In Trapani you will find shops for all tastes
If shopping is your passion and you’re looking for bargains, Trapani offers a wealth of opportunities to give free rein to your urge to shop. You will realise this as you wander around its streets, where you will find shops for all tastes: from high-fashion boutiques to artisan workshops, from jewellers to shops selling local products. It is practically impossible to go home without buying something.
Fashion
If you love fashion in the heart of the city of Trapani, and precisely inside a beautifully restored historical building along Via Torrearsa, you cannot miss the Modes boutique, one of the coolest shops in Italy, for high-fashion shopping between haute de gamme style and the latest trends. The boutique is distinguished by its styling proposals and extremely careful selection of garments and accessories from more than 300 designers, including historic brands and new talents, in a product assortment that is never predictable and constantly evolving, designed around the key pieces of the season’s women’s, men’s and children’s collections. Chloé, Givenchy, Balenciaga, Burberry, Lanvin, Fendi, Versace, Jimmy Choo, Valentino, Saint Laurent, Alexander McQueen and Stella McCartney are just some of the brands you can find.
Fashion
If you love fashion in the heart of the city of Trapani, and precisely inside a beautifully restored historical building along Via Torrearsa, you cannot miss the Modes boutique, one of the coolest shops in Italy, for high-fashion shopping between haute de gamme style and the latest trends. The boutique is distinguished by its styling proposals and extremely careful selection of garments and accessories from more than 300 designers, including historic brands and new talents, in a product assortment that is never predictable and constantly evolving, designed around the key pieces of the season’s women’s, men’s and children’s collections. Chloé, Givenchy, Balenciaga, Burberry, Lanvin, Fendi, Versace, Jimmy Choo, Valentino, Saint Laurent, Alexander McQueen and Stella McCartney are just some of the brands you can find.
Handicrafts
If, on the other hand, you are looking for something truly Sicilian, you should know that Trapani can boast a glorious craft tradition represented in particular by thecoral artwhose history has very distant origins: already in the 12th century, the most famous of the Arab geographers, al-Idrisi, in his work ‘The Book of Roger’, describing the city of Trapani, extolled the fine quality of Trapani’s red coral. Heir to this prestigious tradition of Trapani coral craftsmanship is Platimiro Fiorenza, the artist who is now referred to as ‘l’ultimu mastru curaddaru’. Among its many awards, it boasts the prestigious recognition bestowed on it by Unesco, joining the Register of Sicily’s Intangible Heritage in the list of Living Human Treasures. The Fiorenza family has been running a historic jewellery shop on Via Osorio, Rosso Corallo, since 1921. They make wonderful handcrafted creations using high quality raw materials. At the jeweller’s, you can personally meet the master at work. Guided tours are also offered.
Combining two historical traditions from Trapani, coral and salt, architect and designer Daniela Neri has been creating her salt corals for more than twenty years, charming jewellery and objects, all strictly handmade, that look like coral creations, but are not. His creations can be found and purchased in several shops in Trapani and at the Ettore and Infersa saltworks in Marsala.
Along Corso Italia in Trapani is the Laboratorio d’Arte Leonardo da Vinci, where Trapani artist Giovanna Colomba deals with art at 360°, from the production of paintings to the creation of typical Sicilian ceramics. In the workshop you can admire numerous paintings made using various techniques and on different surfaces, including bags, T-shirts, canvases, ceramics and much more. He also works on commission and the works can be sent directly to your home. The artist recently opened a second atelier in Via Torrearsa, the Colomba art gallery, which aims to be the centre of the city’s cultural life.
Handicrafts
If you like ceramic handicrafts, we recommend a visit to the charming village of Erice: Erice ceramics are distinguished from all other Sicilian ceramics by their soft pastel colours and elaborate designs. Made entirely by hand using techniques dating back to the 15th century, it produces products of considerable value. Among the most popular objects are Moorheads, hand-painted ornamental ceramic vases representing the face of a man and a woman, often richly adorned with jewellery and fruit. Also known as ‘graste‘, these shapes originate from a macabre legend involving a young Moor and a beautiful Sicilian maiden. Another very characteristic ceramic object is the pine cone, which Sicilian folk tradition considers it useful to give as a gift as a wish for health and good luck. Where to buy ceramics in Erice? From Ceramica Ericina in Via Guarnotti or from Altieri Erice in Via Cordici.
Erice is also famous for the textile handicraft of the frazzate, carpets made from brightly coloured scraps of fabric created by the imagination and manual skill of women who still weave on ancient looms and who have always tried to pass on and preserve the memory of ancient knowledge. In ancient times, nothing was thrown away and even old rags were reused to make these multicoloured carpets, which in dialect are also called ‘trappeti’, i.e. folk carpets. Where to buy them? From Trizza & Lizzu in Via Gian Filippo Guarnotti in Erice or from Antichi Intrecci in Via Piano Neve in Buseto Palizzolo.
