Valley of the Temples
Agrigento, Italy
Valle dei Templi
A ridge of Greek Doric temples above the sea in Agrigento, open late into summer nights.
Checked 7 October 2026
The Valley of the Temples is the ruined Greek city of Akragas on a ridge below modern Agrigento, with a line of Doric temples including the near-complete Temple of Concordia. The site has two main gates about 2 km apart, so decide before you go which end you start at and how you get back from the other. In summer the walk is almost shadeless: come at opening time or for the evening opening, which in 2026 ran to 23:00 or midnight from 20 June to 20 September.
About Valley of the Temples
The Valley of the Temples is not really a valley: it is a long rocky ridge south of the modern town of Agrigento, on the south coast of Sicily, where Greek colonists founded the city of Akragas in the 6th century BC. Along the ridge they built a row of temples in the Doric style, facing out to sea, and the ruins of the city, its walls and cemeteries are now a protected archaeological and landscape park of about 1,300 hectares. UNESCO listed it in 1997.
Akragas was one of the richest cities of the Greek world, and it shows. The Temple of Concordia, from the 5th century BC, still stands almost complete with all its columns because it was turned into a church in the 6th century AD. The Temple of Juno sits at the eastern tip of the ridge, and the Temple of Olympian Zeus, now a field of fallen blocks, was one of the largest Doric temples ever begun.
That giant temple was held up by stone figures called telamons, nearly 8 metres tall, set between the columns. In February 2024 one of them was put back together from original fragments and raised on a steel frame beside the ruins, after twenty years of study, so you can finally see the scale the builders were working at. Below the ridge, the early Christians dug catacombs into the old city walls, and a sunken garden called the Kolymbethra grows citrus and olives in what was once a Greek reservoir.
It is one of the busiest sites in Italy (more than a million visitors in 2024), but the ridge is long and open, so it rarely feels packed. Go for the gold stone against the blue sea in the morning, or in summer for the evening opening, when the temples are lit and the heat has gone.
What to see
Temple of Concordia
One of the best-preserved Greek temples anywhere, with its full ring of columns, kept intact because it served as a church for centuries. You cannot go inside or climb the steps; the best photos are from the path in front and from the old olive tree beside it.
Temple of Juno (Hera Lacinia)
The temple at the eastern, highest end of the ridge, with its altar in front and views over the whole valley to the sea. It is right by the Juno ticket office, so it is the first thing you see if you start at that end.
Temple of Olympian Zeus and the telamon
A vast field of tumbled blocks that was one of the largest Doric temples ever planned. The reconstructed telamon, a stone giant of about 7.7 metres raised in 2024 from original pieces, stands here; the old reclining telamon lies on the ground nearby.
Temple of Heracles
The oldest temple on the ridge, from the late 6th century BC, now a row of eight re-erected columns between Concordia and Zeus. It is on the main path; you pass it either way.
Early Christian necropolis and catacombs
Tombs cut into the old city wall along the path between Juno and Concordia. The larger catacombs, including the Grotta Fragapane, are only open on the official guided underground visits (Italian, booked through CoopCulture).
Temple of Castor and Pollux
Four columns and a corner of entablature at the western end, put back together in the 19th century from pieces of different buildings. It has become the symbol of Agrigento; it sits beyond Zeus towards Porta V.
Kolymbethra Garden
A five-hectare sunken garden of citrus, olives and Mediterranean plants in a former Greek reservoir, run by the FAI (Italy's National Trust). It is one of the few shady spots, and you can only enter it from inside the park, with the combined ticket.
Botero sculptures (until 31 October 2026)
Eight monumental bronzes by Fernando Botero stand among the temples for the exhibition 'L'incanto del mito', with works on paper in Villa Aurea. The park adds a €3 supplement to paid tickets while it runs.
Valley of the Temples tickets: which to buy and where
Most visitors need only the standard park ticket: €14, plus a €3 exhibition supplement until 31 October 2026, so €17. Under-18s of any nationality go in free and EU citizens aged 18–25 pay the reduced price. The ticket lets you in at any time on the day you choose, whatever slot you picked, and the Kolymbethra Garden and the Archaeological Museum need a combined ticket.
