An Authentic Sicilian Hill Town Far Off Tourists' Radar Is A Picturesque Foodie Haven

"I'm an American hiding in Sicily. My name is Michael Corleone. There are people who'd pay a lot of money for that information." If you know those lines from The Godfather film, then you surely know the Sicilian town of Corleone, where the fictional mafia boss Michael Corleone sought refuge. But you may be pleasantly surprised at what you find in this authentic corner of Sicily. 

Corleone has long lived under the shadow of the fictional and real Sicilian mafia. It is now trying to change the script with sites that address Corleone's mafia history but also show a different side of this traditional hill town. Atmospheric churches, a nobleman's house, and a family-run vineyard are all sights to see. Corleone is less than 40 miles south of Palermo, an hour's car ride that makes a nice day trip from the city or a stopover to another part of Sicily.  

In the 1970s and '80s, Corleone became the epicenter of a brutally violent mafia clan that took decades to root out. Corleone is now home to CIDMA, the International Documentation Center on the Mafia and Anti-Mafia movement. Through a guided tour of the center, visitors learn how ordinary citizens fought back, including Italian judge Giovanni Falcone who was murdered in 1992 by a massive car bomb. "Be aware that this museum doesn't present stories like Hollywood," wrote visitors Darah and Garrett on their travel blog Where Food Take Us. "Instead, you're exposed to the real terror the inhabitants lived through during that time as well as the prosecutors who brought justice. It's worth a stop in Corleone just for this museum!"

Laboratorio della Legalità of Corleone also documents this mafia violence through the eyes and art of its citizens. Colorful murals and paintings show the brutal reality far beyond the glamour of Hollywood. Tour guides give context and explain the historical events that inspired the artwork.

Corleone inevitably attracts fans of The Godfather film trilogy, even though director Francis Ford Coppola filmed his epic saga on the other side of Sicily, not Corleone. Despite its name, The Godfather's House, a restored residence of Italian nobility, was never used as a location in any of Coppola's movies. It is, however, an atmospheric time capsule, a tour of Corleone's history from the medieval era through the Renaissance, the mafia wars, and into the modern era.

While the beaches of Sicily are renowned for plentiful seafood and picturesque coves, the rolling hills of the island's interior also have plenty to offer. Principe de Corleone is a winery run by the Pollara family about 6 miles north of Corleone, just a 15-minute drive away. Owners Vincenzo and Lea Pollara told online wine magazine Wine Meridian of their commitment to wine tourism or "enotourism" in the area. "We strongly believe in the connection between our business and the surrounding territory. We think that enotourism could be a nice instrument to let tourists and travelers live an unforgettable experience in Sicily, discovering real colors, flavors, and scents of our land." They manage nearly 500 acres of vineyards, growing the local Cataratto and Nero D'Avola grapes as well as international varietals Syrah, Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc, and others. Their winery is open for tours and wine tastings. If you book ahead, you can pair your wines with traditional Sicilian dishes prepared by their chef for a special treat.

Fortunately, you don't have to be an American fugitive to appreciate the charms of Sicily. The city of Palermo is the best base to explore small Sicilian towns like Corleone. For similar excursions into Sicily's interior, consider a day trip to the medieval village of Gangi and discover a world beyond Hollywood's depictions of this storied Italian island.