# Castello a Mare

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Canonical page: https://mytuur.com/en/city/palermo/spot/castello-a-mare/

Content updated: 2026-06-22

Castello a Mare is an archaeological site in Palermo, Italy, guarding the entrance to the Cala harbour. Its fortress began in the tenth century under Arab rule. A central mastio stood inside a trapezoidal enclosure, while open ground separated the stronghold from Palermo. Norman rulers later strengthened the citadel with further defensive works. In 1496, Ferdinand the Catholic’s reign brought two entrance towers, a central archway, and a royal coat of arms.

In 1535, Don Ferrante Gonzaga added bastions and moats, making the complex Palermo’s principal stronghold within new walls. Two city-facing bastions bore the names Saint Peter and Saint Pasquale. The enclosure also contained a parish church, prisons, and a viceroy’s residence in 1517. Garibaldi ordered its demolition in 1860, and dismantling ended in 1922 for a trapezoidal port pier. Archaeological excavations exposed part of the entrance tower, a circular tower, and western moats. These fragments preserve the fortress’s changing Arab, Norman, and Spanish layers beside Palermo’s port.

- City: [Palermo](https://mytuur.com/en/city/palermo/)

## Photos

- ![](https://mytuur-bucket.s3.amazonaws.com/image_CastelloaMare_68c17c5fe7953b1337019188_0.jpg) — [Image: wikimedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Castello_a_mare_di_Palermo_ingresso_principale_06_nov_2016.jpg)
- ![](https://mytuur-bucket.s3.amazonaws.com/image_CastelloaMare_68c17c5fe7953b1337019188_1.jpg) — [Image: wikimedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Castello_a_mare_di_Palermo_fronte_corpo_fabbrica_principale_06_nov_2016.jpg)
- ![](https://mytuur-bucket.s3.amazonaws.com/image_CastelloaMare_68c17c5fe7953b1337019188_2.jpg) — [Image: wikimedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Parco_archeologico_del_Castellammare_06_nov_2016_\(1\).jpg)

Spots like this one are the stops myTuur strings into tours through Palermo. In the app, each story begins where you stand: walk up to a spot and it starts, read it on screen or listen as you go, then follow the route to the next one.

## What is myTuur?

myTuur is a free city-guide app. Its tours are built from spots, and each spot carries a story that starts when you get there, to read or to listen to as you like.