The official ticket site
Parco Archeologico e Paesaggistico della Valle dei Templi, tickets sold by CoopCulture
The park's own site, parcovalledeitempli.it, links to its ticket page on coopculture.it, the concession holder that runs the ticket offices and services. Buy there, or at the ticket desks at the gates.
Valley of the Temples standard ticket
€14 adult (€17 with the exhibition supplement until 31 Oct 2026); €7 reduced (€10); under 18 free
Official ticketsSkips the ticket line
- Includes
- The whole temple ridge; enter at any gate (Juno, Porta V, and the Teatro Ellenistico gate by the museum from April to October)
- Best for
- Most visitors
CoopCulture (official) · as of October 2026See this ticket → (opens in a new tab)Valley + Kolymbethra Garden combined ticket
€20 adult; €12 reduced; €2 for ages 6–17 (plus the €3 exhibition supplement on paid tickets until 31 Oct 2026)
Official ticketsSkips the ticket line
- Includes
- The temple ridge and the FAI Kolymbethra Garden (October hours 10:00–18:00, last ticket slot 15:15)
- Best for
- Anyone wanting a shady break in the middle of the walk
CoopCulture (official) · as of October 2026See this ticket → (opens in a new tab)Valley + Museo Archeologico Pietro Griffo integrated ticket
€19.20–€20.20 adult; €9.60–€10.60 reduced (the park and museum ticket pages on CoopCulture show different figures), plus the €3 exhibition supplement until 31 Oct 2026
Official ticketsSkips the ticket line
- Includes
- The temple ridge and the regional archaeological museum (daily 9:00–19:30) with its exhibitions; the museum alone is €10
- Best for
- Anyone who wants the original finds, including telamon fragments, and the model of the Temple of Zeus
CoopCulture (official) · as of October 2026See this ticket → (opens in a new tab)Entry ticket with digital audio guide
from €21
ResellerSkips some lines
- Includes
- Park entry plus a downloadable audio guide (English and Italian); you swap the voucher at the Juno ticket office
- Best for
- People who want an audio guide on their own phone; otherwise the official ticket plus the €5 official audio guide costs about the same
Tiqets · as of October 2026See this ticket → (opens in a new tab)Skip-the-line guided tour with entry
from €29.90
ResellerSkips the ticket line
- Includes
- Park entry and a 2-hour guided tour in English and Italian; meeting point on the voucher
- Best for
- A cheap guided walk with the ticket included
Headout · as of October 2026See this ticket → (opens in a new tab)
How to buy
- Go to parcovalledeitempli.it and click 'Acquista i biglietti', or go straight to the CoopCulture product page for the Valley of the Temples.
- Choose the ticket (standard, with Kolymbethra, or with the Museum), the date and a time; the ticket is valid at any time on that day, subject to crowd control at the gates.
- Show the ticket on your phone at the gate. Under-18s and EU citizens aged 18–25 should carry ID for the free or reduced price.
- Want an audio guide? The official one costs €5, is collected at the Juno ticket office, and needs an ID card or driving licence as a deposit.
Look-alike sites
The park's own domain is parcovalledeitempli.it, a Sicilian regional government site, and its 'Acquista' buttons lead to coopculture.it, the official ticket seller. Search results also show tour and ticket sites with 'Valley of the Temples' in the name, selling the same entry at €21 or more with an audio guide or a 'skip-the-line' label. They are legal resellers, but the official ticket (€17 with the exhibition supplement until 31 October 2026, then €14) already lets you walk past the ticket desk. If the price is above that and the page is not coopculture.it, you are paying a reseller.
We can never guarantee a ticket seller, tour company or deal. Prices, opening hours and what is included change, often without notice: check the details on the seller’s own page before you pay, and book through the official site where you can. How to avoid ticket scams · Disclaimer.
Guided tours of Valley of the Temples
The ridge has few information panels, so some help with the history makes a real difference. The cheapest good option is the official €5 audio guide; a 2-hour guided walk (about €30–40 with entry) suits people who want the story told. The underground catacomb visits are only possible with the official CoopCulture guides, and they run in Italian.
