annhig

Thanks, annhig (I think I remember some conversations between us from long ago involving Portugal?)>>

yes, I think I do too and no, we haven't got there yet! the closest I've ever been was on the school cruise that took me to Taormina many, many years ago - we were supposed to stop at Lisbon on the way home from the Med but the portuguese inconsiderately decided to have a revolution the day before we were due to dock so we went to Vigo in Spain instead, which was no substitute.

Hence perhaps why I want to go back to Taormina! and I understand why you want to see it too - and many condolences on your loss.

<<And a question -- what are you going to do in Piazza Armenira after visiting the mosaics? I ask because I see you have planned a second night there. Are you going to that agriturismo that everyone recommends? I saw Dayle's description of spending a night there, getting up early, leaving luggage at the B&B, doing the visit and then coming back, picking up the luggage and heading out. But if there is more to do in the area, I would prefer a second night there as well. >>

After the Villa, we will probably go to Enna and possibly even up into the hills north of there if we have time. the original plan was to go from Ragusa to Agrigento, spend 2 nights there, and see the Villa on the way between Agrigento and Taormina. But that seemed terribly rushed, so we toyed with the idea of spending one night in Agrigento and another in Piazza Armenira. But as as we hate 1 night stands we decided that we didn't want to see the Temples at Agrigento enough to put ourselves through so much chasing about, and we dropped it from the itinerary. and felt a lot happier.

in Piazza Armenira we are staying just outside the town in a B&B called la Casa sulla Colina D'Oro, as we like to be able to wander around at night without too much driving:

http://www.lacasasullacollinadoro.it

<<Anyway, I did a quick check on cars -- I find, two weeks pick up Taormina, drop off Palermo $362 (including taxes); 12 days pick up in Siracusa (not on a Sunday), drop off Palermo, $229 (again with taxes). Are your prices way different than this? I didn't do a serious search, just a quick Expedia one.>>

our car hire for 10 days, pick up and drop off at Catania airport is €216; it was about €360 for 7 days pick up from Siracuse. don't know why it was so expensive to pick up in Siracuse, perhaps we should try again!

<<Thanks for the Catania idea, but I have to admit that there were a couple of posts that turned me off to that city -- someone said that all the grit and grime from Palermo has been exported to Catania or something like that! Have you been there? >>

I have been put off by reports of Catania too; ideally we would drive there from the airport [our flight lands at 10.30 am!] and have lunch there before driving onto Ortygia, but I really don't fancy parking our car with all its luggage in Catania, so I think that we will probably go straight to our hotel in Ortygia where we have parking [Hotel Livingstone] or possibly divert via Palazzolo Acrieide which has a good restaurant which is mentioned in the Blue Guide and a lovely linen shop that only opens afternoons. I think that the car should be reasonably safe there!

lreynold1

Making progress, thanks to everyone. I've dropped one night from Taormina, added a night to Siracusa.

My gut is telling me that the Baroque towns are not a high priority for us. I had thought a bus/train to Noto from Siracusa would be enough. Do others disagree? Should I take a night off somewhere else to add a night in Ragusa or some other Baroque town?

Now I'm looking at what to do with four nights after Agrigento and before Palermo. The places that keep popping up on these threads are Selinunte, Segesta, Erice, and Trapani. Is there one place in that northwest corner that would be a good base for the whole area, or should we stay in two different places for two nights each? I have read that going up and down from Erice every day might be a chore. Dayle's trip report mentioned Tenute Plaia in Scopello as a possibility.

yestravel

I loved Erice. It has a very ehtereal feel to it with wonderful views. It does get somewhat crowded in the day. The drive up to it is windy and can be foggy or with cloud cover. It depends on your feelings about driving to it as to whether you'd want to make it a base. We didn't and stayed 2 nights. I think that the town is quite different at night without so many tourists so its worth spending a night there.

We didnt stay ovenight in Trapani, but really enjoyed it for a day and would have liked to spend more time. Scopello is very small, but beautiful. Reminded me a bit of the CA coast. Zingara Natl Park is lovely for a hike or time at a beach. We stayed 2 nights in Scopello and 2 in Erice and thought that worked out well. Segesta is easy to visit from this area. I think Selinunte would be a bit further to visit from here perhaps an hour and half. I would visit it from Marza del Valle (are you still going there?)

