My husband and I are planning a trip to Sicily in April 2024 and would appreciate your advice. We are in our middle/late 70s, enjoy gardens, architecture and museums, and absorbing the culture (and food�) of an area. While we walk 4 miles/ day here and more on trips, steep hikes are not our forte. We no longer drive overseas � we use a combination of trains and drivers. On the last few trips (even though I pack as lightly as possible!), lifting luggage on trains is becoming more challenging. Direct trains from one location to the next are fine, but we�d like to avoid multiple changes.



We prefer several days in one location with day trips, understanding that this means some places will need to be skipped. For this trip we�re focusing on Palermo (4 -5 nights), Taormina (3), Siracusa/ Ortigia (3-4). We�d like to see the Villa Romana del Casale for sure; perhaps Noto/ Ragusa from Siracusa. The Lufthansa flights into Palermo and out of Catania look best, with tightest connections from LAX.



I have a few itineraries in mind:

Option One:

Fly into Palermo, spend 5 nights (see Monreale one morning)

Train then driver to Taormina, 3 nights

Driver Taormina/ Villa Romana/ Ortigia (I already have a quote for this)

Ortigia 3 nights; maybe see Noto on a day trip

Fly out of Catania at 10:15am



Option Two:

Same as above but Palermo 4/ Taormina 3/ Ortigia 4

(i.e., move one night Palermo to Siracusa and environs)



Option Three:

Fly into Palermo, spend 4 nights

Take bus or train to Enna early morning (I see both offered � is the bus more of a commuter bus, or long distance? Room for luggage?)/ taxi to Piazza Armerina to drop off luggage at hotel/ see Villa Romana. Taxi back to hotel and spend one night

Driver from Piazza Armerina to Ortigia via Noto

Ortigia for 3 -4 nights

Taormina for 3 nights

Train or driver to Catania, fly out at 10:15am



The first one makes me a little more comfortable, as I�m unsure about the bus to Enna, but I�d sure appreciate any advice you can give! I also posted on TA, so apologies for anyone on both websites. Thank you so much in advance.

On your way to Piazza Armerina (Villa Casale) stop by Caltagirone which is known for its majolica.


From Palermo do not miss Monreale

Hi, I can't help about Enna because I haven't been there, but of the other two options I would choose option 2 with the extra night in Ortigia. We fell in love with Ortigia. Here I explain why:
https://slowtravelitalyspain.blogspo...-2017.html?m=1
Palermo is interesting but I found it really tiring. It's noisy, chaotic, lots of people around, traffic, whereas Ortigia, however many tourists there may be during the day, is more peaceful.

Thank you, Tina, that�s exactly the information I was looking for! I�m leaning towards that option.

I agree with Tina that Ortigia is a little haven which deserves an extra night. We were there last year in the latter half of April and found mostly Italian tourists, lots of families with young children as we were there over a weekend. We took the bus to Noto, also greatly enjoyed exploring Siracusa and its fabulous Grecian past.

But I wouldn�t shortchange Palermo. Yes, it�s much more crowded and gritty, but nonetheless has several magnificent sights. Including the stunning mosaics at the Capella Palatina and the luminously beautiful Martorana church, some of the loveliest I have seen in my various travels. Do give at least a half day for Monreale and more mosaics.

I loved our trip to Sicily in 2010. We had only two nights in Palermo, left wanting more.
Some snippets from my trip report:
Hotel: The Grand Hotel Wagner (€125/room/night) turned out to be a very good choice. I liked the location on the border of both the old and new cities. It’s located one block off busy Via Roma on a quieter street and just a couple of blocks from the Via Principe di Belmonte, a pedestrian street with upscale caf�s and shops.
Favorite sights/experiences: Looking up a street and seeing the mountains; the little craft stores on the Via Bara all’Olivella; everyone at the bars outside watching the World Cup; the mosaics in the Capella Palatina, in particular those around the nave from the Old Testament; the Matorana (more wonderful mosaics) and San Cataldo; the fabulous stucco decorations of Serpotta in the oratorios of Santa Cita and San Domenico. [highly recommend the oratorios]
Not enough time to see: I got a taste of the Ballar� but would have like to have seen more of the markets; the area around Piazza Marina and the Kalsa; and, alas, Monreale.

