Isole Eolie

The Aeolian Islands, also called Lipari Islands, are all of volcanic origin and are an archipelago belonging to the Aeolian Arc located in the southern Tyrrhenian Sea opposite the northern coast of Sicily at Cape Milazzo and are part of the metropolitan city of Messina. Since 2000 they have been a UNESCO heritage site and this archipelago is a very popular tourist destination that attracts many visitors.

The Aeolian islands which form an archipelago are made up of seven actual islands, to which are added islets and rocks emerging from the sea. Of volcanic origin, the archipelago includes the two active volcanoes of Stromboli and Vulcano and various phenomena of secondary volcanism. The seven islands are: Lipari; Salina, with the Scoglio Faraglione; Vulcano, at the southern end of the archipelago; Stromboli, with the islet of Strombolicchio, at the north-east end of the archipelago; Filicudi; Alicudi, at the western end of the archipelago and Panarea, also sought after by well-known showbiz personalities and full of action in the hottest periods of the season, with the islets Basiluzzo, Dattilo and Lisca Bianca.

These wonderful islands, when visibility is excellent and there is no haze, are visible from much of the Tyrrhenian coast of Sicily and the southern part of the Calabrian coast. The islands are easily reachable by ferry or hydrofoil from Cefalù, Capo d'Orlando, Patti, Vibo Valentia, Messina, Milazzo, Palermo, Sant'Agata di Militello, Salerno, Reggio Calabria, Tropea, Naples and Cetraro. The different "cultures" of the Aeolian archipelago are attested and illustrated in the Aeolian Regional Archaeological Museum, which houses finds from the prehistoric to the Greco-Roman and medieval ages illustrated by specialist and educational texts, and in its two branch offices which are located in Filicudi and Panarea.