If you take tours, you are not going to stay in nice places or eat good food.

May I ask why you are going to Palermo? It's not a common destination, and the touristing there is more of a challenge. As for Capri, it is a particularly pricey destination.

It is possible, at any time of year, to spend 10 days in Italy seeing beautiful sights, staying in clean and charming lodgings, eat great food and sightsee using only public transportation, if you would enjoy simply being in Italy and having those things.

If you have family you want to see, or a wedding to go to, or a dream of seeing one particular place, that's certainly worth doing, although you have less flexibility in saving money.

I'm trying to suggest that unless you have compelling reasons to go to Palermo, you are eating a lot of euros in transportation to visit a very challenging, hectic city. Likewise, if you think you might other beautiful scenery, or the sea, and it doesn't have to be Capri, you can spend far less on lodging and ferry fees.

What do you want to accomplish with this trip?

Well, a tour may be easier, but definitely not necessarily better - or even cheaper. And of course, tours vary greatly between providers.

I wouldn't think of October as "off season" for southern Italy - spring and fall are the best times to visit.

I disagree with zeppole about Palermo, I found it an interesting city with good, cheap public transport, and you should certainly not miss Monreale. Have you looked at the B&B I stayed at? www.bed-and-breakfast.palermo.it/eng/ It's on a bus route, well worth the very reasonable price, and has availability for the whole of October.

I am not saying Palermo is not an interesting destination, and its lodgings are cheaper than most typical tourist destinations.

My questions about the choice were a reaction to mhyde talking about the costliness of the trip. The more compact the geographical area, the less moving about one does, the cheaper the trip.

It's a reach to go to Palermo or Capri and I was just curious as to what mhyde was reaching for. Maybe it's necessary to spend the money and time to reach all the way to Palermo and Capri to get it. Maybe not.

Well, I agree with Susan P. My schedule is much too hectic, and we are moving around too much. Will see about starting in Palermo and coming back--allowing 3 nights in Rome at the end rather than splitting it up. We really wanted to see Sicily because we have not been there. We did not see "everything" in Italy and the Tuscany area really looks good. Some friends suggested Capri and the Almafi Coast--which is so beautiful in pictures. We will ferry to Salerno because I think we will not be able to stay on Capri, but we can stay in Salerno and see so much that we may stay there 4 nights. So 4 nights in Sicily, 4 nights in Salerno, 2 nights in Naples, and the rest in Rome will make life so much easier. We both have been to Rome three times, but I know that there is much more to see, and there is a music festival in when it is time for us to come home (Festival International di Musicae Arte Sacra), and I really want to see the Gardens at the Galleria Borghese. This is a big relief to cut down on the number of stops. Now, I will have to see about the rooms. Thanks for all of your help. p.s. I still have not found the hostel in Naples--located on the upper floors of a building that is close to town.

Just got back from a cruise and had a chance to drive the spectacular Amalfi coast with Salvatore from "Drive Amalfi". Didn't find Naples that exciting but would highly recommend Sorrento, Amalfi or Positano. Once you get to Naples - there are boats (hydrofoils) that can take you to Capri or other spots.

Once you fine tune your sightseeing agenda, you may find you don't need to stay in Napoli, but only visit it from Salerno.

Hi, mhyde1 -

I think your new itinerary looks much better.

> I still have not found the hostel in Naples--located on the upper floors of a building that is close to town.

It isn't a hostel, but you might want to check out the Hotel Europeo:

http://europeo.hotelsinnapoli.com/main-en.htm

Enjoy!

I am beginning to feel like the most stupid person in the world! After this trip, I will let you all know how it went--if it goes. I just spent time on SNAV on-line to see about booking a passage from Rome to Palermo because one of the Fodorites had mentioned it. Well, I could never get any price info at all! (and SNAV only travels in Sicily on this site-no postings from Rome) Anyway, I tried clicking on every piece of info. and could get from Naples to Palermo but could not get a price. I have never booked on-line, but I am capable of reading and thought I would be able to, but I need to know the costs. Plus, since we won't have a car, will we be close to the ports at these different places? I am working on a list of questions to ask the AAA agent today. I feel comfortable "feeling my way around once we get there, but I feel we need rooms for the first night in Rome.

Thursdays, just wanted to make sure I have the right hostel--is it Hostel hotel Bella Capri in Naples? Thanks.

