noto UNESCO baroque rebuild.
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