We did not see more then Noto and only for an afternoon and then an evening. That worked out fine with us. If your gut tells you will be fine, I'm guessing you will be.

lreynold1

Thanks, yestravel. We will leave Agrigento in the morning, having seen the temples the day before. So maybe the thing to do is visit Selinunte on the way to Trapani. Spend the night in Trapani, then up to Erice for one night. Then Scopello for two? On the day we drive from Erice to Scopello, visit Segesta on the way? (I will just have to figure out what our comfort level is with leaving luggage in the car -- did you do that? We will only have carry-ons and can carry all valuables with us, but still.... )

How did you spend your four nights in the NW? (sorry if you have a trip report, but I couldn't find it -- if you do, can you give me the link?)

I am not sure about Marza dV. Two two-night towns well positioned to be able to see the NW part west of Palermo is my goal.

Thanks to all.

Mimar

We were in Taormina in early October. It was crowded but not terribly so. We navigated the back streets and stumbled onto the city park. As for the Greek theater, not all such have a view of Mt. Etna.

I find the views in Taormina so wonderful. Of course, daytimes you see the sea and the land tumbling down to it. At night the shoreline is lit up and sparkles like a diamond necklace.

That said, the train station for Taormina is at some distance, down there on the coast at Giardini Naxos. You have to take a taxi or maybe there's a bus.

yestravel

I didn't do a TR for Sicily for either trip. The trip last year in May we spent a lot of time in agriturismos in the countryside and visited places from there. We zigzagged a bit changing our original itinerary. Originally we weren't going to Erice since we had visited it on our first trip to Sicily. But once in Sicily we changed our mind and drove back across the island from around the Marza del Valle area to go there and to Scopello which we hadn't included in our original plans either. Our itinerary was far from logistically logical! We found driving to be very easy and scenic. Little traffic on the open road and good roads. Also we had no trouble dropping nights from reservations and finding places to stay on the fly. We couldnt get into the popular Pensione Tranchina Scopello, but otherwise had no trouble winging it a bit for parts of our trip.

I think your order sounds fine. You could also visit Segesta on the way to Palmero.

Fully aware of the possiblities of theft, we did throw caution to the wind and left luggage in the trunk of our car something we have rarely done. Like you we only had carry on size suitcases and they fit hidden in the trunk. We took valuables with us. In Monreale we parked behind the cathedral in a manned lot. In some other places we tried to park backed up against a wall and where possible in full view of people. We didn't do it in big cities, only out in the countryside including the parking lot at Villa Romana del Casale.

Did you see the TR from julies I think it is? She went last fall.

annhig

My gut is telling me that the Baroque towns are not a high priority for us. I had thought a bus/train to Noto from Siracusa would be enough. Do others disagree? Should I take a night off somewhere else to add a night in Ragusa or some other Baroque town?>>

lreynold1 - one of my reasons for wanting to spend time in a Baroque town is what I've read in the Camilleri books [and seen on TV too] about his detective Montalbano. Whilst not such a fan that we are going to stay in his beach-side apartment [which is apparently a B&B] I certainly want to spend a little time exploring the towns where it's set. Not only that but there is a Michelin 2 star restaurant in Ragusa and as the trip is a present to me from my DH to celebrate a "big birthday" I have hopes of having a meal there.

but if you have no particular yen to see them, by all means stick to an afternoon in Noto.

lreynold1

Thanks for mentioning the TR. I have now got my hands on five more -- Progol palatino82, Rasputin1, Pthomas, and Julies. So I will probably disappear for a while and pour through the details. Have booked the flights, October 8 - 26. Since we will need at least one night in Rome to get the early AM flight to Chicago (not wanting to chance it on the same day since I have to buy two separate tickets, one Palermo - Rome and the other Rome - home), we're may spend two nights in Rome, maybe 3 depending on how the Sicily planning goes. Of course if I get overwhelmed with all the things to do in Sicily, we could just stay till the last minute and spend the night in Rome in an airport hotel and forego Rome altogether. So I do have some flexibility. This is due to Dayle's exhortation that we spend as much time as possible in Sicily!

