julies

I am going to see if I can get this to post. I've been having difficulty lately.

I threw out the biking trip that so many of you convinced me not to take, so now I have a completely different possible itinerary.

julies

I am really having problems. I am wondering if it is because I can't copy and paste after having composed elsewhere. That didn't work, so I am trying this as a test.

julies

This site has been impossibly difficult for me to work with today.

Bike trip idea is discarded.

New itinerary:

day 1--Take bus from Catania airport to Ortygia (arrive early afternoon)

days 2 & 3 Ortygia

days 4 & 5--pick up rental car and move to Scicli for visits to Val de Noto

10 day gap to fill in here

days 16, 17, 18, & 19 Palermo (or should I shorten this a day?)

Thoughts for my gap area:

I'm trying to figure out how to fit in Piazza Amerina without making it just a hit and run since I've read we should get to the mosaics early in the morning. This probably means an overnight in the area. If we don't do that, there is the issue of leaving the luggage in the car. Anyone know of any interesting agriturismos or B&Bs we could enjoy for 2 days in the area. Maybe this will end up being our one night stay of the trip.

--Drive up and spend a few days exploring villages in the Etna area

--If weather cooperates, maybe move to the Aeolians for a couple days

--Cefalu and Madonie areas combined from one base

--Western area--Trapani or Scopello area for a couple days/nights


Questions:

*How would I sequence all of these places?

*Any lesser-known gems in my target areas that I am not aware of? Lots of times we prefer these to the usual suspects.

*Has anyone done any half day to full day walking in any of these areas? Recommendation, if you have.

*Did you discover any areas/places where you could have just planted yourself to enjoy a stay in that area focusing on its lesser-known charms?

We've been to Greece and turkey, so visiting the ruins and temples are not at the top of our list of priorities. If we find ourselves where it is convenient to visit some (especially ones with spectacular settings), we'll fit them in.

Thanks for the help on this and my previous thread.

yestravel

We loved driving around Sicily and stopping in various towns and villages -- there are lots of interesting places that you will discover. We walked around empty towns and crowded ones, each offering something of interest.

We stayed at Masseria Mandrascate for our visit to Villa Romana del Casale. As I recall it was about 30-45 miinutes away, but a drive through some nice countryside. The town right near it, Valguarnera, was a nice place to visit. Small town with friendly people and if you're looking for no tourists, we never saw a one. You can also go to Enna which is a nice town maybe 45 minutes or so away in the opposite direction.

You can do hiking around Mt. Etna which is fascinating for it's landscape. On our day exploring the area around Etna we had maybe the best meal we had in Sicily at Ristorante al Buongustaio in Nicolsi. Again just a place we walked into and were greeted as if we were long, lost friends. This was a typical family run Sicilian restaurant. We visited this area when we were staying in the countryside outside Siracusa.

I would not miss Erice - and if possible spend a night or 2 there. It's at its most magical in the am and evening/night when all the day trippers depart.

Not sure its lesser known but Caltigirone is a nice hilltop town to check out. It's known for its ceramics. We spent some time there on a Sunday and enjoyed it along with having another wonderful Sunday meal in a family run place that we were directed to.

Another town we liked was Mazara del Vallo, a nice port city. Its the home of the Dancing Satyr (Satiro Danzante) which was found off the port in 1998 by a local fishing boat. There's a museum dedicated to it. Are you planning on visiting Monreale or the Duomo in Cefalu?

We drove through parts of the Madonie region and there were some spectacular views. Hiking there might be really nice, but we passed on hiking this trip.

Tons to do and see in Palermo so I would not shorten your stay there.

I think 3 of the popular ruins in Sicily are nicely situated in lovely settings, Segesta, Argiento and Selinunte. We've also been to Turkey, where I really got tired of all the ruins and Greece but still enjoyed the ruins in Sicily for their history. But I can understand them not being on your must see list.

Dayle

Hi julies,

I've already given you several of my suggestions and you have never said whether or not you have read my TR, so I'm afraid I don't have any more to offer.

Good luck with you next round of planning!

kja

"days 16, 17, 18, & 19 Palermo (or should I shorten this a day?)

Depends on what you want to see and experience! I wish I'd had at least 3 full days there, or even better 4, so I might have been able to add a day trip to Cefalu.

