Milazzo, the ancient Mylae, the sea town, sits at the base of the neck of Capo Milazzo, a sickle-shaped promontory that juts into the Tyrrhenian Sea, pointing like a finger towards the Aeolian Islands, only few miles offshore. Milazzo’s origin is rooted in the remotest times.
Due to its highly strategic position, it was a site suitable for settlement since antiquity. It was the scene of many battles, and its fortress has seen a succession of rulers over the centuries. The Borgo is the oldest part of the town, and consists of the medieval quarter stretching along the slope of the hill and the fortified citadel towering above it. Cittadella and Castello, the main fortification of the city, was built by the Arabs in the 10th century on what had been the site of an ancient Greek acropolis that was repeatedly modified over the centuries. This, together with the church of Sant’Antonio, is the major local attraction.