Kybourbon, did you find the hostel on Capri?

mhyde1 - I'm not sure how you're defining the "right" hostel. The Bella Capri is just across from the waterfront, if that is what you want. If you're still deciding, take a look at hostels.com, europcheapo.com and venere.com.

I'm sorry. I forgot about finding the link. It looks like the cost is 32-34€ per person in coed dorms or about 75€-85€ for a double room. Bassetto Guesthouses are also available in Naples, Florence, Tuscany, Rome.
http://www.bassettoguesthouse.com/ch...tion-capri.htm

I may have some links for other budget accommodations on Capri. I'll see what I can come up with.

Instead of using the Bassetto link, I found their direct link.
http://www.bussolahermes.com/en/welcome

Thursdays, were you talking about Naples when you said that the Bella Capri was on the waterfront? Or Capri?

Naples. It's right across from the cruise ship dock - the view is likely to mostly consist of very large ships. On Capri I'd recommend La Tosca.

Hi,
We spent 13 days in Sicily 2 years ago, have driven the Amalfi coast a few years back and spent 2 nights on Capri. So ... Palermo is a city; we stayed 1 night there before driving around the island. Try to visit Montreale on your way out of town. Siracusa was our favorite, we spent 2 nights there. Capri is certainly worth 2 nights because the atmosphere changes after all the day-trippers leave; it's very slow and you can get in almost any restaurant. The hiking there is very good and the chair lift up Mt. Sol is magical. The Amalfi coast is a wonderful drive; try not to miss Ravello. Pompeii is a must-see; try to get a guide without a cell phone. I made all our reservations over the internet at hotels I found on TripAdvisor. Have fun!

Watch out for your 5th/6th floor hostel in Naples. It is very possible that there is no elevator and with luggage, that could be a problem, especially that the first floor is the first floor up. That means 6th/7th floor!
Also train schedules in Italy can be seen in English on trenitalia.it.

A PS for mhyde 1
If you're working with a budget forget about Capri unless you make it a day trip. Even a cup of coffee or a bottle of water is outrageously expensive. Of course,it's outrageously beautiful, so your call.

And, make your trip as uncomplicated as possible. You don't want to spend all your time worrying about connections nor waiting in bus/train/air terminals. Enjoy one or two things. You'll make it back again for something else.

The Bella Capri is the same building as the B&B I stayed in this spring. There was an elevator, but it had to be fed coins at regular intervals! (I don't remember off-hand which coins, but small ones.)

Our trip is slowly coming together. I have found out we can get tickets for the Galleria Borhese with context travel. Narrowed it down to three stops: Palermo, either Naples or Salerno, then back to Rome. Will spend the last three nights in Rome. Just hope we can get tickets to the International Music Festival at that time. Thanks for all of your help. Would have spent too much time traveling and not enough time just enjoying.

Why aren't you booking directly with the Borghese Gallery?? See www.galleriaborghese.it/borghese/en/einfo.htm

Thursdays, thanks for the info. Do you know anything about the Festival International di Musicae Arte Sacra in Rome during Oct. 10-14th? Think I will try and Google it.

mhyde1 - If you are on a budget, instead of booking the Galleria Borghese with an agency or directly, consider buying the Roma Pass for 20€. You get into your first two museums free and 50% off at many others. The Borghese alone will cost 13.5€ and if you use your other free entrance at the coloseum (9€) then it's easy to get your money's worth. The pass is good for 3 days from activation, including use of metro/bus/trams/local trains. You would still need to call the Borghese to book a reservation (tell them you are using the Pass) as it's reservation only and you can't make it online for passes.
www.romapass.it

I have tried to purchase the Roma Passes over the internet, and I am having problems. One site says e20, another one says e25, plus I cannot get to the site to purchase them. Do I have to wait until we get to Rome?

Thursdays, I think I found the name of the island I thought you had mentioned. It is Ortygia .

mhyde1 - oh yes, Ortygia - the best part of Siracusa.

There are two different Roma Passes. The first one is called Roma Pass and the cost is 20€. The second one is called Roma & Piu Pass and the cost is 25€. The difference is in the transportation covered by the passes. The 25€ pass covers more of the outlying areas which you will not need. Buy at the tourist offices in Rome.