"I've read we should get to the mosaics early in the morning"

I hear that a lot, too -- and wonder if it doesn't end up with a rush to the early hours. I often go to places a bit later in the day and breeze right in. That said, I don't know how busy the Villa Romana is these days. But you're going in Oct., so a bit off season.... It would seem that the worse that can happen is that you might have to wait in line for a while.

I visited the Villa Romana between a stop in Enna -- less than an hour away -- and Caltagirone -- also less than an hour away. Have you considered visiting from either of them?

"How would I sequence all of these places?"

Once you figure out what you want to visit, print out a map and mark it with travel times from place to place. See what seems to make most sense. Check the opening hours of places you want to visit, check the hours of any special events you want to attend, etc., and make sure your plan works within those constraints.

I'm cross linking your threads to help other posters.

yestravel

This visit in May we visited Villa Romana del Casale around 10ish in the morning. It was not at all crowded. The other time we visited during Sept in the afternoon and it was packed. The difference it made was not just waiting in line, but the opportunity to view the mosaics with just a few people at each viewing site. Big difference.

julies

Yestravel--

These are exactly the types of suggestions I was looking for, and I'll look the places up. Did you drive all of the way up to the Etna area as a day trip from the Syracuse countryside? Perhaps I am over estimating the time it takes to get between places. I guess I'll need to get on viaMichelin and play around with some possible itineraries. Is there more to Caltigirone than just shopping for ceramics? I'm not going to do that so hadn't thought it was worth a stop. Mazara del Vallo is mentioned in my Cadogan guide book as a hidden gem of a recommended place that is overlooked on most itineraries; you've just reinforced that idea. I had been possibly thinking of being one of those day trippers to Erice, but now I may need to rethink that.

Dayle--

Yes, I read your trip report, and you are the one who stayed in Scicli (I think). That's where I got that idea. Thanks.

kja--

It is good to hear that these places are only an hour apart from Villa Romana. Unfortunately, after having read all of the warnings about never leaving anything in a rental car (and thus eliminating the possibility of visiting a place on the way to the next destination) we are so paranoid that we feel we need to be in the actual vicinity in order to see the mosaics.

Thanks for linking the threads. I was so fed up today with this website because I'd take the time to type something and it wouldn't take my posting.

I will stick with my original plan to devote 4 nights to Palermo.

kja

Re: Etna: Of course another option is to join a day-long group tour of Mt. Etna. Even though I don't usually like tours, I was pleased with the one I took, which also included a stop at the Gole Alcantara. But I wasn't trying to stop at the various villages -- I just wanted to see the area and spend a few moments at the top.

"It is good to hear that these places are only an hour apart from Villa Romana. Unfortunately, after having read all of the warnings about never leaving anything in a rental car (and thus eliminating the possibility of visiting a place on the way to the next destination) we are so paranoid that we feel we need to be in the actual vicinity in order to see the mosaics."

I must admit that I don't get it. Stay in Enna or Caltagirone or any number of other possible locations for one night to either side of your planned visit to the Villa Romana. Arrange to leave your luggage wherever you are staying, whether in advance of the night you will stay there or after you check out. Go see the Villa and its mosaics. Go back to wherever your luggage is. What am I missing?

progol

Julies,
I booked the Villa Clementine (recommended by Vagabonda, too) for 1 night outside of Piazza Armerina; if you want to be near Villa Romana, this might be worth a look:
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Rev...na_Sicily.html

On my planning thread, someone had highly recommended Ciuci's Manor, which gets rave reviews. It didn't work into my short itinerary, but it might be worth looking into.

If it's of any help, here is my recent planning thread. As you probably know, we'll be going in May, and we very much want to see the major ruins as well as Villa Romana, so I've crafted my itinerary to make sure we are able to have enough time to visit them:
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...m#last-comment

sandralist

If nothing else, I would favor giving yourselves a relaxed finale with a multi-day stay in Palermo. It's possible by that time you will be glad to just kiss the car goodbye and be walking around most of the day. If you want to enjoy markets and off-the-beaten track sights in Palermo (my recommendations are Palazzo Chiaramonte, and the museum of Sicilian painting, and the full length of the Capo market), then it is nice not to be rushing -- especially if you are counting a trip to Monreale as part of your Palermo stay. I always like to spend some of my last afternoon of a long trip getting organized, including a chance to do some last minute gift buying or dry-food shopping. Then I can feel good about relaxing over the last dinner, everything packed.

