Sicily Itinerary
 

Hi all,

I decided to start a new thread now that I am pretty much set on Sicily. I hope that's ok etiquette for this forum! Now that we know we want to go Sicily, we are trying to figure out the itinerary. We want to maximize natural beauty, outdoor activities, and relaxation. Not as interested in ruins/museums. I am very interested in seeing the Aeolians, but am worried we may not have enough time, so I would love your thoughts on the following itinerary:

Fly into Catania
Ferry to Salina that day, if possible
3 nights in Salina
2 nights in Taormina
1 night in Modica
3 nights near Agrigento (we want to relax in the countryside, maybe take a cooking class at Azienda Agricola Mandranova)
then fly out of Catania, maybe spending one additional night there if necessary.

How does this look to you? It seems the driving distances are not very long so I am not too worried, but I wonder if it is enough time for Taormina. What about the feasibility of catching a ferry to Salina the first day? We will be there in mid-September. Thanks for any and all help!

As I said on your other thread, I would put Ortigia ahead of Taormina.

> I wonder if it is enough time for Taormina

IMO one day is enough for Taormina itself, and maybe even enough to include Castelmola and Isola Bella if you want.

I too would put Ortigia/Siracusa ahead of Taormina. I think one day is more than enough for Taormina - apart from the Teatro Greco, Taormina is a pretty shopping stop, filled with tourists shopping, with some beautiful views. And Castelmola is most beautiful and interesting when viewed from afar. Unless you're interested in tourist shops. IMHO.

I agree about Taormina - actually a few hours there is enough. It's not only about the Greek Theatre, there's the beautiful public garden which I thought was more worthwhile.

Another vote for Ortigia.

Taormina is a cruise ship stop off, great views but little atmosphere. We gave it 3 hours.

Loved spending 5 days in Ortigia and using it as a base.

@adrienne - I liked the garden too, but partly as an escape from the streets!

Thanks! Taormina just looks so beautiful (the cliffs and the ocean), even though it is touristy. But, if we are doing the islands, you're probably right that we don't need Taormina for the views so we'll just pass through. What is Ortigia like? We aren't that interested in ruins. More in natural beauty. Thanks!

We found a beautiful nature reserve south of Ortigia.

http://www.google.co.uk/search?q=ven...w=1024&bih=672

So I am confusing myself because I just learned about Scopello and the Zingaro Nature Reserve. Is that worth it for the hiking/beaches? I am wondering if we should skip the Aeolians and do this instead. I understand now what everyone means about Sicily having so many places to see that 10 days is not enough!!

Thanks belted, that reserve looks gorgeous. Is there hiking there?

I posted about Zingaro on your other thread. I didn't have long enough there, but I enjoyed it. Plus, if you're on that side of the island, you can take in Erice, which was second only to Ortigia for me. I posted the link to pix of it on your other thread.

Thanks thursdays! I looked at those pix, and it does look gorgeous. There is just so much to see it's hard to choose! I'm wondering what people love about Ortigia? I am feeling more interested in Taormina because of its beautiful location, but I can probably be persuaded. We have 2 nights we could spend in Ortigia if we choose. Thanks!

Taormina is similar to other geographic locations I have encountered. The Bahamas and Nassau for example. Like Sicily, you take a beautiful area of the world, make a name for it on the world tour, swamp it with short stay visitors and to many it loses its beauty. Sicily, just like The Bahamas, has some incredibly beautiful corners which are relatively untouched by mass tourism. Some prefer that, some don't.

Ortigia has an unspoilt feel about it as modern developement is very restricted. It is an awful term but is shabby chic, more chic than shabby but has a very relaxing feel. Key to this is the absence of cars and their maniac Sicilian drivers.

From my TR:

"The more time I spent on its back streets, the more I liked Ortigia. Yes, there were tourists around, but not that many. Yes, there were tourist shops, but not whole streets of them. Yes, the buildings were often baroque, but not aggressively so. Mostly, I think I liked the town because of the variety. Greek ruins here, a Spanish church round the corner, modern apartment blocks down the street. It had the feel of a place that had just grown over the centuries, rather than being designed and built all at once."

I'm a fan of Ortigia as well. However, in Taormina the ancient theater is absolutely stunning. Take a look if you can. Don't know where you'll find that in the Bahamas.

Ortigia has a beautiful location on the sea. And the sublime Piazza del Duomo is, in my opinion, on of the most beautiful public spaces in all of Italy. When I was there in April Caravaggio's 1608 altarpiece 'The Burial of St Lucy' was hanging in the Church of Santa Lucia alla Badia, with no admission charge and no queues or crowds of people waiting to file by. I sat in a front pew and contemplated it and absorbed it into my memory for 15 minutes or more. Delicious!

Thanks--this is helpful. I think we would like to see Etna, so that is also part of staying near Taormina, but perhaps we will find a place more in the countryside. In terms of towns, I find myself more interested in Modica/Noto than Syracuse, not sure why but maybe we can make a day trip to Ortigia.

