driving in Sicily
 

I will be spending 2 weeks in Sicily in September. I would like to stay in 3 places (maximum 4 if necessary) and do day trips. I will be arriving and departing from Palermo. I would like to spend some time seeing Erice, Segesta and Selinunte and Monreale. I would also like to Cefalu and possibly S. Stefano. I definitely want to visit Piazza Armerina and Taormina, Siracusa, Noto, Ragusa and Caltagirone. Any suggestions of where to stay and what the driving times might be beween where I might stay for several days would be very helpful. Thanks -
Beverly A

Click on my name for my trip report of 15 days in Sicily.
I feel you can do it with 4 base locations---Palermo, Taormina, and Siracusa are 3 of them.

Here is my photo gallery as well:

http://www.slowphotos.com/photo/show...y.php?cat=3828

I would add Sciacca as the fourth.

I did a similar itinerary last year and my one suggestion would be to rethink stopping in Cefalu. It's nice, of course, but it's kind of not on the way to anything -- for example, much easier to drive the straight shot on the highway from Palermo to Taormina than to drive along the coast (as we did) passing through Cefalu. We picked B&B's in Palermo, Taormina, Siracusa, and Agrigento and could recommend them if you're interested. You can do a lot in two weeks!

We just rented a car from Economy Rentals for a similar trip. They were cheaper than AutoEurope or Kemwel. You might want to check them out.

You don't need a car in Palermo where traffic is awful. We dropped ours at the Autoeurope office in Cafalu and took a train to Palermo (40 minutes). There are regular buses to Monreale.

Erice and Segeste are very close to Trapani which is a good base. We stopped in Selinunte on our way to Agrigento where we spent the night, then drove to Syracuse for 3 nights. I do not advise to drive in Syracuse, it is as bad as
Palermo ! There is a huge parking lot near Ortygia called Tallete where you can leave your car for free during the day (it costs something like €1 during the night). Noto is accessible by bus and by train.

We spent 15 days in Sicily. We stayed in Palermo, Taormina and Ortygia and made day trips . Moost of them by bus, one by train (Palermo - Cefalu) and one an organized day tour from Taormina to Agrigento and Piazza Armerina.
The trips by bus:
- Palermo - Erice
- Palermo - Monreale
- Taormina - Castelmola
- Siracusa - Notto

Also, from Palermo to Taormina and from Taormina to Siracusa we travelled by bus.
WE stayed in very nice B&B.

Thanks everybody for your great suggestions. I would love the names of any B&BS or agriturismos that anyone has had good experiences with. Also looking for a hotel in or near Taormina. What kind of weather can I expect from Sept 9- Sept 25?

See my trip report

see B&B that we loved:
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...-and-malta.cfm