In addition, I’d have liked to daytrip to Cefalu from Palermo.
The regional archeological museum was closed when we were there, would have visited had it been open.

In terms of weather it�s a bit early in the year to say it�s a good time to go but it�s much better than July and August when the daytime highs are usually approaching 40oC plus.

I�d absolutely agree with macanimals the countryside should be coming into bloom and should give you a great show again depending on the weather.

We always drive and so I�ll find it impossible advise on public transport �.however�.

Taormina has to be one of my biggest let downs in all our travels but �.we were there in August and it was mobbed with the world tourists, lots of cheap tat stalls selling rubbish and just far too busy. However, the views are stunning, Etna could be erupting. I�ve no idea of your budget but San Domenico Hotel was purchased by The Four Seasons and they have out the prices through the roof since we visited. A small room will still be expensive but the views are some of the best in Europe. I�m not sure about spending more than 2 nights In Taormina.

We spent a week in Ortigia and again it will benefit from the lack of crowds. Just beautiful baroque architecture.

The perfect trip of the south would the round trip through Noto , Monica and Ragusa Ibla (very hilly). If you get the chance try to get down to the nature reserve at Vendicari near Noto. There�s many migratory birds , a resident flamingo population and beautiful beaches with a disused tuna factory.

Our favourite area, if just for the wine and seafood, , is around Selinute. The vineyards around Menfi are owned by Planeta and produce Sauvignon Blanc and Viognier which is soaked with lemons and salt.

We were in Palermo just before Covid and it had a naive, non world tourist feel. We had the feeling that it was rising from the embers of being battered by organised crime. So many new small businesses had opened and seemed very vibrant. They opened recognised that life had becoming easier since organised crime had generally moved on to bigger things � like screwing e100ms off the EU through building projects.
You haven�t lived until you have tasted fresh sardine and raisin arancini.

I agree with BritishCaicos as Taormina was a disappointment for us too when on holiday there for a week in May this year. It was already crowded and the weather unseasonably cooler and wetter than normal. Worth a visit, but 2 nights would suffice. You can get a a small group or private half day tour to Etna in the morning or afternoon (weather permitting) and have time to explore Taormina itself the rest of the time. You could transfer to Siracusa/Ortigia the following afternoon and so also spend the morning in Taormina. We did a small group Godfather tour and the driver dropped the other couple off at the station with their luggage to catch the train to Siracusa in mid-afternoon.

My previous visit to Sicily was based near Ragusa and really thoroughly enjoyable with day trips to Siracusa, Noto, Modica and other parts of south eastern Sicily. Therefore I would recommend staying in Siracusa/Ortigia for 4 or 5 nights. However, If you are willing to pay for a private transfer I would suggest going from Palermo across to Taormina and then Siracusa.

Thank you all, this really helps in delegating the number of nights to each. I think I’d given three to Taormina as it seemed to be more “garden” oriented than Palermo and Siracusa, and maybe a bit more relaxing? Maybe I’m wrong. I don’t think we would need to do the day trip to Etna, we’d be ok in the town and perhaps Castelmola, the little town just above.

I definitely have made notes of all you’ve mentioned to see in Palermo (including Monreale) - have been watching videos and it looks like at least four nights is needed. I will look into the other towns you mentioned near Siracusa, thank you! I think that Selinute might be a little bit too far off the path. At least this time!

Did you find that Palermo and Siracusa had many garden areas? I’m looking and see some but appreciate your general observations. That’s what I love about Paris - the relaxing gardens - and missed in Lisbon (might have been the area we were in, down by the water. We did walk from the Gulbenkian down to the water, that was a nice leafy area).

One of the delights of Taormina are the Villa Comunale gardens, next to the Hotel Villa Diodoro and is a lovely area to spend some quiet time. It has a range of Mediterranean flora - tall trees such as olives, pines, cypresses and palms, tropical plants and a variety of tropical shrubs, hedges and flowers. You will also discover a collection of “Victorian Follies” built by Florence Trevelyan between 1890 and 1899. Inspired by oriental buildings, she used them as a bird-watching stations.
I would strongly recommend staying in one of the hotels on the Corse Umberto. The town is on a steep slope so for example access from the Gardens to the Corso is via steps and a steep incline. My partner said he needed a Sherpa!