Handicrafts
If you like ceramic handicrafts, we recommend a visit to the charming village of Erice: Erice ceramics are distinguished from all other Sicilian ceramics by their soft pastel colours and elaborate designs. Made entirely by hand using techniques dating back to the 15th century, it produces products of considerable value. Among the most popular objects are Moorheads, hand-painted ornamental ceramic vases representing the face of a man and a woman, often richly adorned with jewellery and fruit. Also known as ‘graste‘, these shapes originate from a macabre legend involving a young Moor and a beautiful Sicilian maiden. Another very characteristic ceramic object is the pine cone, which Sicilian folk tradition considers it useful to give as a gift as a wish for health and good luck. Where to buy ceramics in Erice? From Ceramica Ericina in Via Guarnotti or from Altieri Erice in Via Cordici.
Erice is also famous for the textile handicraft of the frazzate, carpets made from brightly coloured scraps of fabric created by the imagination and manual skill of women who still weave on ancient looms and who have always tried to pass on and preserve the memory of ancient knowledge. In ancient times, nothing was thrown away and even old rags were reused to make these multicoloured carpets, which in dialect are also called ‘trappeti’, i.e. folk carpets. Where to buy them? From Trizza & Lizzu in Via Gian Filippo Guarnotti in Erice or from Antichi Intrecci in Via Piano Neve in Buseto Palizzolo.
Typical Products
If you are a gourmand and want to buy something typical, the towns of Trapani are known for the traditional mattanza, an ancient tuna fishing method developed in tuna fisheries. So, you cannot go home without buying at least one of the delicious tuna products. We recommend the companies: La Bottarga di Tonno in Custonaci and Nino Castiglione in Erice. Another local excellence is extra virgin olive oil, which you can buy at the Baglio Ingardia farm located in Porticalazzo Paceco, at the foot of Mount Erice. Typical of the Trapanese tradition are the busiate, a type of fresh pasta with a hollow spiral shape in the centre to be enjoyed strictly with Trapanese pesto, a delicious condiment made with almonds, basil, olive oil, fresh tomatoes and garlic. Busiate can be bought in Trapani at Il Tortellino in Via G.B. Fardella or at Arte Pasta in Via Giuseppe Errante. If, on the other hand, you love quality wines, you cannot miss the Fondo Antico winery located in the Rilievo district of Trapani. In addition to purchasing the fine wines, it is also possible to take part in visits and tastings.
Sweets
As for desserts, a stop at Pasticceria Maria Grammatico in Erice is a must. Ms Grammatico, Sicily’s most famous confectioner and the inspiration behind the book ‘Bitter Almonds. Una storia siciliana tra ricordi e ricette’ by Mary Taylor Simeti, inherited all the secrets on how to process and make almond sweets from the cloistered nuns of Erice, the first to experiment with the almond-sugar combination. If you want to taste a handmade cannolo made to perfection, you are spoilt for choice. The ones from Dattilo and Napola are very famous, made with ricotta cheese that is obviously fresh and still raw, while in the city you can find the traditional ones, with ricotta cheese sifted with sugar. By no means should you miss the cannoli from the Euro Bar in Dattilo, considered by many to be the best in the world. If you have a sweet tooth for chocolate, you must go to Vito Allotta‘s workshop in Via Argentieri in Trapani, the first producer in western Sicily of ‘From Bean To Bar’ chocolate, made from raw cocoa beans from selected varieties in South America. Finally, anyone coming to Trapani must not miss a visit to Pasticceria Colicchia in the historic centre and have a fresh snack of its legendary granitas, served with brioche or aniseed biscuits.
So, are you ready to go on a shopping spree in Trapani?
Sweets
As for desserts, a stop at Pasticceria Maria Grammatico in Erice is a must. Ms Grammatico, Sicily’s most famous confectioner and the inspiration behind the book ‘Bitter Almonds. Una storia siciliana tra ricordi e ricette’ by Mary Taylor Simeti, inherited all the secrets on how to process and make almond sweets from the cloistered nuns of Erice, the first to experiment with the almond-sugar combination. If you want to taste a handmade cannolo made to perfection, you are spoilt for choice. The ones from Dattilo and Napola are very famous, made with ricotta cheese that is obviously fresh and still raw, while in the city you can find the traditional ones, with ricotta cheese sifted with sugar. By no means should you miss the cannoli from the Euro Bar in Dattilo, considered by many to be the best in the world. If you have a sweet tooth for chocolate, you must go to Vito Allotta‘s workshop in Via Argentieri in Trapani, the first producer in western Sicily of ‘From Bean To Bar’ chocolate, made from raw cocoa beans from selected varieties in South America. Finally, anyone coming to Trapani must not miss a visit to Pasticceria Colicchia in the historic centre and have a fresh snack of its legendary granitas, served with brioche or aniseed biscuits.
So, are you ready to go on a shopping spree in Trapani?