Small-group guided tour
Skip-the-line guided tour
Empeeria (sold on Musement)Meets under the olive tree by the lemonade stand at the Juno entrance; the guide hands out the tickets. Juno to the Temple of Olympian Zeus in English and Italian at once; Porta V is about 20 minutes' walk from the end.
€39 including entry
See this tour → (opens in a new tab)Small-group guided tour
Sunset guided tour
Towns of Italy (sold on Tiqets)Starts 16:45 at the Juno gate, maximum 16 people, in English. Walks Juno, Heracles, Concordia and Zeus and ends at Porta V, so plan your ride back from the western end.
€39.60 including entry
See this tour → (opens in a new tab)Official guided visit with catacombs
Valle senza segreti (Valley without secrets)
CoopCulture (official)
Juno to Concordia with an archaeologist, including the early Christian catacombs that are closed to visitors without a guide. In Italian only; meets in the trees below the Temple of Juno; not accessible to wheelchair users.
€15 (ages 6–11 €7) plus the park ticket
See this tour → (opens in a new tab)Official guided underground visit
Percorsi sotterranei (underground routes)
CoopCulture (official)
A shorter visit to the Christian cemeteries and the Grotta Fragapane catacomb, starting at the olive tree in front of the Temple of Concordia. In Italian.
€7 (ages 6–11 €5) plus the park ticket
See this tour → (opens in a new tab)Audio guide
Official audio guide
CoopCulture (official)
In Italian, English, French, German, Spanish and Chinese; picked up at the Juno ticket office with an ID card or driving licence as a deposit, so it suits a walk that ends back at Juno.
We can never guarantee a ticket seller, tour company or deal. Prices, opening hours and what is included change, often without notice: check the details on the seller’s own page before you pay, and book through the official site where you can. How to avoid ticket scams · Disclaimer.
Valley of the Temples deals and discounts
The official ticket is the best buy, and it is free for everyone under 18. The real savings are the first Sunday of the month, the reduced price for EU citizens aged 18–25 (€7, or €10 with the exhibition supplement until 31 October 2026), and the combined tickets if you also want the Kolymbethra Garden or the museum.
Free for under-18s
Visitors under 18, of any nationality, go in free; children under 12 must be with an adult. Ages 6–17 pay €2 for the combined ticket with the Kolymbethra Garden.
Free first Sunday of the month
Entry is free for everyone on the first Sunday of each month. During the summer evening opening (20 June–20 September in 2026), free entry ran only until 19:00 and the evening from 20:00 was paid. Expect big crowds.
Reduced price for EU citizens aged 18–25
€7 instead of €14 (€10 instead of €17 while the exhibition supplement applies) for EU citizens aged 18–25, and for non-EU citizens where their country offers the same to Italians. FAI members also pay the reduced price. Bring ID.
Combined tickets with the garden or the museum
Valley plus Kolymbethra Garden is €20 and Valley plus the Pietro Griffo museum €19.20 or €20.20 (the official pages differ), against €14 for the Valley and €10 for the museum alone. Until 31 October 2026 the €3 exhibition supplement is added to each paid ticket. Worth it only if you will actually do both.
Free entry for disabled visitors and a companion
Disabled visitors and one family member or carer go in free, and electric wheelchairs can be borrowed free of charge (book by the day before).
Best time to visit Valley of the Temples
Time of day: be at the gate at 8:30, when it is cool and the light is low on the temples, or come for the last two hours before sunset. The midday hours from June to September are the worst time: the ridge is almost without shade.
Summer evenings: from 20 June to 20 September 2026 the park stayed open until 23:00 on weekdays and midnight on weekends and holidays (last entry an hour before). Arriving late in the afternoon lets you see the temples in daylight, at sunset and lit up after dark on one ticket.
Season: April to June and late September to October are the most comfortable. The Kolymbethra Garden keeps shorter hours (10:00–18:00 in October, 10:00–16:00 in November and December), and the ticket office by the museum is closed from November to March.
What to avoid: free first Sundays, and the middle of the day in July and August, when coach tours and the heat peak together.
Tips and tricks
Gathered from travel forums, locals and the sight’s own advice, rewritten in our own words. What worked for others, not a guarantee.
