The Odyssey isn't just a story. These places exist.
For three thousand years, Sicily and southern Italy have been the real setting -or the one academic tradition points to- for the most famous journey in Western literature.
On this tour you'll stand in the Cyclops's cave, cross the strait of Scylla and Charybdis, step through the gate of the underworld, and end, like Odysseus, coming home.
Every stop blends the myth, told in first person, with the real archaeological and historical facts behind each site.
Approximate audio duration: 22 minutes.
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La Odisea: los lugares reales del viaje de Odiseo
La Odisea no es solo una historia. Estos lugares existen.
Durante tres mil años, Sicilia y el sur de Italia fueron el escenario real -o el que la tradicion academica senala como tal- del viaje mas famoso de la literatura occidental.
En este tour vas a parar en la cueva del Ciclope, vas a cruzar el estrecho de Escila y Caribdis, vas a pisar la puerta del inframundo y vas a terminar, como Odiseo, volviendo a casa.
Cada parada combina el mito, contado en primera persona, con el dato arqueologico e historico real detras de cada lugar.
Duracion aproximada de audio: 22 minutos.
Tour stops
12 stops · ~22 min of audio · 99.99 km on foot (~25 h walking) · about 25 h 30 min in total
You anchor your boat off this coast of black lava.
Up there is a massive cave.
Something inhuman sleeps inside it: one eye, monstrous strength. His name is Polyphemus, son of Poseidon.
You and your men went in looking for food. Bad idea.
Polyphemus sealed the exit with a boulder no hundred men could move, then started eating your crew. Two a night.
You gave him wine. A lot of wine. You told him your name was "Nobody."
When he passed out drunk, you drove a burning stake into his single eye.
He screamed so loud the other Cyclopes came running. "Who's hurting you?" they asked.
"Nobody! No…
2
The Giant's Boulders
Look at those black rocks jutting out of the sea.
They're called I Faraglioni.
Legend says they're the boulders Polyphemus hurled at you as you escaped by boat.
Blind, furious, guided only by your voice, he tore chunks off the mountain and threw them into the water.
He nearly sank you. The waves he raised almost pushed you straight back to shore, into his hands.
The real story: these rocks are basalt, remnants of ancient underwater eruptions, part of the same volcanic system as Etna, still smoking behind you.
Geologists explain them through millions of years of volcanic activity.
The an…
3
The Bag of Winds
You arrive at an island that seems to float on the water.
This is where Aeolus lives, god of the winds, in a palace ringed by a wall of bronze.
He welcomes you like a hero. A full month of feasting.
When you leave, he gives you something incredible: a leather bag tied with a silver cord, holding every dangerous wind trapped inside. He only let loose the gentle breeze that would carry you straight home to Ithaca.
Nine days you sailed. You could already see your island, the smoke rising from your own houses.
You fell asleep, exhausted.
Your crew, convinced the bag held hidden gold, opened …
4
Harbor of the Giants
You sail into a harbor that looks perfect: calm water, ringed by tall cliffs.
It's a trap.
This is where the Laestrygonians live, giant cannibals. Their queen is bigger than a mountain.
You sent men to scout. One of the giants grabbed a sailor and ate him right there, in front of the others.
The Laestrygonians ran to the cliffs and started hurling house-sized boulders down onto your fleet, trapped in that harbor with no way out.
Eleven of your twelve ships were destroyed. Hundreds of men died in minutes, crushed or devoured.
Only your ship, the one that hadn't fully entered the harbor, m…
5
The Sorceress's Island
This mountain rising from the sea was actually an island three thousand years ago. It's called Circeo, shaped like a woman lying down, gazing at the sky.
This is where Circe lives, daughter of the Sun, the most powerful sorceress of the ancient world.
You sent a group to scout. She welcomed them with a cup of drugged wine.
She turned them into pigs. Literally. Their human minds stayed intact, trapped inside animal bodies.
You went alone to rescue them. On the way, the god Hermes gave you a magic plant, moly, that protected you from the spell.
Circe couldn't transform you. Stunned, she inv…
6
Gateway to the Underworld
The water in this lake is dark, still, and smells of sulfur.
The ancient Greeks were certain of one thing: this is where the road to the world of the dead begins.
Not even birds fly over it. That's why they called it "Aornos," without birds, which later became "Avernus."
Circe sent you here. You had to speak with a dead man: the blind seer Tiresias, the only one who could tell you how to get home.
You dug a pit. You made a blood offering.
The souls came to drink, drawn by the fresh blood, whispering like smoke.
There, among those shadows, you saw your own mother. She had died of grief wa…
7
The Song That Kills
From this headland you can see three small islands out at sea: Li Galli.
