If you are a fan of the Italian TV series Inspector Montalbano in the UK or Detective Montalbano in the USA, you will be impressed by the filming locations. And the question that arises when planning a trip to Italy, is to understand which are the locations where Il Commissario Montalbano is filmed, episode by episode. It is very common to hear that fans of the Montalbano series when visiting Sicily ask where Montalbano was filmed. We decided to dedicate this post and others to explaining the filming locations as well as to clarify that during 2022 Inspector Montalbano is still being filmed in Sicily. Therefore, we expect to see the new episodes of Inspector Montalbano in 2023. In this article, we show you Where is Inspector Montalbano Filmed in Sicily and summarize the Montalbano Locations.
Where in Italy is Inspector Montalbano Filmed?
Many fans of the Italian TV series Inspector Montalbano (UK), Detective Montalbano (USA), or Il Commissario Montalbano (as it is known in Italy, Spain, and other countries), seek to understand if the Montalbano filming locations are real or imposing sets.
All Montalbano filming locations are real, can be visited, and are located in Sicily! Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea and is located in the south of Italy.
Tourists, fans of the Montalbano TV series, and regular readers of Andrea Camilleri’s novels, greatly enjoy seeing the Sicilian locations that inspired its writer and that are natural film sets for the series.
Montalbano Locations
Where does Montalbano’s Story Take Place?
In the books, Montalbano’s stories take place in the southwest of Sicily. If you like the TV series Inspector Montalbano / Detective Montalbano you will surely know that it is based on the books of the Sicilian writer Andrea Camilleri, who assigned a fictitious name to well-known towns and cities in the southwest of Sicily.
Why does Montalbano’s Story Take Place in Sicily?
Because the Italian writer Andrea Camilleri was born in the southwest of Sicily in a town called Porto Empedocle in the province of Agrigento, Sicily.
So, most of Montalbano’s books take place in the fictitious localities where Camilleri draws his inspiration from Porto Empedocle, other localities of the province of Agrigento, and surroundings.
Where is the Montalbano TV series filmed?
While in Andrea Camilleri’s books Montalbano’s stories take place in the southwest of Sicily in towns of the province of Agrigento, the filming locations of the TV series Montalbano correspond to the southeast of Sicily and some southwest towns, covering mostly locations of the province of Ragusa and some of Agrigento as well. These locations are quite close to each other, considering that it is an island.
Is the Montalbano Series Filmed in Real Locations?
Something quite anecdotal about the Inspector Montalbano / Detective Montalbano TV series is that there are no artificial sceneries, staging, or special effects.
Inspector Montalbano’s filming locations are real, and tourists can easily get to know them and access them all by their means. The only part that is not real is the names of some locations that are fiction from the books.
Although in Montalbano’s TV series you can appreciate a certain beauty of the cities that are the scenario of the story, I must say that the real Sicilian beauty when visiting these places surpasses the tourists’ expectations.
Montalbano Real Locations vs. Fiction Locations
Are Montalbano’s filming locations real or fiction? In fiction, Montalbano’s stories take place in the towns of “Vigata” and “Montelusa”. Thus, Montalbano’s house is located in “Marinella”, a coastal area of “Vigata”, close to “Montelusa”.
If we seek to locate the fictional scenario on a map, “Vigata and Montelusa” would be found, covering what in reality is Agrigento and Ragusa.
- Ragusa city is “Montelusa”.
- Scicli is “Vigata”, where the Montalbano Police Station and Inspector Montalbano’s hometown are located.
- Punta Secca is “Marinella”, where Montalbano’s house is located. The lighthouse of Marinella is also located in Punta Secca.
Where is Inspector Montalbano Filmed in Sicily
Where is Inspector Montalbano Filmed in Sicily? The episodes of the TV series Inspector Montalbano (UK) / Detective Montalbano (USA) are filmed in towns in the southeast of Sicily, mostly located in the Sicilian province of Ragusa.
- Ragusa city and Ragusa Ibla are also called “Ragusa Superiore” and “Ragusa Inferiore”, meaning Ragusa High and Low, respectively. Ragusa city is the capital city of Ragusa province.
- Scicli
- Modica
- Punta Secca, at Santa Croce Camerina
- And other nearby coastal filming locations such as Sampieri (with the Fornace Penna), Scoglitti, Donnalucata, etc.
- In some episodes may appear some locations in the province adjacent to Ragusa, the province of Agrigento, where the writer who gave life to Montalbano, Andrea Camilleri, was born.
Montalbano Filming Locations: Episode “The Snack Thief”
The opening scenes of the episode “The Snack Thief“, show a stunning blue Mediterranean Sea and Salvo Montalbano swimming and enjoying the terrace of his house which seems to be located just a few steps from the seashore.
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This location is not staged at all. And Montalbano’s house is located just a few centimeters from the seashore. In this episode, we see Livia visiting Salvo Montalbano’s house and making some wedding plans. Montalbano’s filming location for that part of the episode is Punta Secca, a small town at Santa Croce Camerina, in the province of Ragusa. The location is close to a very busy summer resort town called Marina di Ragusa.