And one last question about forum etiquette/common practices. When it comes to specific questions that I will have (for instance, I'm reading lots of different experiences about the car/theft/insurance/overcharges question), should I post a separate thread (with the title "renting a car in Sicily" or something similar), or do people tend to keep all their questions within the same thread? Maybe this isn't a big deal but I am a moderator on another forum and we have our "norms" that long time users become familiar with.

Dayle

lreynold,

I'm not understanding why you can't book a ticket all the way through to Sicily. I live in Utah and our non-stops to Europe are quite limited (although lately we have gained two more for a total of 3 - yeah!). I booked thru on Delta: SLC - CDG - FCO - Palermo. It was an extremely long travel day, but I wanted to be able to check my small bag all the way through and not have the worry about making a connection on a separate ticket for the Sicily legs.

There is no need to stay one night in Erice and one it Trapani. They are just above/below each other. I did love staying in Erice for 3 nights and didn't find the drive difficult or too long. I picked my car up in Trapani, but that's all I saw of it.

Segesta is only about a 20 - 25 min. drive from Trapani or Erice. I did it after picking up my car so my luggage was at my lodging in Erice.

There are many opinions about the leaving luggage (even out of sight) in your car. Only you can determine your comfort level vs. risk. I took all valuables with me, but if I had needed to replace clothes or shoes in Sicily, I would have been out of luck. Most of those Sicilian ladies are tiny, and I am of Nordic ancestry!

yestravel

You can also take a cable car between Trapani & Erice.

In terms of etiquette, not sure what it is really! It's nice to have all comments related to a tripon one paost. OTOH, sometimes you can get other posters to respond when you post a separate topic. Always hard to say & everyone has their own preference.

annhig

should I post a separate thread (with the title "renting a car in Sicily" or something similar), or do people tend to keep all their questions within the same thread? Maybe this isn't a big deal but I am a moderator on another forum and we have our "norms" that long time users become familiar with.>>

lol. The first rule on fodors is that there are no rules!

if you have a specific question which is more about car hire generally than about your trip, you could start a new thread as you may attract people who would overlook a thread about Sicily. OTOH if it's more closely related to Sicily, you might want to keep it here.

bon_voyage

Since you're a "Romanesque fanatic" , just a few additional links to Romanesque churches. Essential to keep track of opening/closing days and times.

San Cataldo--Palermo
http://whc.unesco.org/en/documents/137425

Loved the contrast with the also fabulous churches whose interiors are covered with gold mosaics

San Giovanni degli Eremiti--Palermo
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Gi..._degli_Eremiti

Only able to peek inside the garden due to the timing of our visit to that area of Palermo

Santissima Trinità di Delia--near Castelvetrano
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attracti...ni_Sicily.html

On the wish list but ran out of time

kja

Are you saying you already have your flights in and out of Rome? Unless you are firmly committed to spending some time in Rome this trip, consider contacting AA to see if you can add on your flights to / from Sicily.

Thanks for asking about the etiquette – I agree with my fellow posters that there is no regular pattern. I find it most helpful to keep questions about your trip together, unless you are so drastically re-doing or re-thinking that you want fresh eyes – but in that case, I still greatly appreciate it when people link their threads. And as others have said, if you have a specific question that is entirely separate from this thread, feel free to start a new one.

lreynold1

Thanks for those links, Bon voyage, I will make sure to incorporate the Romanesque sites. I really wasn't expecting to find much of that style in Sicily, so this is a bonus.

I spent more than a half hour on the phone with the AA platinum people this morning, and they simply cannot book me into either Palermo or Catania. I am considering writing to the next level to verify this. The possibilities they started with were Vueling (which is an Iberia partner, but not an AA partner),and which flies Rome to Catania, and Air Berlin, which flies from Düsseldorf to Catania. But she could not get her computer to give her an itinerary/ticket. I think this is odd, because sometimes I have been booked on AA with a transfer to another airline when American doesn't fly to that destination.

I wonder if anyone else on the forum has had a similar experience -- surely some of the people who visit from the US are flying on American!

kja

Sicily is renowned for its Romanesque, aka Sicilian Norman architecture -- as I mentioned above. That's why I think you will want more time on Palermo than you are currently planning.

