The latest in our series of Focus On's is the city of Trapani. Located in on the north-west coast of Sicily; Trapani is certainly the southernmost of our 4 partner cities and probably the least well known.
Interesting Facts About Trapani
Country – Sicily/Italy
Population – 67,531 (though wider metro area has c90,000 residents)
Area – 271 km2
Architecture – Basilica-Sanctuary of Maria Santissima Annunziata (Madonna of Trapani), Trapani Cathedral (Basilica of Saint Lawrence the Martyr), Castillo de Tierra, Ligny Tower, Via Corso Vittorio Emanuele.
Transport – Trapani-Birgi Airport, road connections to other parts of Sicily including Palermo and ferry services to mainland Italy, Aegadian Islands, Malta and Tunisia.
Twinned Cities - Twinned with Constanta (Romania), Les Sables-d’Olonne (France), Roquefort-les-Pins (France) and Wurselen (Germany).
About Trapani
Out of all our partner cities, Trapani is probably the least well-known; it doesn’t enjoy the same publicity as the other cities. The flipside to this of course, is that Trapani is the hidden-gem amongst the USE-IT TN partners. It is also the only partner in southern Europe – indeed, it’s at the very southernmost tip of Europe, closer to Africa than it is to all the other partner cities. Trapani is geographically closer to Tunis (capital of Tunisia) than it is to Rome.
Situated on the west coast of Sicily, the city of Trapani (there is also a wider Trapani province) – is a city hosting a mix of old and new. The city can trace its history back to the Elymian People (dating back to at least 1,200 BC) who settled in the area and set up ‘Drepana’, to serve as a port. The name Drepana comes from the Greek work for sickle, owing to the shape of the harbour, looking like one. Over the years, the fortunes of the city have been mixed and in the Second World War, Trapani was badly damaged by aerial bombardment.
Though some of the city has been destroyed over the years, there is a historic Old Town with its maze of interesting streets and the Via Corso Vittorio Emanuele, with its interesting buildings and restaurants. As Trapani sits on a peninsula, it is surrounded on two sides by the ocean, where the Mediterranean and Ionian Seas meet. This is a big part of the city’s geography – with a long sea frontage, that offers excellent Mediterranean coastal views. Added to this, is the 300+ days of fine sunshine that Trapani enjoys each year.
The economy of Trapani has been historically dominated by three industries which take advantage of the city’s sea-based geography. Fishing remains a key part of the economy with an active Port, which is also used for commercial purposes. Tourism is the second key sector, with a number of cultural and touristic attractions in Trapani including the old Fish Market, which has been transformed into a cultural venue, alongside a number of churches and museums. The third key industry is wine, with Trapani being a key location for the production and global distribution of Marsala Wine.
As would be expected from a coastal city, there are good ferry connections to the Isole Egade (Aegadian Islands) alongside the Italian Mainland, Malta and Tunisia.
In terms of business numbers, there are some 1,500 businesses registered in Trapani, with these employing over 55,000 people. Trapani has a GDP of around 15,500 Euros per capita and an overarching GDP of some 6 Billion Euros. The City of Trapani has both challenges with unemployment and underemployment. Levels of unemployment are particularly high amongst the migrant population as they seek opportunities in a new economy and surroundings. However, the highest levels of unemployment are experienced by young people aged 16 to 24, with 46% of all unemployed people in 2020 being from this age group. This is a decrease from the 2019 figure of 61%. This high level of unemployment has consequences for young people’s decision making, with a significant number not returning to Trapani after their studies and relocating to other parts of Italy.
Finally, there are challenges in Trapani with quality of life. Despite the sea and sun, Trapani is ranked 101st out of 107 Italian cities when it comes to quality of life, suggesting significant issues with poverty, access to services and health and well-being.
Despite this, Trapani is a very culturally rich city, St Albert is the Patron Saint and every summer (on 6th August) a popular festival is held for him. Easter is another very active time in the city, with large festive parades on Good Friday and Easter Saturday called ‘The Misteri’.