Walk downhill from Juno to Porta V
The two gates are a little over 2 km apart. Start at the Temple of Juno at the eastern, higher end and walk west, slightly downhill, past Concordia, Heracles and Zeus to the Porta V exit; save the walk back by taking the bus or the in-park shuttle. Tours and the park's own suggested 'long route' run in this direction too.
From CoopCulture visiting rules page, 2026; Along Dusty Roads, 2025
Use two bus lines to avoid walking back
A 2025 travel blog reports that bus 2 goes to the Juno entrance and bus 1, the more frequent line, stops at Porta V, so you can arrive at one end and leave from the other. Check the destination with the driver; otherwise you have to walk the whole ridge back to where you came in.
From Along Dusty Roads, 2025
Use the in-park shuttle if the heat gets to you
A 2025 travel blog reports a small electric shuttle along the ridge between the two entrances for about €3 one way, useful if you parked at one end and are flagging in the sun; ask at the ticket office whether it is running. Bikes and scooters are not allowed inside the park.
From Along Dusty Roads, 2025; CoopCulture visiting rules, 2026
Bring water, a hat and sun cream
There is very little shade on the ridge. There are drinking fountains for refilling bottles and a café near the eastern part, and the Kolymbethra Garden is the one properly shaded area.
From Along Dusty Roads, 2025
Do the Kolymbethra Garden early in the afternoon
The garden is entered only from inside the park, and its last ticket slot is well before closing (15:15 in October, 13:15 from November to February). On the FAI autumn days, 4, 10 and 11 October 2026, the combined ticket was suspended and entry was by donation on site.
From CoopCulture ticket page, 2026
Do not climb on the ruins
Walking on the temple steps and fallen blocks is not allowed, and visitors who do it for photos get told off by other visitors as well as staff. The roped areas are there because the stone is fragile.
From Along Dusty Roads, 2025
Keep the parking ticket and some coins
The paid car parks at both ends work with a ticket you need to get out again. At the Juno car park a 2025 visitor paid €2 for the first hour, €1 for the second and €0.50 an hour after that, up to €5 a day; rates may have changed.
From Along Dusty Roads, 2025
See the museum before or after, not in the middle
The Pietro Griffo museum (9:00–19:30) is at the top end, up the hill from the temple ridge near the Teatro Ellenistico gate, and holds the original telamon and finds from the temples. Bus 1 stops there; do it on the way in or out rather than climbing up in the middle of the walk.
From CoopCulture museum page, 2026; Along Dusty Roads, 2025
How to get to Valley of the Temples
- From Agrigento town: city buses 1, 2, 2/ and 3/ run from the Piazzale Rosselli bus station and from Agrigento Centrale railway station (Piazza Marconi) to the park, about 15–20 minutes. A 2025 travel blog reports that bus 1 is the most frequent, with stops at the museum and Porta V, and that bus 2 goes to the Juno entrance; check with the driver. A taxi was about €10–12 in 2025.
- From Palermo: trains run from Palermo Centrale to Agrigento Centrale in about 2 hours (13 a day on weekdays, 10 on Saturdays, 6 on Sundays); then take a city bus. By car it is about 130 km via the SS121 and SS189.
- From Catania: there is no convenient train. Buses run from Catania airport and city to Agrigento (SAIS and FlixBus, from about 2 hours 20 minutes); a day trip from eastern Sicily is long, and many visitors join a coach tour instead.
- Parking: there are paid car parks at both ends, at the Temple of Juno (Via Panoramica dei Templi) and the larger one near Porta V (Contrada Sant'Anna). Follow signs for the Giunone roundabout below the Temple of Juno. Pay only at the official machines.
Scams and problems to watch for
Resellers charging more for the same ticket
Ticket sites with the sight's name in their title sell entry 'with audio guide' or 'skip the line' from €21 or more. The official ticket from coopculture.it costs €14 (€17 with the exhibition supplement until 31 October 2026) and already lets you skip the ticket queue. The tell-tale sign: a price above the official one on a site that is not coopculture.it.