Dayle

I do understand your problem. Last winter I needed to get 7 of my guys from SLC to Basel and no matter what the agent did, they could not get the itinerary and ticket to come up on the system. Even thought it was all on a route that Delta and Air France served, the leg from CDG to Basel would not give a fare.

We assumed that those flights were sold out due to ski season......and my group ended up flying into Zurich instead.

kja

Sorry -- I was called away ...

Good luck with your conversations with AA. If you aren't able to route on through to Sicily, then I agree that you will need to be in Rome the night before your flight. I would encourage you, though, to put as much time into Sicily as you can -- as you are learning, there is more than enough to keep you happily busy there, and it isn't the easiest place to reach from the U.S.

lreynold1

I have spent the last 12 hours glued to my iPad and have knocked out a revised itinerary with a little more detail. Appreciate all suggestions, criticisms, etc, since I am a total newbie to Sicily.

We will have a rental car for 8 or 9 days, from Siracusa to Palermo. I've decided that our comfort level will be greatly increased if the bags are never in the trunk, so I have had to jigger with the itinerary a bit to deal with that inconvenience. Probably overkill, but I just prefer to go that way.

Taormina -- 2 nights in Villa Schuler
Getting over jet lag, one full day.

Ortygia -- 3 nights (still waiting for confirmation on hotel -- many places booked out)
We will take the train or bus from Taormina.
No day trips, just staying put.

Noto (or maybe some other baroque town) -- 1 night
Pick up car in Siracusa as early as possible, drive to Noto and deposit bags. Hotel Sofia (not exactly our style but good price and very convenient) about 20 minute walk from center. I'm not sure if that would make much difference in terms of ease of drop off. Does anyone have suggestions on either Hotel Sofia or whether we should go to an in-town place, drop off bags, and head out again.
Circle drive to Modica and back (mainly for views and countryside, may stop or not); visit Noto late afternoon and evening.

Piazza Armerina -- 1 night
Probably the Clementine, as it allows us to drop off bags, and head out again without going through town. Possibly visit Caltagirone, either on way from Noto (breaking our "no bags in the trunk" rule), or take the faster way to the Clementine, then head back to Caltagirone (31 km southeast). Not sure if we will visit mosaics in the afternoon after arrival or the next morning.

Agrigento -- 2 nights (Villa Lumia)
Will visit temples either on arrival day or during our full day there, either late afternoon or early morning. But I will not visit the mosaics in Villa Romana on the same day as the temples in Agrigento -- I prefer to spread those places over two days, so our schedule will just depend on what we have done the day before.
Will fill other time there with a circle drive up through Aragona and Santa Elisabetta (maybe going as far north as an agriturismo that has a retail operation, Ciuci's manor). Visit to town, any other suggestions in the area?

Selinunte area -- 1 night (Villa Sogno)
Similar to other days, we will visit the archaeological site either late afternoon or early morning, and use other time for short trip, maybe to Sciacca, some cliffs I've read about, or Poggioreale. I assume there are other nice coastal areas as well.

Scopello -- 3 nights (Tenute Plaia Agriturismo)
Looks like about a 1 1/2 hour drive straight from Villa Sogno to lodging. Will use this as base to see Erice, Segesta, the cliff walk, still in early planning stages.

Palermo -- 3-4 nights (Palazzo Pantaleo)
Drop off car at airport, take bus into town. Will make sure to see some of the Romanesque sites, Monreale, etc.

So, this itinerary has benefitted enormously from your input, many thanks, and I hope to get more suggestions.

TDudette

This looks fine to me also, lreynold1. Even though DH and were in Sicily only once, according to an eager taxi cab driver, we could have easily taken a day trip to Noto while we were in Siracusa. So I'd say no need to change so much for one day?

Also, even if you are not religious one iota, do try to see Monreale and the Palatine Chapel when you are in Palermo. Bus or cab to the first, walk to the second. Astounding mosaics.

I'm bummed that we didn't get to Taormino--no hotels in our budget when we set up the trip. Remember that Yogi said, "no one goes there--it's too crowded!" for a reason!

I am looking forward to your trip report.

yestravel

I try to avoid 1 night stays so I second Tdudette comments on the one night in Noto. Its an easy day trip from Siracusa and rather than move for 1 night to Noto I would think about just staying another night in Ortygia.