Brolo is a small coastal town in the province of Messina, set on Sicily’s Tyrrhenian shore between the sea and the Nebrodi mountains. Its shape is part of its character: an older walled upper village of narrow lanes and stairways rises above a lower town by the water, with a broad plain of gardens sloping toward the coast.
The name comes from the Latin *Brolium*, meaning “park”, while tradition traces the settlement’s foundation to the 11th century, when the Primati di Sicilia family established it around a coastal defensive stronghold. Brolo’s position made it a lookout over a wide stretch of the Tyrrhenian coast, and its medieval identity was later reshaped by families including the Aragona, Lancia and Longarini; the latter are linked with the 17th-century development of the present old centre.
Today Brolo’s character rests on that meeting of sea and fortified village: maritime traditions, mountain-backed scenery and a compact historic core give it a profile distinct from both inland hill towns and purely seaside resorts.
Patron Saint:
Maria SS. dell’Annunziata – 25 March
Nearest Airport:
Catania (Fontanarossa) – (118 km, 02:08)
Neighboring Cities:
