Monastero dei Benedettini di San Nicolò l'Arena in Paternò

Beautiful monastery, which has now become a university building. I would reccomend joining a tour, but one can observe and admire the building without paying. The chiostri are the most attractive part, so definitely look out for those. A tour will gain you access to some exclusive areas, which one cannot see otherwise.The site is a short walk from Via Etnea, around 5 minutes from Piazza Duomo and 10 minutes from Villa Bellini.As a university however, it is really quite disorganised. Fortunately, the beautiful setting makes up for it.

The English guided tour is good. It takes through the interesting history of the monastery.

Truly exceptional place; the monastery now serves as the seat of the Humanities Division of the Catania University; not to miss the library at the lowest level, which is beautifully renovated and allows you to look at the archaeological work done to unearth the medieval and Roman mosaics and walkways.

If I had the chance to put 10 stars then I would have done it. This place is unique and marvelous. The guided tour is pure history that cannot be missed if you are in Catania. The city is very beautiful with amazing buildings and squares but this Monastero is the cherry on the cake. Amazing and beautiful!

So massive and impressive building. Worth to see during walk.

Massive! Free. Didn’t take a tour. Didn’t need to to see the inside. What we saw was very impressive. Written descriptions on most things are in Italian and English. The outside is modest compared to other churches. Worth a visit.

Great place to visit, worth the money! For just 9 euro you can get around with a guide (at 13 for sure English is available).Small tip: mascot cat at the 2nd level ;)

Walking the streets of Catania you will discover one masterpiece after another. 10-minute walk from the Cathedral is the Monastery of Saint Benedict, the second largest Benedictine monastery in Europe and a great destination to visit not only for its rich history, but also for the natural beauty. The majestic Baroque building is an example of architectural integration between the eras characterized by multiple transformations. Today it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and houses the Department of Humanities of the University of Catania, the remains of a Roman domus, cloisters decorated with handmade ceramics and a beautiful hanging garden.

💎A hidden gem in Catania! We pre-booked an English-speaking tour which was very informative and took us through the rooms & corridors of the former monastery. Now housing the Faculty of Humanities of the University of Catania, this place is a wonderful retreat from the heat and the buzz of the city.

Currently the English tour starts every day at 1 PM (only), and yes, the offices can also be visited on Sundays.

Very interesting guide tour in englisch and a fascinating building with rich history !

I really liked visiting this monastery, the building is wonderful to see and the guide told us some very interesting facts about the place. Eventhough we followed the italian tour he still translated the highlights for us. You should definitely visit if you have the chance.

Entrance is accompanied with tour guide but the only tour guide in english is once a day at 13:00. You can join italian groups at other times and they give you a book in english to read what the guide is presenting but the written desciption is 5 sentences for one item when the guide talks 10 minutes about it which lead to the conclusion that not everything is written down. Furthermore, in the book the order is not chronological and it’s difficult to track what exactly you are looking at. The whole tour is about 75-80 minutes and the reading can be done in only 5-10 minutes. Overall, if you don’t understand italian there is no point in joining italian groups because you will leave with the impression that you have learnt about 5% of the whole history of the museum.

One of our best experience in Catania was the (Englishguided tour of the monastery (well, university). You can not really visit without the tour, specially during the summer when the University is closed. The tour costs 9 euros and lasts a out 1h20m.If you go on Saturday (maybe Sunday as well, dont remember), you can also visit the directors office which is not available during weekdays.There is a bunch of really nice information about the monastery/university but also about the city itself that the guide does a very good job to share with everyone. Highly recommended.

An interesting tour. Worth to take. If you dont speak Italian maybe you are better with the English tour, though if you take the Italian one, you get an English text, but thats not as detailed.

Nice old place with many interesting details!

Take a guided tour - its so worth it. Our tour guide was amazing. Theres plenty of history in these walls and a lot to see and learn. Highly recommended.

This is a beautiful complex with a fascinating history. It is well worth visiting. I recommend doing the English tour if you dont understand Italian. I did the Italian tour where they give you an English book to follow along, but I found it difficult to follow along, even though I understand some Italian. I found myself missing a lot of the stories and context, and I wished I had done the English tour instead. Even so, it was very interesting. Be aware that there are many stairs, which was difficult for me as I am recovering from a broken ankle.

Fantastic history and building. Take one of the hourly Tours around the monastery, its rich of history and facts!

I highly recommend the guided visit! Call in advance to make sure there is a visit in English. This was worth the price. The guide explains a lot of valuable things about the place.

Great place with an exciting history! Took a tour with an Italian speaking guide (there was no tour in English when I was there - remember to check this beforehand). I got a folder with the same information in English and strolled along. Great photo opportunities and lots of history to be told.

The tour and the building is super interesting! A must see. Since it covers the history of the city very nicely!

Large monastery a very nice architecture, but we couldnt go inside

Step in and touch the history...This ancient monastery which has survived and earthquake, then rebuilt; reached by the lava of Etna and survived; taken by the state and turned into gym, school, barracks, university etc. And still standing proud in Catania! Dont hesitate and take a guided tour - it is €8 per person, takes around 70 minutes and you would be able to understand more behind each hall and the story behind it. From the different garden and their meaning up to the underground and the kitchen area! Worth seeing it!

So look, this is not a typical monastery, but rather a palace built for the local Church elite, that in modern times transformed into a University. So expect rich gardens, big halls, a dark library in the basement, and overstressed students studying for an exam. A ~1.5 hour tour is highly recommended (even in Italian), as the nice guide will take you to places you can’t otherwise enter. A must see if you can spare the time.

Beautiful architectures inside and outside! How lucky Catania students are!

