After writing about Takamatsu, Japan — one of St. Pete’s sister cities — earlier this year, we asked you which Tampa Bay area twin town’s you wanted to read about next next. With 44% of the vote, allow us to introduce the storied city of Agrigento.
How did you two meet?
To briefly jog your memory, a sister city affiliation signifies an official relationship between two places. Both parties agree to work more closely together, encompassing trade, business, educational + cultural exchanges, and other mutually beneficial exploits.
On a cultural level, Tampa’s relationship with Italy predates its sister city relationship by ~100 years. Italian immigrants first arrived in Ybor City in the late 1880s, according to the Italian Club of Tampa. That was around the time immigrants flocked to Ybor to join its burgeoning cigar trade.
The club itself traces its roots to 1894, and was initially formed to unite Tampa’s newfound Italian American population as it navigated the States. Its first building was erected in 1911 before a fire soon destroyed it — a common theme in Ybor’s past. The second Italian Club building opened in 1918, and still stands on 7th Avenue today.
In 1987, the club formed the Tampa-Agrigento Sister Cities Committee, officially approved by lawmakers and signed in 1991. The city was chosen because a reported 90% of Tampa’s Italian American population’s heritage links to the Province of Agrigento — the area in which the city resides.
Officials have enjoyed several visits in the decades since. Most recently, former Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn made the trip across the pond in 2018. Other notable cultural exchanges include a previous loan of major Sicilian antiquities — which had previously never left Sicily — to the Tampa Museum of Art.
Tell me about yourself
Now to condense ~2,500 years of history and culture.
In the 6th century BC, the Ancient Greek colony of Akragas first came to be, named after a nearby river. Perched upon a hilltop a few miles from Sicily’s southern ocean, the city’s 7.5 miles of fortification walls protected up to 300,000 people at its peak.
Remarkably, evidence of this period remains today. Over a million tourists flocked to the Valley of the Temples, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, in 2023.
Sicily became part of the Kingdom of Italy in 1861 during the country’s unification — also known as the Risorgimento — led by Giuseppe Maria Garibaldi. Agrigento was given its modern name in 1927.
Let’s take a trip
If you feel like visiting, direct flights operate between Tampa International Airport and Zurich, Switzerland five days per week. From there, daily flights connect to Palermo — the capital of Sicily, located less than two hours from Agrigento by car.
Once there — after visiting the Temples, of course — four of the city’s restaurants feature on the Michelin Guide website. The city also boasts several other archaeological sites of note, as well as gardens, nearby beaches, and natural beauty in abundance. Tripadvisor has an extensive list of things to do.
Which sister city would you like us to write about next? Let us know.