Do you know that you can visit and spend the night at Montalbano’s house? One of the most common questions we receive from our readers is Where is Montalbano’s house? Montalbano’s house address is Corso Aldo Moro, 44 (97017) Punta Secca RG, Italy
Then, in The Snack Thief episode, the Old Bridge (Ponte Vecchio) of the city of Ragusa appears, located a few meters from the Palace of Justice. The Ponte Vecchio or Ponte Dei Cappuccini is the oldest bridge in Ragusa and its construction dates back to 1843.
When Montalbano goes to the building where a dead person inside the elevator has been reported, the police car can be seen driving along part of the Old Bridge (Ponte Vecchio) and Salvo Montalbano entering a building that is actually located in front of the Courthouse.
This area is very crowded since only a few blocks away is located the magnificent Cathedral of San Giovanni (Cathedral of Saint John) patron saint of the province of Ragusa.
Likewise, in this episode when Montalbano is investigating the alibis of one of the suspects, he is in the Scoglitti’s bus stops on the provincial road 102 (SP102) called “Strada provincial 102“. Scoglitti is a picturesque seaside town, just 30 minutes drive from the capital Ragusa.
Where is Inspector Montalbano Filmed in Sicily: Filming Locations: Episode “The Voice of the Violin”
The funeral scene that appears in the episode “The Voice of the Violin” is filmed at the doors of the Cathedral “Duomo di San Giorgio“, located in Ragusa Ibla.
Ragusa Low, also known as Ragusa Ibla is one of Inspector Montalbano’s filming locations in the episode “The Voice of the Violin” for the funeral scenes.
Furthermore, in this episode, there is a scene where Ragusa Ibla can be seen from above when Inspector Montalbano gets out of his car. You can see the bell tower of the Chiesa di Santa Maria delle Scale (Church of St Mary of the Stairs) and the long stairs that tourists walk up to reach Ragusa Ibla and visit the Ibla Gardens. Those staircases connect Ragusa High (in Italian Ragusa Superiore) with Ragusa Ibla (Ragusa Inferiore), which is the older and more picturesque Ragusa.
In this episode, we also see for the first time the exterior of Montalbano’s police station. Montalbano’s police station is located in the fiction, in a town called “Vigata”.
The Montalbano’s filming location of the police station is located inside the building of the City Hall (Municipality) of Scicli, in Ragusa, Sicily (in Italian, Comune di Scicli). It can be visited when there is no filming period.
Where is Montalbano’s Police Station? If you want to visit the Vigata Police Station stage, just use this address in your GPS “Via Francesco Mormino Penna, 2 (97018) Scicli RG, Italy”.
Episode “The Shape of Water” and “Track of Sand” Montalbano Filming Locations
In the episode called “The Shape of Water“, one of Montalbano’s filming locations is the typical ruins of the Fornace Penna, located in the coastal town of Sampieri, in the province of Ragusa, Sicily.
Sampieri is also an Inspector Montalbano filming location in the episode “Track of Sand”.
Episode “The Mystery of the Terracotta Dog” Montalbano Filming Locations
The town of Chiaramonte Gulfi, located in the province of Ragusa, is one of Inspector Montalbano’s filming locations in the episode “The Mystery of the Terracotta Dog“.
Chiaramonte Gulfi is known as “The Balcony of Sicily” for its breathtaking panoramic views at only 668 meters (2192 ft) above sea level. From The Balcony of Sicily, you can see the towns of Comiso, Vittoria, Acate, the Mediterranean Sea, and in the opposite direction, the active Volcano Etna located near Catania, the capital of Sicily.
Where is Inspector Montalbano Filmed in Sicily: Enzo’s Trattoria Inspector Montalbano’s Favourite Food
Enzo’s Trattoria is a simple restaurant overlooking the sea where Inspector Montalbano often delights in his favourite food. It is located on the Amerigo Vespucci promenade near Inspector’s home. At the Trattoria, Salvo Montalbano enjoys his favourite seafood dishes and thinks about his cases.
Like Inspector Montalbano’s house and the lighthouse, the Trattoria is located in the village of Punta Secca, province of Ragusa, Sicily, corresponding to the fictional town of Marinella, in Vigata.
- Sardines
- “Arancino” (singular), “Arancini” (plural) a typical Sicilian preparation (Check out How to Make Montalbano’s Arancini Recipe)
- Pasta with sardines, Linguine with squid ink, Mussel soup, and more Montalbano fish recipes are available on this website. Just follow the link to our post.
- Cannolo with ricotta “Cannoli” (plural)
- Pasta with broccoli
- Sicilian “Caponata”, a garnish for dishes based on aubergine, tomatoes, onions, and olives sautéed in olive oil.
We hope that this article which intends to summarize Where is Inspector Montalbano Filmed in Sicily episode by episode, will be useful for you to plan your trip and visit in person every fabulous town and city that appears in the TV series Montalbano.
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