Savoca is a medieval hill village of 1,500 inhabitants in the Messina province of Sicily, 30km north of Taormina, most famous internationally as the filming location for key scenes of Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather (1972). The Bar Vitelli in the piazza, the church of San Nicola, the streets of the medieval center, all appeared in the film (the actual story is set in Corleone and New York, but Coppola found Savoca more cinematically right for the Sicilian scenes). The village is worth visiting. But it is worth visiting for reasons that have nothing to do with the film: the mummified bodies in the Cappuccin crypt below the church, the Norman-era church of Santa Lucia with its 13th-century rose window, the extraordinary views over the Ionian coast and the Strait of Messina, and the general quality of the medieval streetscape that Coppola found persuasive and that remains largely unchanged.
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The Cappuccini Crypt and the Mummies
Below the church of the Cappuccini in Savoca, the crypt contains approximately 40 mummified bodies of local nobility and clergy from the 17th-19th centuries, preserved by the particular dry atmosphere of the caves and dressed in their burial clothes, positioned upright in niches along the walls. This is a specifically Sicilian tradition (the most extensive example is in Palermo's Cappuccini catacombs with 8,000 mummies) and represents a combination of devotional practice, family prestige, and the practical limitations of burial space in rocky Sicilian terrain. The Savoca crypt is small compared to Palermo's but more intimate and somehow more affecting: these are recognizable individuals in specific clothes, placed as if they had sat down for a moment and then been frozen. Entry by donation, guided by the caretaker who has been telling the same stories with the same dry delivery for many years.
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The Godfather Connection
The specific Savoca locations in The Godfather: the Bar Vitelli (where Michael Corleone meets Apollonia's father, still operating as a bar and café), the church of San Nicola (the wedding scene exterior), the main piazza, and several street scenes. Coppola chose Savoca in preference to Corleone (the actual Godfather hometown) because the village's medieval character was more photogenic and better preserved. The bar offers Godfather-themed drinks and photographs which are either lovely or crass depending on your tolerance for film tourism. The connection has kept the village economically viable and brings visitors who might never otherwise come to northeastern Sicily.
Questions About Savoca
How do I get to Savoca?
By car: 30km north of Taormina on the SS114 coastal road, then the SP23 inland road to the village (narrow, well-signed). From Messina: 50km south. Savoca has no railway station, the nearest station is Santa Teresa di Riva (7km on the coast). Bus connections from Taormina exist but are infrequent. Most visitors combine Savoca with Taormina as a half-day excursion. A car is needed.
Is Savoca worth visiting if I haven't seen The Godfather?
Yes, the crypt alone is worth the visit, as is the village itself. But watching the film before going adds a specific layer of recognition to the Bar Vitelli and the church scenes. The film is masterful regardless of the Sicily connection.
What else is near Savoca?
Forza d'Agrò (8km), another extraordinarily preserved Norman-era village with the church of SS. Trinità (Norman, 12th century), less visited than Savoca and comparable in character. Taormina (30km) for the Greek theater, the luxury shopping, and the views of Etna. The beaches of the Ionian coast between Santa Teresa di Riva and Letojanni are excellent in summer.
Curiosità su Savoca
Il nome Savoca potrebbe derivare dall'arabo sabuca (sambuco, il fiore del sambuco che cresce abbondantemente nella zona) oppure dal greco sabbaton, il sabato, giorno in cui si teneva il mercato medievale. La storia del villaggio rispecchia la storia della Sicilia nordorientale: fondazione greca nella zona, romanizzazione, dominio arabo (IX-XI secolo, durante il quale la Sicilia fu una delle regioni culturalmente più avanzate del Mediterraneo), conquista normanna (1061-1072), successivi domini svevo, angioino, aragonese. Ogni conquista ha lasciato tracce nell'architettura, nei dialetti, e nella toponomastica. La chiesa di Santa Lucia di Savoca fu costruita dai Normanni nel XII secolo, il rosone gotico fu aggiunto due secoli dopo. Queste stratificazioni sono leggibili negli edifici del centro storico (historic center) con una densità che le città grandi non possono più offrire, perché le stratificazioni successive le hanno coperte. Vedi anche: Taormina · Sicily · Mount Etna.
