For our oncoming trip to Sicily we are landing in Palermo at 10pm in the evening. My plan was to stay in Palermo for a couple of days, then rent a car (probably from the airport) to drive to other areas, so we can then return direct to the airport when we fly out a week later.

My travel mate is about to book the car rental (she is Spanish and unlike me used to driving on the right so she will be the driver!). She wants to book the car for the whole week because the rental is the same cost - but what would we do with a car in Palermo? Friends tell me not to try to drive there - your thoughts/advice?

I have this scary vision of us trying to navigate from the airport into Palermo in the night!

Presumably you would wind up paying to park the car, in which case it would not be the same cost....

I wouldn't drive in Palermo or in any other city. There's no point since you'll spend too much time finding your way from place to place and looking for parking. There may be areas in Palermo where you cannot drive a car. Why stress yourselves.

Also, you'll miss some of the wonderful things you see in cities when you walk around or you might want to stop for a wine, coffee, or gelato - not possible when you have a 2 ton albatross holding you back.

Just because the price is the same for a week or less than a week doesn't mean you have to rent the car for a week. My philosophy is just because something is free, it doesn't mean that you need or want it.

If she is comfortable driving like this www.youtube.com/watch?v=nzx4olZvRlw, then it is not an issue.

Ha ha - brilliant Greg! Guess the cross hanging there was a help? Thanks everyone, that's settled then!

Oh my!! That's worse than Naples!

PS - another thought is to fly in, get the car, stay somewhere close that night then head off to explore Sicily and see Palmermo at the other end of our trip. In which case - any thoughts for a hotel near the airport? Would somewhere in/near Mondello make sense? I've been told that's a nice place to visit.