jayneLB

I am planning a trip next year (May) that includes 10 nights in Sicily. We fly in to Palermo and catching a ferry to Malta at the end of the 10 nights. I have tried a couple of road plans but I seem to be doing a lot of backtracking. All I am asking for is advice on places not to be missed (Or missed) so that I ensure those places are in the plan (or not). We will be driving. We have interests in culture, history, coast, countryside, a bit of everything really. We are thinking of 2 nights per stay along the way. Thank you in advance.

bobthenavigator

You need 5 more days to see Sicily well.

I would start in Palermo and end in Siracusa, but spend most of your time in the western half of the island.
Click on my name to find my trip report.

kja

I agree with bobthenavigator about the time for Sicily -- which means that you will need to be very selective in what you visit. FWIW, my favorite places in Sicily included the Cathedral of Monreale; the Villa Romana del Casale; the ruins of Agrigento, Selinunte, and Segesta; Ortygia; and Palermo. LOTS of runners-up in this amazing island! And FWIW, I thought the Rough Guide by far the best of the half-dozen guidebooks I used when planning y time there. May is a lovely time to visit the island. Enjoy!

ksw430

We are planning a similar trip in April, also 10 days on the island, so I'm watching this. I love how everyone is saying this is not enough time. Dudes, it's what we can afford - in both time and money. Not everyone has endless vacation time. I'm glad to get the Rough Guide rec as we usually do well with that brand. Would love to hear about fav hotels in Palermo, Catania and Agrigento too. Thannks, all.

kja

From my point of view, the question isn't whether you can take more time or not -- although that might be nice, obviously, not everyone can. It's letting you know, in advance, that you will need to think through your priorities, as you can't see all of Sicily in that time. (And, until they learn more about it, some people think they can.)

cornishannie

I love how everyone is saying this is not enough time. Dudes, it's what we can afford - in both time and money.>>

@ksw430 - of course, and all travel requires some compromise. So long as you realise that you can't see it all, and are selective, that's fine.

sandralist

ksw430,

you rock! I had a cheerful stay in Agrigento at Camere con Vista b&b, but that was some time ago, so you should read recent reviews.

There is a real problem with advice-givers who think that 15 days in Sicily is "seeing it well" or that because Sicily is an island, a lot of pressure should be put on people to see mandatory highlights and never go back, rather than enjoy a chunk of region for a first trip and plan to go back if they like it. Sicily is really not hard to get to. I simply do not hear posters on Fodor's putting pressure on others about the amount of time "needed" to be wowed by a trip to Piemonte, or Tuscany -- two very large regions of Italy with quite a diversity of areas within it and sights to see. In fact, the same advice givers don't blink when someone says they are going to Tuscany for 4 nights without much of a plan - despite the fact that tourist Tuscany is far more overwhelming to cover completely as a territory than Sicily in anything less than weeks and weeks and weeks.

jayneLB

I understand that the time allocated when visiting a new place is NEVER enough. Time IS limited but I thought 10 days is better than none, while we are in that part of the world (Europe) for a wedding. I live in Australia, hey, 12 months wouldn't be long enough to see it all. I get it. I see every visit, to anywhere, as an eye opener and an invitation to return. All I ask is for favourite places to visit, then I'll continue my research. Thanks bobthenavigator- Ill take a look. KJA- your comments are worth a lot, thank you. BTW- at no time did I ever think I would see it all- nor did I intend to. I'm sure that we will enjoy it, no matter what. Cornishannie- it is about compromise, you're right. Trust me, I'm always selective. Europe is so far away from us so I try to see as much as I can in the timeframe. My motto is, I can always go back. True or not. KSW430- glad you see it as I do. I'll have a look at Rough Guide- thanks for the tip. A friend of mine is there now so I'll be interested to hear their insight, as similar travellers to us. Thanks everyone.

Dayle

Jayne,

I have planned 4 trips with the help of Fodorites and especially the trip reports.
One to France, 2 to mainland Italy and the most recent to Sicily. If people return the favor of advice they get here with a detailed TR, it helps me decide. Yes, I would love that, no I don't like the idea of that, etc.

I got interested in Sicily when I read Bob's TR, then continued reading Kja and Thursdays reports. The more I read, the most intrigued I became. My original plan to spend 2 weeks in Sicily quickly became more than 3 weeks as I mapped out my itinerary.

I've spent many years at the same company with the reward of having lots of vacation time for the first time in my life. Knowing that this would realistically be my only trip to Sicily, I decided to go for it and see all my top priorities. I was successful and loved my trip. There are always little things you would change in hindsight ,but
If you spend the time researching, you can come up with a trip that you will enjoy given you own parameters.

Fodorites can only tell you their personal experiences. Likes and dislikes are very subjective so you have to decide your own priorities.

Once you decide how you want to spend you time, the Fodorites can lend lots of practical advice on specific questions.

Happy planning!

kja

No matter what you decide, you will have an outstanding experience -- Sicily is a magnificent location! Do look at the Rough Gide -- I think it should give you the basic info you need to pare your trip to a manageable timeframe. You might even end up deciding to skip Malta on this trip, just to give more time to Sicily! ;-) And my apologies for the aside to ksw430 -- I should have labeled my response clearly.

My trip to Sicily, and other parts of southern Italy, was the first I planned with the help of Fodorites. IIRC, bobthenavigator told me that I need at least 2 weeks -- but I already "knew' that he is a "slow traveler," and I'm NOT a slow traveler (at least as I understood the term at that time), so I figured I could get by with 12 days and committed to plans accordingly. WRONG! Even before I had a firm itinerary in place, I knew I would have to skip all sorts of places that I would have loved to visit. Once I finalized a plan, I knew that I should have planned for another week there. Live and learn!

I share this information not to say that you have a right or wrong choice here -- you don't! Quite in contrast, you have a wealth of wonderful options, and my hope is that the comments you receive on this board, whether my comments or those who disagree with me, might prove useful. At the risk of being redundant -- it all depends on what YOU want to see and experience!

To be clear -- I never posted a trip report on my time in Sicily, except for a brief set of restaurant reviews. But I have posted frequently about Sicily, and I greatly appreciate Dayle's compliments to my efforts to share information. IMO, Dayle's trip report provided a ton of useful information, and I think I can say, with confidence, than any number of Fodorites will chime in as you narrow your options and focus your questions.

jayneLB

Hi KJA- Thanks for the advice. I am unable to skip Malta as I am attending a wedding there. It is only because of the wedding that we are going to Malta or Sicily. So both are a bonus as they weren't on my bucket list. So many place to see in our wonderful world! Well, almost wonderful.