Il Capo is the northwest quarter of the old town, the second of Palermo's medieval districts and the one with the strongest market culture today. The Mercato del Capo runs through its central spine; the church of the Immacolata Concezione, with its extraordinary 17th-century inlaid marble interior, sits at the upper end.
The streets are narrow and the buildings face each other across cracked plaster facades. Bakeries, salumerias, fish stalls, and small trattorie operate side by side, and the district has fewer tourists than the equivalent zones in the southern half of the centre.