travelrene

Thanks . . .it's all really helpful. We weren't planning on walking on roads . . .just wondered if there are footpaths as in England and France?

Dayle

GAC,

I'm starting to plan my long dreamed of Sicily trip, and thought I would just have to rent a car. But, seeing that I'll most likely be solo, I'm just a bit hesitant.

I've driven in the Loire Valley solo and all around Tuscany and Umbria solo with no problem at all and I learned to drive on the LA freeways, but for some reason Sicily seems a little more intimidating.

Can I really get to all those towns/cities/sights via public trans???

GAC

FCO/PMO discount airfares can be found as low as 19 Euros one-way. Look up fares in

www.volawindjet.it
www.easyjet.com
www.blu-express.it
www.alitalia.it

zeppole

I looked at the schedules posted above for public transportation in between Siracusa and the baroque towns and I thought the trains were too infrequent. Ninety minutes on a bus and even longer is a lot when it comes to day tripping, I think, especially when you add in time needed to get to and from the bus depot. One of the reasons I liked the area of the baroque towns so much was the beauty of the countryside, and the drive between Noto and Modica.

Sicily is more intimidating for drivers (I also learned driving in LA and drive in Italy all the time). I say it's a close call as to whether having a car would spoil your trip or enhance it. You can probably wait until you get there to see how you feel, and rent a car if you want to. Don't judge all of Sicilian driving by Palermo. Maybe a good strategy would be to take public transportation from Palermo to Siracusa, and to use public transportation for a day trip to Taormina. If you are finding public transportation not enjoyable, rent a car in Siracusa for a few days to see the baroque towns.

zeppole

PS: Before I ruled having a car for touring Sicily, I would want to know the distance from the train station to the sites in places like Agrigento and Selinute, and if the train station wasn't near them, how do I get to them and how easy is it to get back to the train station without a car.

Another thing to consider is that in many months, Sicily is very, very hot. I would want to hear from people who've used public transportation if the trains and buses are reliably air conditioned and if the waiting areas are as well, or sufficiently shaded.

scrb

Guess one of the advantages of a car would be moving luggage if you're basing at 3 towns or more.

And not being at the mercy of public transport schedules.


GAC, thanks for the transport links. The $600 flights were Alitalia and I would assume the prices reflected what the competitors were offering for that time, which was out to May of next year. I checked this a couple of months back.

One concern about using LCC is the luggage allowance, especially since an American may bring enough luggage for a 2-week trip and that may involve bigger cases than can be carried onboard.

GAC

The vast majority of cities, towns and other tourist sites on Sicily can be reach by public transportation (primarily bus, secondarily train). There are actually very, very few sites which are not serviced (e.g. the Greek ruins at Camarina). Even the more remote sites (e.g. Imera, Solunto) can be reached by train or bus.

Nevertheless, there are advantages with having a car if you plan on doing a lot of travelling between the more remote sites (e.g. going between Segesta and Erice; Segesta and Selinunte; Trapani and Mozia; Solunto and Cefalu, etc.), since bus or train service usually connects these places with their respective provincial capital.

Not having a car means taking lots of day trips out of the nearest provincial capital (e.g. using Trapani as a base to visit Erice, San Vito Lo Capo, Segesta, Marsala, Mozia, Mazara, Selinunte and the Egadi Islands).

Not having a car also means wasting time having to wait for the bus/train departure, which often means leaving very early in the morning (before 7:00 a.m.), and returning either in the early or the late afternoon. On the other hand, you don't have to worry about parking in the large cities, and having to watch the road rather than the scenery (solo travellers find renting less advantageous than couples or families).

Some relatively remote sites have fewer public transportation connections, and therefore require very careful planning. An example is getting to Segesta or to Selinunte from Palermo as a daytrip. This can indeed by done (and the schedules are actually pretty good), but you should print out the bus schedules, which means having to FIND them on the internet!!!

Zeppole: re your questions, the train station at Agrigento is at the edge of the Medieval Town. There is a local city bus right outside the station which goes down the hill to the Archeological Museum and the Temples. It's really easy. You definitely DON'T NEED a car to get to Agrigento from Palermo or Catania. The intercity bus "depot" is another 300 yards northeast of the Station (with lots of buses to Palermo, Catania, and a couple of buses to Licata, Gela, Mazara, Marsala and Trapani).

Selinunte is a little trickier: it can be visited as a daytrip out of both Palermo (bus connection at Castelvetrano) and Trapani (train to Castelvetrano/connecting to bus). The daytrip out of Trapani is a bit easier and shorter.

