The Norman Palace (Palazzo dei Normanni, also called Palazzo Reale) stands on the highest point of Palermo's old town, at the top of Corso Vittorio Emanuele. It was the seat of the Norman kings of Sicily and is often described as the oldest royal residence in Europe, but most visitors come for one room: the Palatine Chapel, where Byzantine gold mosaics sit under a ceiling made in the Islamic tradition.
The Norman Palace at a glance
- Where: on Piazza del Parlamento at the western end of the old town, next to Porta Nuova and Villa Bonanno.
- Built: on Punic, Roman and Arab fortifications; the Norman palace from the late 11th century, the Palatine Chapel in the 1130s; courtyards added by the Spanish viceroys around 1600.
- What it is today: the seat of the Sicilian Regional Assembly since 1946, and part of the UNESCO World Heritage site Arab-Norman Palermo since 2015; the chapel and the royal apartments can be visited.
- Time needed: about one and a half hours for the chapel and the apartments.
From Arab fortress to Sicily's parliament
The hill had been fortified long before the Normans: Punic remains were found under the palace in 1984, and during Arab rule a fortress stood here. After the Normans took Palermo in 1072 they built a castle that was both royal residence and administrative centre, with workshops where precious silks were woven. Roger II, crowned the first king of Sicily in 1130, commissioned the Palatine Chapel, consecrated in 1140. His grandson, Emperor Frederick II, also held court here and supported the Sicilian School of poetry.
After a long decline under the Angevins and Aragonese, the Spanish viceroys rebuilt and enlarged the palace in the late 16th century, adding the Fountain Courtyard in 1584 and the Maqueda Courtyard in 1600. The Bourbons decorated the Hall of Hercules, which since 1947 has hosted the sessions of the Sicilian parliament. So the building has been a seat of power for most of the last thousand years.
What to look for
- The Palatine Chapel's dome, with Christ Pantocrator surrounded by angels, prophets and evangelists in gold mosaic.
- The wooden muqarnas ceiling of the nave, the oldest surviving wooden ceiling of its kind, painted with figures of musicians, dancers and animals and with inscriptions in Kufic script.
- The royal throne platform against the west wall of the chapel, reached by steps and topped by two heraldic lions.
- King Roger's Room (Sala di Re Ruggero) in the royal apartments, with 12th-century mosaics of trees, lions, leopards and peacocks.
- The Maqueda Courtyard, three tiers of arcades from 1600, through which you reach the chapel on the first floor.
Three cultures and a new planet
The Palatine Chapel is the clearest expression of Norman Sicily: a Latin church with Byzantine mosaics and an Islamic ceiling, made for a king who ruled Christians, Muslims and Greeks. The palace has another, less known claim to fame: from the Pisan Tower, which houses the Palermo Astronomical Observatory, the astronomer Giuseppe Piazzi discovered the dwarf planet Ceres on 1 January 1801.
Tips for your visit
- Because the palace is a working parliament, the royal apartments are sometimes closed on session days; check before you go.
- Come early: the chapel is small and gets crowded once tour groups arrive in the late morning.
- Shoulders and knees should be covered in the chapel, which is still a consecrated church.
Nearby
- Palermo Cathedral: a mix of Norman, Gothic and Baroque styles with the royal tombs of Frederick II and Roger II, a short walk down Corso Vittorio Emanuele.
- Porta Nuova: a 16th-century triumphal gate right beside the palace.
- San Giovanni degli Eremiti: a Norman church with red domes and a cloister garden, a few minutes' walk south.
- Ballarò market: one of Palermo's oldest street markets, good for street food such as panelle and arancine.
See Palermo with World City Trail
Our Palermo scavenger hunt turns the old town into a game you play on your phone. The route links 10 stops and takes around two hours, with about 34 minutes of walking. The Norman Palace and the Palatine Chapel are one of the stops, and the route also takes you to Palermo Cathedral.
If you prefer a different format, Palermo also has a self-guided walking tour and an outdoor escape game.
Play the Palermo scavenger hunt →
Take the self-guided walking tour of Palermo →
Play the outdoor escape game in Palermo →
Facts checked in October 2026.