When Francis Ford Coppola was scouting locations to film The Godfather, he was enchanted by the timeless atmosphere of small villages in Sicily such as Savoca in the province of Palermo.
Fast forward to 2022, and Season Two of The White Lotus… three generations of men of the Di Grasso family go on a drive in Sicily to visit Godfather locations, and end up at Castello degli Shiavi, the 18th century castle that served as Michael Corleone’s residence.
Now you can follow in their footsteps, not only to where the Godfather car bomb scene was filmed, but also to the Bar Vitelli, where Don Micheal Corleone proposed to Apollonia, as well as the Church of San Nicolò, where they were married.
Those picturesque places are some of the stops on a special tour to Sicily that Kathleen McGowan is hosting this October. But as Instagram-perfect as the Godfather and White Lotus locations are, they’re only the beginning.
If you are interested in history that’s even more ancient, we will be visiting Agrigento see the Temple of Concordia, the largest Doric temple in the world, standing since 440 B.C.
Coming back to the present day, we’ll go grocery shopping in a local market with The Duchess of Palma, and then cook and eat lunch with her in an 18th century palazzo by the sea.
Even if you don’t have a Sicilian grandfather as Kathleen McGowan does, you are sure to be enchanted by this six-night adventure in the postcard-perfect island at the tip of Italy’s boot.
Spaces are still available for Kathleen’s Special Tour of Sicily, October 15-21, 2025.
