Sicily
 

In Fodor's '98 Italy, mention is made of Italian
tour operator CST offering week tours of Sicily?
Any info? Cost? Itinerary? Dates? Recommendations? Thanks.

Why take a tour? Sicily is a small country with beautiful roads and friendly people. After three trips there, I recommend you rent a car and travel at your leisure. Get a travel agent to book a flight to Palermo and arrange for a rental car to be waiting for you (cheaper than renting it after you're there). There are wonderful bed and breakfasts listed in Karen Brown's guidebook and small hotels in some others. Get a good map and enjoy. Would recommend Cefalu on the northern coast, Taormina in the east, Agrigento or Piazza Armerina for ruins, Erice and Trapani in the west. From Cefalu, it's a spectacular drive into the Madonie Mountains and there is a gorgeous inn near the charming old town of Gangi called Gangivecchio (see Karen Brown). Sicily is diverse, friendly and fascinating. There are good guidebooks available so that you can plan a wonderful trip for yourself. Americans rely too much on tour companies. Give this a try.

Barbara gave you excellent advice. I would only add a trip to the Aoelian islands, from Cefalu, if you have the time. Go. Aside to Barbara, we are Americans and never use a tour, even on our bike trips to Europe.

Having done the CST 2 week Archaeological Tour of Sicily I can heartily recommend this tour company. I believe the one week tour is a condensed version which leaves out some of the archaeological sites and the Aeolian Islands. We booked through CIT in Australia, so assume CIT in the USA can assist you. Being a non driver, which you may be also, this is probably the easiest way to tour Sicily.
Ciao!

Richard,

Thanks for the compliment on my advice for Sicily. Did you by any chance find Kalura when in Cefalu? We stayed there last spring and were almost the only non-cyclists in the resort. The whole hotel was geared to people on biking trips -- even had a totally separate high energy breakfast buffet. You might like it. Pretty place too, and reasonable.

I was in Sicily for a week in August 1997. We had a wonderful time and perfect weather. Do not miss Taromina which is so beautiful you won't believe it. We discovered it on our last nnight and felt like extending the ttip. Go to Vicola Dtreta, a restaurant up a tiny "street" which is atually a stairway so narrow you can't get back down it if you eat too much at dinner. Or if you don't find that restaurant eat at another one of the restaurants nestled in stairway entries. It has got to be one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. Also, visit historic Erice at the top of a mountain in far western Sicily. Rent a car and go around, one of the great thrills of Italy are the rest stops! They are like our gourmet markets here! Also, the bathrooms are clean, but it is because attendants keep them that way, be prepared to tip. Unlike what our travel agent led us to believe, there is not any great feeling of danger on Sicily. use universal precautions regarding crime and pick pocketing, but it is safe.

Oops, typo in an important place in my previous message: the restaurant in Taromina is Vicola Streta

Barbara, originally planning to spend 2 weeks in Sicily then spoke to some people who suggested spending a week in ROme and then flying into Palermo. What do you think.. Also if we rent a car in Palermo how far is Taomina from the Madonie Mts. Originally we were just going to hang in Taomina but Gangivecchio sounds fantastic. BY the way this travel is planned for July.. Love to hear from You

Barbara, originally planning to spend 2 weeks in Sicily then spoke to some people who suggested spending a week in ROme and then flying into Palermo. What do you think.. Also if we rent a car in Palermo how far is Taomina from the Madonie Mts. Originally we were just going to hang in Taomina but Gangivecchio sounds fantastic. BY the way this travel is planned for July.. Love to hear from You

Stef,

I'm going to e-mail you directly with some suggestions so as not to take up too much space on this page. Sorry I didn't get right back to you -- I was unable to access the Fodors site for several days.

Stef, I've been trying to e-mail you directly, but my mail comes back to me as "undeliverable". Has your address changed? Hope you come back to this site and find this -- couldn't think of another way to reach you. E-mail me directly and I'll try to get to you again.