That's where the Sirens live.
They're not half-fish, like you'd imagine. They're half-bird. And their weapon isn't beauty -it's voice.
They sing a song so perfect no sailor can resist it. Those who hear it leap into the water and die on the rocks, drawn by a promise of total knowledge.
Circe had warned you. So you sealed your crew's ears with beeswax.
You wanted to listen anyway. Curiosity, or vanity, or both.
You had yourself tied to the mast with rope, and gave one order: "No matter how much I scream, no matter ho…
8
The Impossible Strait
This narrow channel between Sicily and the mainland is barely two miles wide.
And there are two monsters, one on each shore.
On one side, Scylla: six dog heads on serpent bodies, hidden in a high cave. Each head can snatch a man off your ship.
On the other, Charybdis: a massive whirlpool that swallows the entire sea three times a day -and with it, whole ships.
You have to choose. There's no way around both.
Circe warned you: steer away from Scylla to dodge her, and Charybdis will swallow you whole, crew and ship together.
Better to lose six men than lose everything.
You chose to pass cl…
9
The Sin of Hunger
This fertile land in Etna's shadow was called Trinacria in antiquity -the old name for Sicily.
Here graze the sacred cattle of the Sun, the god Helios. No one may touch them.
Tiresias had warned you, back in the world of the dead: "If your men touch those cattle, they will all die. All but you."
The winds forced you to stay stranded on this coast for a full month. The food ran out.
Your men, starving, waited until you fell asleep.
They killed several cattle and ate them.
You woke to the smell of roasting meat and knew, in that instant, you were watching your crew die.
They set sail anyw…
10
Seven Years a Prisoner
You arrived on this island alone, without a ship, without a crew, half dead.
Calypso found you, a nymph, daughter of the Titan Atlas.
She lived in a cave by the sea, surrounded by a perfect forest, with a waterfall of fresh water. Paradise.
She fell in love with you. Or wanted to keep you, which isn't always the same thing.
She offered you something no human is supposed to be able to refuse: immortality. Stay forever, young, by her side, on this island with no problems.
You refused.
Every single day you sat on this same shore, staring at the horizon, grieving for a wife who might not eve…
11
The Princess Who Saved You
Poseidon's storm tore apart even the raft Calypso gave you.
You washed up on this shore naked, covered in salt, more dead than alive, hiding under leaves to cover yourself.
A ball woke you up. A princess named Nausicaa was playing with her handmaidens on the beach, washing clothes.
Instead of running from a shipwrecked man covered in mud and desperation, she helped you.
She brought you to her father's palace, King Alcinous, ruler of the Phaeacians, the most hospitable people of the ancient world.
They welcomed you without asking who you were. Food, clean clothes, a place to sleep.
That n…
12
Homecoming to Ithaca
This is the island you dreamed of for ten years.
The Phaeacians left you sleeping on this shore, with all the treasures they'd given you. You didn't even know you had arrived.
Athena, to protect you, disguised you as an old beggar before letting you into your own house.
Your palace was full of more than a hundred suitors, men who'd spent years trying to marry your wife Penelope and take your kingdom, convinced you were dead.
Penelope had tricked them for three full years, weaving a burial shroud by day and unweaving it by night, promising to choose a husband only once it was finished.
You…
How long does the "The Odyssey: The Real Places of Odysseus's Journey" audio tour take?
It has about 22 minutes of audio across 12 stops and a 99.99 km walking route (~25 h on foot). Plan roughly 25 h 30 min in total, or split it up: you can pause and resume anytime.
Where does the tour start?
At stop 1, "The Cyclops' Lair" (coordinates 37.5619, 15.1594). The app guides you from stop to stop with a map.
Is it free?
Trevurs is a free app for iOS and Android. There is also an optional Premium version, from USD 1.99, with unlimited offline downloads, access to every tour and no ads. It also helps keep an independent app alive.
Why use an audio tour instead of a guided group tour?
No group to keep up with and no guide to wait for. Start at any time of day, on your own schedule. Go at your own pace: pause, rewind or skip any stop. No need to commit 2 or 3 hours to a single tour: do one stop or the whole route. Works offline once downloaded.
What languages is this audio guide available in?
This tour is available in Spanish, English, Portuguese, French, Italian. Switch languages anytime from inside the app.
Do I need wifi to listen to this tour?
No. Download the tour over wifi before you go, then listen without any data connection.
How do I access this tour?
Download Trevurs on iPhone (App Store) or Android (Google Play), then open Catania and pick "The Odyssey: The Real Places of Odysseus's Journey". No account required to start.
Free app
No wifi needed · Spanish, English, Portuguese, French, Italian