Undergoing renovation and there’s no real direction on how to visit the monastery. Restrooms were unbearable. I would only visit the church next door. It seems that the monastery was turned into a private school.

Beautiful place. If you are able to, you should take walk up to the top of the building. Youll be rewarded with an amazing view over the city and are also able to see Mt Etna.

Went here on a Sunday at 11am and got only an Italian guide -8E, 1h30 min (on Sunday not possible to do self guiding). Has very old parts of city (from Roman timesunderground, and the current library used to be medieval time kitchen. Now used as university builduing; previously monastery for monks from the high ranks of society (each had rooms of 28 m2). Check out the church on the side - has facade with colonnades from Greek temples.

10 minutes walk from the Cathedral square you find the Monastery of San Nicolò, a late baroque monument and one of the biggest Benedictine monastery in Europe. It is an example of architectonical integration of different styles through different epochs: you can find a roman house, the cloisters and a roof garden.

Amazing guided tour. Our guide was extremely prepared and passioned about his job. Moreover he showed us parts of the monestry that we could have never discovered alone. Totally worth it!

Half the building is a college/university and the other half is a church and tourist spot. Very interesting architecture on the college side and a more traditional interior and exterior on the tourist side. You can climb a spiral staircase to go to the roof and look out over all of Catania. You can also see mount Etna. Due to it being very cloudy we only partially and very briefly saw mount Etna. Very impressive building and view.

What the lovely place! I just visited here found by Google Map. But its the best choice during the travel journey of Catania. The guide (sorry, I forget his name... he is so niceexplained very easy to understand the history of the place. Also, I got the ticket for 5 euro because of special price. I think if you want to get the price, you can check up it before visiting. I was just a lucky day.

Tour in English was amazing. Really interesting guide who told you all about the history of the place. A must to do in Catania!

Great tour friendly informative and gave the history and setting of the monasteryWell worth doing

Imposing building, which is accessible to everyone since it is owned by the university. Baroque details adorn every corner, but you can see the decay in the building, which is quite sad. Definitely worth a visit.

Impressive architecture, beautiful garden and lack of any inside direction unless in Italian makes this gem less than it should be. Theoriticaly there are gueded tours, not during my visit. The building is huge. No chance you find your way alone .

Very impressing place. A little bit hidden in the city. The monastery is a quiet place to wonder around. The basilic next to it is a wonder. Could have a bit more of information and history of the place for tourists to get to know better of this place.

Few years ago, past students of this ancient monastery transformed (1980/2010in the University of Catania by excellent architect Giancarlo De Carlo, have decided to organize visits of this fabulous complex. Even professional guides like me are not allowed to lead any visit there and the challenge with local Cicero is the best warranty for the public. I personally enjoyed it very much.Then, if you are fan of libraries and rare books, by appointment you may be accepted to visit the incredible library. It is not easy, happy few, but it is certainly worth trying!

Beautiful and calm place for visit, I came here late so no chance to get in for visiting, but only seeing outside exterior is very impressive, unique and tasty.

Today this sacred place, hosts the Department of Humanities (DISUMof the University of Catania. The Monastery is a unique place that tells about the human and historic events of the city on the slope at the foot of Etna, from the ancient times until today. There are English and Italian guided tours, well worth the 7euro. The English tour is at 14.00 , not everyday, best to call ahead and see if they are running on the day or not.Our tour guide (Italian was wonderful! Best time is Saturday...

Best in Catania! Beside the fact that for English guided tour you need to schedule your visit (it costs 7europlace is awsame and woth that time and money. Italian tour is every hour. There is also possibility for free entrance but with very limited places to see. Our guide was super and place itself is very interesting. Long history, amazing architecture, some amazing stories. Old side, new side built on lava, "undergrounds", univeristy. Loved to visit it. Best place in Catania. I understand why people want to study there. Must see!

It is an amazing place in a lovely city. Just join the guided tour and you live an hour like in 18h century in Catania

A great place to see, dating back to 1500s. I strongly recommend taking the guided tour so you can see all the rooms and buildings inside. Our tour was an Italian-speaking one and we got a summary of each location in English text to read - this wasnt a great experience as we lost a lot of side information and the style it was conveyed. I would suggest to get an English-spoken tour if thats possible.

The second biggest Benedectine Monastery in Europe. I recommend to book a guided tour in the "monastore", right at the entrance. Tours are available also in English, and are an unique chance to discover the wonderful story of the Monastery. Nowadays, it hosts the Department of Human Sciences of the University of Catania, hence the entrance to the main parts is totally free. Secret parts can be viewed through the tours.If you like to take artistic pictures, then it is highly recommended to bring your reflex with you and reach this place in the very morning. You will find precious spots with magic light just waiting for you.

Amazing monastery with an excellent guided tour, explaining the different layers of history and takes you inside this grand building.

worth to enter and have a look. guided tour price for students only 2 euro?!!

We had a great tour in English, it was very interesting and I would definitely recommend it!

Incredible :)We stopped in with an hour to kill and we were absolutely blown away. Carmella our guide spoke very good english and is very knowledgeable in the history of the monastery and shown himself to be very comfortable in answering a wide range of questions (not all about the monastery)The monastery itself is simply stunning and a whilst you can wander round most of the site you really need a guide to explain the story behind each and every part and in our case so eloquently doneIts 7 euros for the tour and takes about an hour or so but trust me, if you like history and enjoy exploring historic sites then if you are in the area this is simply a must and you wont be disappointed

Definitely a place to visit if you are a tourist in Catania (and if you live here and have not been here before). It has been massively restored. Its a treasure of architecture and history.