Sicily - Help With Nailing Down Itinerary
Sep 13th, 2023, 11:21 AM
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Sicily - Help With Nailing Down Itinerary
I have booked tickets to Milan on 10/7 (arriving 10/8 from Eastern US) and returning home on 10/31.Sicily is the bulk of the trip. I am seeking guidance on final locations/duration at each.
We will spend a couple of nights in Milan, fly into Palermo, and get a car after a stay there (thinking about day trip to Cefalu). We will end up in the Catania/Etna area (drop car) then spend some days in that area, finally flying from Catania to Milan for a stay - my daughter insists her Dad, who loves fashion, must enjoy some time in the city!
In between, I've mapped out the itinerary after Palermo as follows: drive to Trapani then Marsala (or should we use one as the base and visit the other from there); Marsala (if a separate stop); Agrigento; Ragusa (we have visited years ago and love the area), then head toward Etna/Catania/Taromina.
I would welcome input on duration at each location, great alternatives I may have missed, considerations about locations given having a car, and types of accommodations to fit this sort of car trip (staying at a vineyard sounds interesting). Specific apartment/hotel/b&b suggestions are probably not useful since we are so close to the dates, but that input would be welcome for a gem (I could afford more, but for the non-city locations it seems $100 - 200 per nights achievable).
We are in our early 60s (me) and early 70s (him). We LOVE Sicilian wine (want to try various vineyards on West, Southeast and Etna), enjoy architecture and ruins, good food (he is Celiac so that is one logistical hitch) and art (museums and shops). We are capable walkers, but are not hikers and island visits are not of interest for this trip.
Thank you.
P.S. Unfortunately I forgot to add the tag "Italy" and cannot figure out how to fix this......
We will spend a couple of nights in Milan, fly into Palermo, and get a car after a stay there (thinking about day trip to Cefalu). We will end up in the Catania/Etna area (drop car) then spend some days in that area, finally flying from Catania to Milan for a stay - my daughter insists her Dad, who loves fashion, must enjoy some time in the city!
In between, I've mapped out the itinerary after Palermo as follows: drive to Trapani then Marsala (or should we use one as the base and visit the other from there); Marsala (if a separate stop); Agrigento; Ragusa (we have visited years ago and love the area), then head toward Etna/Catania/Taromina.
I would welcome input on duration at each location, great alternatives I may have missed, considerations about locations given having a car, and types of accommodations to fit this sort of car trip (staying at a vineyard sounds interesting). Specific apartment/hotel/b&b suggestions are probably not useful since we are so close to the dates, but that input would be welcome for a gem (I could afford more, but for the non-city locations it seems $100 - 200 per nights achievable).
We are in our early 60s (me) and early 70s (him). We LOVE Sicilian wine (want to try various vineyards on West, Southeast and Etna), enjoy architecture and ruins, good food (he is Celiac so that is one logistical hitch) and art (museums and shops). We are capable walkers, but are not hikers and island visits are not of interest for this trip.
Thank you.
P.S. Unfortunately I forgot to add the tag "Italy" and cannot figure out how to fix this......
Last edited by LizTD; Sep 13th, 2023 at 11:42 AM. Reason: Forgot to tag the country in Europe
Sep 15th, 2023, 12:27 AM
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There are a lot of beautiful places to see if you base in Trapani. You can go to Marsala by train from there. Erice is beautiful. Also San Vito lo Capo. From San Vito, Riserva dello Zingaro Is popular but we preferred the coast walk near Monte Cofano.
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Sep 15th, 2023, 06:59 AM
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We did a side trip from the Val de Noto area and visited Marzamemi which I thought was a wee gem of a seaside town.Very picturesque with some seafood restaurants with the waves lapping gently below the tables.
Near Taormina (I mentioned this in another post) we also visited the tiny, gorgeous old village of Savoca, up in the hills and which was one of the settings used in The Godfather (of which film I am a big fan!) It's a delightful place even without the film connection or interest.I remember walking down the single main street towards two churches and hearing singing and music echoing from one in the middle of the day.Just beautiful.
Villa Casale - a third vote for that.
I wasn't very impressed with Cefalu overall though the cathedral there is terrific.
Etna is a great experience but the development around it is quite tacky and unattractive.Fantastic place though.
Re Taormina - we actually stayed in the small village above the town - Castelmola.Well worth a visit up there - it felt far from the madding crowds below though not as quiet as Savoca.But beautiful vistas over the coast from its giddy heights.
Near Taormina (I mentioned this in another post) we also visited the tiny, gorgeous old village of Savoca, up in the hills and which was one of the settings used in The Godfather (of which film I am a big fan!) It's a delightful place even without the film connection or interest.I remember walking down the single main street towards two churches and hearing singing and music echoing from one in the middle of the day.Just beautiful.
Villa Casale - a third vote for that.
I wasn't very impressed with Cefalu overall though the cathedral there is terrific.
Etna is a great experience but the development around it is quite tacky and unattractive.Fantastic place though.
Re Taormina - we actually stayed in the small village above the town - Castelmola.Well worth a visit up there - it felt far from the madding crowds below though not as quiet as Savoca.But beautiful vistas over the coast from its giddy heights.
Last edited by Scotlandmac; Sep 15th, 2023 at 07:02 AM.