If you get to Palermo and can't stand the place, you can easily take a day trip to someplace else.

julies

We booked our car last night and decided that we will do the 4 nights in Palermo. After reading about the parking hassles some people have had at Monreale, it will be a day trip by bus for us. Now I need to get back to looking at apartments again. I had inquired about these that are recommended by guidebooks prior to my discussion here and got back confirmation that they are available. Any comments on the locale since they really aren't in any of the areas we'd been discussing?

http://www.butera28.it/dove-siamo.php

http://www.chezjasmine.biz/dovesiamo.asp


I'm narrowing down my Ortigia apartment choices and, after looking at all the lovely photos of the city, I'm starting to wonder if I should make it 3.5 days rather than the 2.5 I am currently planning (indecision). Are there are preferable areas of the city to target for a rental here, or are they all pretty similar? We are also debating whether it is worth it to spring for a more expensive rental with a terrace with a water view.

kja--I think what I was trying to say was that for everywhere we plan to visit it sounds as though we will have to arrive at our lodging and drop off our luggage and then go to the site. Normally we'd plan some stops while driving between destinations.

progol--I've read your planning thread and saw the recommendation for Villa Clemintine. So, I now have a couple possibilities in the area. And, I've read that PA is actually kind of a cute town anyway so it might ber worth a two night stay and exploration of the area.

Etna area (and possibility of the Aeolilans) I am starting to realize is the one truly kind of out of the way locale I want to visit. I am suspecting that if I need to make choices to cut, this may be what goes.

I'm starting to think that we might need to make a return trip to Sicily in order to do it properly. And, we could do that in the spring when all of the flowers are blooming!

I so appreciate your help.

yestravel

"Did you drive all of the way up to the Etna area as a day trip from the Syracuse countryside?" Yes, we did a drive from Siracusa to Mt. Etna. It was a spur of the moment decision to go, so there was no planning involved. We drove all around the area taking some incredible little roads and ended going up the main road to the top. I don't recall how long it took as we tend to meander when we travel esp if there is not any time constraint.

"Is there more to Caltigirone than just shopping for ceramics? I'm not going to do that so hadn't thought it was worth a stop." We didn't ceramic shop, but you are correct in that it is major ceramic center with the "famous" steps being highlighted. We thought the town was interesting with some really nice architecture. We wandered about, took photos, chatted with some locals a touch, sat at a cafe & then had a great late Sunday lunch. It was a very quiet, lovely town and not crowded.

In Scopello, you are probably aware of Lo Zingaro which has some nice walks and hikes that you can do.

Ortygia is a cute area which is one reason why it's so popular. I liked it alot, but it reeked of tourist area which you said you like to avoid. Can't advise on where to stay in Ortygia, but it was rather small and had some nice water views. Not great views like we had in other parts of the trip, but nice ones.

In May we had no trouble finding places to stay as we travelled. Several times we changed our plans and found new places to stay with no trouble. I would try to wing it a bit during your gap time. I think as you travel you will find places that might interest you and I think you could book just a day or two ahead. Sicily is so destination rich that its hard not to find interesting and "out of the way locales" to explore. Our first trip was in the fall and at that time I said I'm going back in the spring. Took years but we did go back in the Spring with all the flowers in bloom and I'm glad we had a second look at the wonderful island.

sandralist

I passed by Butera28, being an Il Gattapardo fan. It's an historic building with a waterview (although the sea isn't particularly scenic there), with an interesting grill-fish-on-the-sidewalk eating scene nearby, but inconvenient to most sightseeing unless you plan to use public transport or taxis some of the time. Hopefully the owners are very helpful with bus skeds, taxi ranks info, etc. Some stretches of the waterfront are quite abandoned in the evening still (I thought they were gay pickup places in many spots), although they are working on renovating it (Kursaal Kalhesa is part of that). If you stay there, definitely stroll over to see Santa Maria della Catena, and again I would recommend Palazzo Chiaramonte and the beautiful banyan trees alongside it. Restaurant Casa del Brodo is quite near, and delicious.