GAC

RE: the question about using public transportation in Sicily during the heat of the summer: yes, the trains and the buses have air conditioning (for the most part), but I AVOID going there between mid June and mid September (too hot), and always go between mid April and late May.

RE; the question about public transport connections between Siracusa and Noto/Modica/Ragusa, remember that you can play off of both the train and the bus schedules. By all means, don't limit yourself to the trains!!! Print out the full schedules and devise a trip plan which maximizes the full potential of both trains and buses!!! Remember too that the bus stops in Noto and Modica are more convenient than the location of the train stations, but the scenery between Modica and Ragusa is better by taking the train.

BTW, you can also travel between Ragusa and Agrigento by train/bus (with a connection in Gela), but you really have to plan this in advance, and locate the bus schedules on the internet (which I have done).

zeppole

All that detail is helpful, GAC. I went to Agrigento from Modica, with a car, so I don't know if I would have enjoyed it as much by public transportation. I toured the monuments closer to sunset, to avoid the heat of the day, and I'm not sure I could do that timed to public transportation. I spent the night in Agrigento -- which means had I been using public transportation, I would have had luggage to carry as well.

I almost never go touristing in Italy without someone else in the car, so it really is a consideration when it comes to Sicily.

LJ

If it is any help in your car vs pub transit decision, we found driving in Sicily very easy and less stressful than on the mainland. Decent roads, easier to park (even in towns, though do note the good advice re: Ortigia/Syracusa) and less traffic, even on the autoroutes.

GAC

My rule of thumb: consider renting a car in Sicily only if you plan on travelling to sites outside of the major tourist cities of Palermo, Agrigento, Siracusa and Taormina. Gravitate toward public transportation if travelling solo.

Dayle

Thanks so much for the expert input. I'm planning hopefully for end of April/May or second choice will be early Oct. No, wouldn't go in summer! You did hit all the very reasons I want to rent a car, so that's what I'll do. Obviously won't want it in Palermo or the Aeolian Islands.

I'm planning nearly 3 weeks for the islands and Sicily (yes, I know it's an island too).

Just starting to figure out the order of itinerary.

Grazie!

TDudette

No question is ever dumb. Not asking is. Agree with all above. DH and I stayed several days in Palermo. We were adopted by a taxi driver for drives around the city and the trip to Montreale (a don't miss IMHO) but took busses every where else. Allow more time if you ARE bussing, however. We couldn't get to the wonderful murals and mosaics at-oops, just lost the name.

Ironically, the Sicilians we did speak with warned us urgently about the Naples train station! We had no problems there either.

Normal care as always.

scrb

So that begs the question, what are the must-see places outside of Palermo, Agrigento, Siracusa and Taormina?

summero

Scrb, among other worthwhile sites, there's Monreal Cathedral outside of Palermo, Catania's cathedral built of black volcanic stone and, for a different experience, the lunar landscape of Mt. Etna.

PLV

We are driving from Palermo to Pachino/Portopalo. Then we would like to travel in the countryside, following the WWII Canadian Light Infantry Division route. The towns are Gramichele, Piazza Armerina, Valguarera, Leonforte, Assoro, Agria and Adrano. Are there any safety concerns through this countryside? We will be staying that next night in Catania. Thanks

StCirq

PLV, this thread is 8 years old. You should start your own thread.

WoinParis

And be ready to have snarky comments, a lot of Europeans on this forum don't like questions about safety, thinking they live in a civilized part of the world.

So instead of being snarky, I'll tell the joke I always tell Italians : Why are there many more christenings than weddings in Italy ?
Easier to find a godfather than a witness.

Ciao le ragazzi ! la vita e bella.

annhig

Certo, woinP! e buona sera anche a te.

PVL, it might be nice if you started your own thread but i don't mind contributing on this one, and perhaps surprisingly, we were worried about safety in Sicily, particularly about leaving our luggage in our hire car while we explored.

But we didn't need to be worried - everything was absolutely fine and we felt perfectly safe. The places you have mentioned are pretty small, even Piazza Armerina, and they are hardly hot beds of villainy. The only place where I might be concerned at all would be Catania itself - there i would empty the car completely, just to be sure.

WoinParis

I hope Piazza Armerina has changed. We went there in April some years ago - something like 25 kgms ago and we didn't encounter even a cat at 8 pm.
We turned tail and ate at the hotel... The town was lovely but best seen during daylight !