I decided to Goggle for information on the International Music Festival in Rome on Oct. 12-13th and found out it is by invitation only for patrons of the arts. The Pope will speak on Oct. 12th. Needless to say, we won't be getting tickets to attend. Sure sounds wonderful.

We are torn between Palermo and Catania along the east coast--since Catania is closer to Mt. Etna, Valley of the Temples, Greek Theater. There is a lot to see in Palermo, too. Wonder about the possibility of driving in Sicily--it has been recommended, but I do not know about driving there. Any ideas?

Stick with Palermo. With only 4 days in Sicily, I would not drive.

Jim Tardio has it right---keep it simple.

Zeppole, Thanks for the info and re-enforcement of my thoughts about driving. It just sounded so beautiful--the area around the east coast. Do you think they will have tour buses from Palermo to see Mt. Etna, the Greek theater, and other spots in that area? Think this will narrow down our stops to Palermo, Naples and Rome. Guess we will do a day trip to Capri. Everyone talks about Surrento, but it seems out of the way from the other areas.

What do you think of staying in Messina for two nights to do the tours of Mt. Etna, greek theater, and other sights. Then go on to Palermo. We can take the ferry from Palermo to Naples.

How are you getting to Messina?

mhyde1- if you find a copy of Lonely Planet Sicily it will have something on ways to see Mt. Etna without driving yourself. I agree with zeppole that with your limited time you're better off staying in Palermo, but if you really want to spend some time in the east I would take the train to or from Messina, and probably stay in Taormina rather than either Catania or Messina.

I enjoyed driving in Greece, but we were not pushed for time. It just seemed that everything we wanted to see was on the east coast--not in Palermo. And Thursdays talked about it so much. If we can get tours out of Palermo, we will just go ahead and go there (by train from Rome --on an over night). Everyone discourages me from getting a rail pass, but when I compare prices it cost me as much to go from Rome to Palermo as it does to get a 3 day rail pass. We will be taking either the ferry or the train to Salerno. Then the train to Naples. Take the side trips out of Naples. Then take the train back to Rome. We always stay in hotels near the train stations since we do not have a car. Yes, we will make reservations for the 8 pm overnight to Palermo, and for the one going back into Rome. If I had known in the beginning what I know now, we would have flown into Palermo and out of Rome. Guess we have learned a lesson.

Are you pricing your train tickets on Trenitalia?

Like kybourbon, I am curious as to whether your are pricing tickets on Trenitalia.

Also, I am curious as to whether you have looked at flying out of Roma directly to Sicily the same day you arrive in Roma -- either flying to Palermo or flying to Catania right away? You can buy a separate one-way ticket, just as you would a train ticket.

If you are taking the overnight train, and want to see Taormina, Etna and Siracusa, you should get off the train while it is on that side of Sicily.

When I gave you the advice to stick to Palermo, I thought you had switched your air tickets so that you were flying into Palermo. But if that is still open, rethink your transportation options into and out of Sicily.

This looks to me to be a very useufl website:

http://www.italyheaven.co.uk/sicily/transport.html


PS: Sorrento is not far away from what you want to see on the mainland. It's right in the middle of it. Perhaps you would prefer to stay there than in Napoli.

mhyde,

In the thread, hazel previously posted:

"I just looked at some dates in October and Air One from FCO to Palermo is 179€ for two passengers, while an Amica fare for two via overnight train in a two bed compartment is 162€. Time wise, it would seem that the small additional price to pay would be well worth it, but you would also need to factor in that the train fare is also covering one night's lodging which would be an extra expense if flying is preferred over the train."

I am fairly certain the cost of two tickets from Rome FCO to Catania is the same cost as flying to Palermo.

Do you really want to sit around all day in Roma, jet lagged, and then try to sleep on an overnight train? Unless you are in your 20s, I would be afraid of getting sick.

I would either fly to Palermo or fly to Catania from FCO -- or at least reverse the trip:

Go from Rome by train to Sorrento and sleep. See what you want in that area (Pompeii, Capri, etc) before going to Sicily. Fly, boat or train back toward Rome.

Zeppole, you are giving me good advice. What do you know about the Quality Hotel Palermo Sicily. It states it is near the pier. I wonder how far it is from the train station. Will we be able to walk there? It is $79 euros a night which is a good rate. How can I get info about it because when I pull it up, they do not list an email address. Thanks.