San Giovanni degli Eremiti in Palermo

Small gem :)

A small donation of €3. Only access to the church and the bell tower.

Very nice

Nice old church from the outside. We haven’t been inside because we don’t fancy to pay 6€ for a profaned church.

Beautiful old arab-norman church with the most amazing shaded garden and cloister.However was very disappointed that although a high entrance fee was charged the toilets were in a disgusting state with no paper and soap (sadly a common accurence in Sicilyand when told the lady behind the ticket office she didnt really care.With some places still insisting on masks and COVID safety not to have basic hygiene in the toilets is not acceptable.

Tourist trap, 6€ for next to nothing.

Cool, small 6th century church and gardens with Christian and Muslim influences in the architecture.

A nice peaceful spot.

Most beautiful place in Palermo. The right place if you love beautiful plants and old buildings.

Church itself isnt very impressive but the garden is beautiful.

Great place. We saw it during the night. It had amazing magic atmosphere

Important part of the Sicilian heritage dating back from the Byzantine Empire! This place is giving you a different view of all churches and places you can see in the city. Worth seeing it as it is near the main attractions. The entrance is €6 per person over 18 and you would need approximately 30 minutes. It is a nice place to refresh in a hot summer day in Palermo.

Having seen Palermo main attractions before, this is a wonderful alternative to the usual sights!

Great atmosphere, very relaxing to unwind

Interesting history of overlaping cultures leaving trace in architecture. Norman and Arab combination

One of the most exquisite examples of Arabic-Norman architecture in Palermo is definitely the church of Saint John of the Hermits (San Giovanni degli Eremiti). It’s like a time capsule.Visited the place in June 2020, shortly after the coronavirus pandemic peak in Italy, so an appointment was mandatory. Theres a handy application which can be used to book visits to all the museums in Sicily, so it was not a big deal for us to get an appointment. We’ve been the only three persons visiting the church at the time being. It was really a great experience, almost like a time travel. It’s not only about the church itself, the cloister, the garden, the vegetation, everything makes you feel like stepping in a remotely and isolated monastery from North of Africa. A painting of two saints reminding of the Christian Orthodox iconography is still visible on a wall.

Superb place. I think it’s a must see in Palermo. Most of buildings are just ruins but from 6th century!!!

6€ for a tour on the gardens. Not super worthy, but go up the terrazzo at the church right beside! Beware of the bells!

Arabo-norman church and abbey remnants covered by the mysterious dense garden. The place to hide and rest.

Beautifull silent garden.

One of the most impressive places in Palermo. In the photo an arborescent prickly pear plant

San Giovanni degli Eremiti was once a Church and a Monastery. Later the gardens were made in an exotic style. It is a nice place to relax and come down from the city noise. There were not a lot of tourists. The entrance costs 6 Euro for adults and 3 Euros for people under 25 Years old.

The garden is very nice and a break from the Hussle and bussle of the city but the price is too much compared to other places in Palermo where there is much more to see. Good explanations in English but missing info in the ruins.

The garden was nice, but the temple itself is nothing. It didnt worth the ticket

Nice garden and facades but almost nothing to see inside the church. Was under reconstruction I suppose.

Does not worth the 6 euro entrance fee as the place is small. It can be better admired from the church tower nearby.

Has overview from the tower with the bell. Very steep and narrow stairs, should be careful there. Has some kind of a museum, but not so good.

€3 per person if aged between 18-25. This is very small garden and you can see inside the Arab room which is the dome building but you can’t see the dome from inside. Must have some form of documentation like license or passport (photograph of it is acceptable).

Interesting for the story of that place: it was a church and a moquea and a church again. It is possible To see those influences in the architecture

Very expensive for nothing

Nice small garden (with a little cat, in our case). A good refuge in the midst of the Palermo jungle.

San Giovanni degli EremitiIt was Sunday and it was a real flea market everywhere.

Very exciting experience to know this rich site of men’s existence!

My only ever number 1 favorite as garden and view. Magic atmosphere and so green and peaceful. Visit it even more than once. Always beautiful

Nothing you can see for 6 euro. Just naked ruined walls. Bravo palermitans! You just steal money. For tower you should pay another money

What a beautiful place just around the corner from the buzzing Norman Palace and Dome of Palermo! The garden is a little gem...well worth visiting!

Much more intetesting than the famous Palace just near of it. The little garden and the cloister are very beautiful.

Nice garden with church ruins. Not worth the €6 entrance fee though. The church is delapidated and the garden is a leasurely 15 minutes walkabout at most. Go to Palazzo Normanni instead.

This Church is a bare ruin, so there are no frescos or mosaics, just the empty Church that is still standing, the garden and a column structure in the garden. Somewhat underwhelming at first, but this becomes a much more exciting visit if you climb the nearby belfry tower of the adjoining Church to get a view of the surroundings. Also see the grotta in the neighboring Church. I feel that if these 2 Churches worked together to create a combined ticket, it would provide a better experience for tourists and also drive business to both. St John has the fame to attract tourists, the adjoining Church has an amazing tower and a grotta which add more excitement to the visit.

Very nice garden and church. The church is a nice heritage from Normand period (built under Roger 2nd ), and was transformed into a mosque and then into a church...

Small temple park and inner courtyards - no frescoes, nothing particularly exciting. I would make it a low priority place to visit when in Palermo.

Its astonishing how some foreign tourists or even Italians are ready to criticize a fare ticket of 6€ for one of the most beautiful architecture from arab - norman sicily, when in northern Europe Ive visited roofless, mouldy castles where you can get charged over 10€ - Im not kidding, Ive paid over 10€ to just walk over some roofless rubble. Maybe Palermo deserves a different class of tourists!

Compared to other churches in Palermo, this is best viewed from the street and save 6€ entry. Very disappointing to see the entry fees are not used to maintain the gardens etc.

Easily the biggest waste of money in Palermo. We were expecting much more for the amount they charge, instead it was just a garden with a small empty building and closed off entrances.

Not worth the entry charge whatsoever. What remains of the church and cloister is quite beautiful and the surrounding gardens enjoyable, but an 8€ entrance fee seems way off base.

Excellent monument of medieval Norman culture and architecture. Unfortunately original interiors were missing. But very beautiful cloister survived.

It was a very scary ruin . Nothing inside the church just empty walls. Like a cave. €6 to enter is a waste

Beautiful garden! The ticket is a bit over priced considering the non existing touristic services... Not even a short description in English.

Enchanting place in romantic style where different cultures are mixed together in a unique relaxing atmosphere

Beautiful garden. The historic explanations are not all translated into English (and if they are the translation is no better than anywhere else in Palermo).