Reseller vouchers that only work at one gate
Some reseller vouchers must be exchanged at the Juno ticket office, and you go in at the first free slot there. If you arrive by bus at Porta V with such a voucher, you face a 2 km walk or shuttle to the other end. Read the voucher's entry instructions before you go.
Unofficial parking attendants
Agrigento has a long history of unlicensed 'attendants' asking for a euro or two to watch your car. Police checks have mostly removed them from the Valley car parks, but they still turn up. The park's car parks are paid at a machine; you owe nobody else anything.
A guided tour that does not include the ticket
Some guided day trips from other Sicilian towns, for example from Cefalù, include the transport and the guide but list the entry ticket (€14, or €17 until 31 October 2026) under 'not included', so you pay it at the gate. Check the 'included' list for 'entrance ticket' before comparing prices.
Accessibility
The park has made accessibility a priority and the main path along the ridge is broad and mostly gently sloping, though the surface is partly gravel and dirt. Two electric wheelchairs can be borrowed free of charge from the Juno ticket office for up to three hours, in slots from 9:00 to 17:00; book through CoopCulture by the day before and bring a disability certificate. Disabled visitors and one companion go in free. The underground catacomb visits are not accessible to wheelchair users, and the Kolymbethra Garden lies at the bottom of a slope. Bikes and scooters are not allowed in the park.
Combine it with
Museo Archeologico Regionale Pietro Griffo
The region's archaeological museum at the top of the park, with the original telamon, temple sculpture and Greek vases; daily 9:00–19:30. Take the combined ticket.
Kolymbethra Garden
The FAI's shady citrus and olive garden in a Greek reservoir below the Temple of Castor and Pollux, entered from inside the park with the combined ticket.
Agrigento old town
The medieval town on the hill above the temples, with Via Atenea for food and evening walks and a terrace view down over the whole valley.
Scala dei Turchi
A white marl cliff stepped like a staircase into the sea, on the coast west of Agrigento; good for a swim after a morning at the temples.
Villa Romana del Casale
The Roman villa with Sicily's famous floor mosaics near Piazza Armerina, inland from Agrigento; full-day coach tours often pair it with the temples.
Questions people ask about visiting Valley of the Temples
How much are Valley of the Temples tickets?
The standard ticket is €14, €7 for EU citizens aged 18–25 and free for everyone under 18. From 23 July to 31 October 2026 a €3 supplement for the Botero exhibition is added to paid tickets, making them €17 and €10 (October 2026).
Where do I buy official Valley of the Temples tickets?
On coopculture.it, the park's official ticket seller, which the park's own site parcovalledeitempli.it links to, or at the ticket desks at the Juno and Porta V gates. Other sites selling entry are resellers and usually charge more.
Which entrance is best for the Valley of the Temples?
Most visitors start at the Temple of Juno entrance at the eastern end and walk downhill to the Porta V exit, about 2 km, seeing Concordia, Heracles and Zeus on the way. Visitors report bus 2 to Juno and bus 1 back from Porta V, or the in-park shuttle back to your car (2025; check locally).
Can you visit the Valley of the Temples at night?
Yes, in summer. From 20 June to 20 September 2026 the park was open until 23:00 on weekdays and until midnight on weekends and holidays, with last entry an hour before and the temples lit after dark. Otherwise the official ticket page gives 8:30–20:00, last entry 19:00 (October 2026); the park's own hours page still showed the summer times, so check winter hours before you go.
How long do you need at the Valley of the Temples?
Two to three hours for the walk along the temple ridge. Add an hour for the Kolymbethra Garden and one to two hours for the archaeological museum.
Is the Valley of the Temples free on the first Sunday of the month?
Yes, entry is free for everyone on the first Sunday of each month. On summer first Sundays the free entry ends at 19:00 and the evening opening from 20:00 is paid. It gets very busy.
Is a guided tour of the Valley of the Temples worth it?
There are few signs, so some explanation helps. The official audio guide at €5 is the cheap option; guided 2-hour walks with entry cost about €30–40 (2026). The early Christian catacombs can only be visited on the official CoopCulture guided visits, which are in Italian.
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Before you go
The things that apply at every big sight: booking ahead, what skip-the-line really means, and the scams that follow tourists everywhere.