The other one is not far away, and I have the feeling if you were worried about the via Divisi, you would worry more being right in the dark warrens of La Kalsa. However, you are quite close to Palazzo Abetellis (the city's beautiful and important museum of painting), But again, inconvenient to most other famous sightseeing, and I don't know about restaurants. The via Alloro is a beautiful atmospheric Aragonese street (some of which still shows signs of WW2) but I think I might prefer being closer to the busier main drag of the Vittorio Emmanuele, despite the fumes, where I would expect to more readily find buses, taxis, restaurants... I think there is an NH hotel nearby (or some other large hotel) so you could check reviews to see what people say about the neighborhood. Probably some b&bs right around there too.

sandralist

PS: I just did some checks on walking times, according to Google, between the apartments and the Norman palace -- and it's not as bad as I would have thought: 25 minutes, although it is uphill. But then it is downhill going back....

But it really depends on what you want to see and do

sandralist

(also, if you do stay in that Chez Jasmine apartment, you might enjoy taking a walk over to see the roofless Santa Maria dello Spasimo in a very bombed out and unrestored part of Palermo)

http://tinyurl.com/nhjjlw6

julies

I am starting to have pangs that this trip (as I am currently thinking of it) might end up being a quantity over quality trip. I am now seriously trying to figure out how to make it a less-is-more trip with a plan of returning for another trip some year in the spring. We are people who do return and who narrow down and focus on smaller areas. France, for example, we've maybe made 6 -8 trips and focused on only one small portion at a time. We've made 3 long trips to India and been there 4 months total.

I was just starting to think that I should make it 3.5 days/4 nights (rather than 2.5 days/3 nights) in Ortigia since I see that many people do spend weeks or months there. We love to just walk and wander, and if we have a good apartment with nice outdoor seating (and maybe a view) we'd be happy there without doing a lot of activities. What I am not looking for is hordes of tourists all thronging the same areas looking at all of the souvenir shops, boutiques, tourist restaurants etc. Often we find that by just going a few blocks off the main drag we can find ourselves in the regular, not tourist, world. Is this such a place?

Comments on those Palermo apartment areas are extremely helpful. Back to the search for just what we are really looking for I think.

Lo Zingaro was one of the reasons I targeted the Scopello area. My Sunflower book that has hikes and car tours is supposed to arrive today. Maybe it will help me make some decisions.

I have definitely decided that we will be winging it in the middle of the trip because I remember some wonderful lodging we have found using that tactic on previous trips--places that had no internet presence but were delightful. And, from my searching for potential accommodation, I'm seeing that there are plenty of options available most places.

I love your help!

sandralist

First time I went to Sicily I had your dilemma with even less time to travel and eliminated Palermo, except I did see Monreale on my way to a near-airport location for my last night. My second trip to Sicily I simply went to Palermo. Still thinking about which part of Sicily I would like to see next.

sandralist

Forgot to respond to your question about Ortygia: I am trying to remember now which year I went, and I went at the beginning of April which I think is not prime time for Ortygia, but I was in Ortygia for 2 days before I got to the Fonte Artimede and the duomo and other tourist sights, and I felt the difference immediately in surrounding ambience. Whether that has changed, and now the whole island is touristy, I couldn't say. Have you asked on Tripadvisor?

One thing I would definitely ask on TripAdvisor is whether there is another town down the road that isn't as well-known to tourists as Ortygia that is equally charming. There often is, and if you aren't into sightseeing and prefer local feel, you might go there even if the rest of us never heard of it.

Unfortunately, a lot of the advice given about Sicily everywhere is overly-protective of tourists. I can understand why the advice-givers want to play it safe -- a lot of people are horrified by some aspects of Sicily, not all is picture postcard, and it is not the same tourist hospitality culture you find in, say, Tuscany or scenic France. But if you don't have those expectations, Sicilians are very outgoing and welcoming, and I doubt you would fall off the edge of the earth if you went to some workaday town and just had fun there.

julies

We've traveled a lot (on our own) in developing countries, and we have also traveled (a lot) in parts of Europe that were former soviet satellites and thus are not manicured and well-taken care of (what the soviet system did to those countries is really sad). I guess we are probably more used to the realities of these types of places than many people traveling to Europe are and we often prefer them.

Back to Ortigia: I don't have anything against places that attract tourists but still allow people who don't want to be a part of the usual crowd to escape and be on their own in the real town. It is places like Carcassone that are completely devoted to tourism and are not living cities that really turn us off. Let's admit that it is nice (even for people who don't want all of the tourist schlock) to be in a lovely place with some of those things that make life easier for travelers.