On another note, does anyone know anything about the ferries to the Aeolians? Is there a high probability of cancellation?

Also--if anyone has an affordable car rental agency to recommend I will take that too. Thanks very much!

Car agency

The best way is usually to use a broker who sell on behalf of the agency.

Autoeurope usually have good rates, just be careful of add ons or scams at the local office. Sicily is clearly famous for its financial games. We had an attempted charge of e50 for cleaning a clean car, simply shook out the mats and they waived the charge.

I would base in Ortigia. Modica and Noto are beautiful but have a more local feel and are smaller, they are both easy day trips from Ortigia.

IMO Ortigia is not a city like Florence, where you can rush around and see the sites, but more of a town that needs time to just soak it all in, walk leisurely around the sea wall, sit in a sidewalk cafe in the Piazza del Duomo,observe the pace of life for Sicilians who live there, walk the Passegiata, cheer on the fishermen in the evening while watching a spectacular sunset over the Porta Grande, contemplate the Fontana of the nymph Arethusa. Combine that with what one should learn about the history before travelling there, and to me that cannot possibly be absorbed in a day trip.
Do it if that's what you fancy, but otherwise, I would advise to choose one or the other.
Taormina has an entirely different feel to it, instead of watching locals, you are much more likely to be watching streams of tourists. The town is undoubtedly very photogenic, though, and it's lively. Just different from Ortigia.

For research purposes, Ortigia is the old part of Siracusa, you will find more info using that name.

Thanks, all! My last (hopefully!) question is this: Should we base ourselves in Panarea or Salina for our 4 nights (maybe 3) in the Aeolians? I want somewhere beautiful, which I have heard Panarea is, but I have also heard it is very quiet. That is fine, but we do want to be able to go to restaurants. Any lodging suggestions in either of those locations would be great too!

Have a look at this one in Salina

http://www.mammasantina.it/hotel_salina_reservation.asp

Mid range price, good views, and has its own restaurant, reportedly good food.

Ok, plane tickets are booked! Thanks for all your help. Our probable itinerary in early September is:

Fly into Catania
2 nights stay near Etna, and climb Etna on Sept. 6 (Relais Monaci delle terre nerre)
4 nights Aeolian Islands, probably Salina (prob Hotel Signum)
1 night in Modica
3 nights at Azienda Mandranova near Agrigento
1 night in Palermo, fly out of Palermo


The one change I might make is to skip Modica and spend 2 nights near Palermo, maybe exploring Erice on our way up there. I wasn't considering Palermo at all, but it does make sense itinerary-wise so I would love any thoughts on that. Thanks!

bmk for later

Two nights in Palermo is a much better idea IMO than overnight in Modica. The overall plan seems to zigzag back and forth a bit though.

If you stop in Palermo, I would urge you to consider a stop at the cathedral in Monreale - it is truly spectacular.

I agree re monreale superb. Palermo is in my opinion v underrated...it isnt naples, much friendlier and i love the place. All i can say is u are covering some yards!

We visited Sicily in late September 2011 -- our first visit, though we've been to mainland Italy at least a dozen times.

Despite being very leery about Taormina after reading all the warnings about its "touristy" rep, I <i>loved</i> the place. I'd return in a heartbeat (though not in June, July or August -- it would be too hot and crowded for me). It's not a place to daytrip to, though, because that IS when the cruise ships spew out the tourist groups; the best times to luxuriate in its atmosphere are mornings and evenings, when you can walk around and enjoy peace and quiet along with the beauty. We also hiked a bit in the hills around the town, which was delicious: we were the absolute only people on the trails, and we ran into several families of goats and sheep. We did not make the trip to Etna, but at least we could see it from our hotel every morning at breakfast.

Modica is lovely, but a day there is more than enough (we spent 2 nights and 2 days); in fact, the night time is the best there, imo: the way the hills are lit at night is almost otherworldly in its beauty.

Cefalu is lovely, too, in a completely different way (beach).

Ortigia did not ring my bell, but I only spent a day there, and I also know I'm in the minority on that!

Palermo was the great surprise, though: beautiful, interesting, and rich with life. 3 days was not long enough for us; it is another city to which I really do hope to return & explore.

Ditto what LucieV says about Taormina! If you want to be near Etna, you *might as well* stay there. ;) However, the center of town is a pedestrian-only zone, so make sure your hotel has parking - and that you can get to it without too much trouble!

FWIW, we stayed at the Hotel Schuler. It's a bit of a budget hotel, but we got a very good rate on a room with a balcony. The staff was friendly and helpful, and breakfast on the terrace simple and delicious!

Agree with ggreen that you may use Taormina as a base.

Personally, I love Taormina, and have visited the town several times on holidays in Sicily. When I was young and single, I worked for a couple of years in the administration office with a ferry service to Sicily, and they used to give us 2 free tickets per month during the Summer months, so we used to go even for a weekend sometimes, or for just the day to do some shopping.

True, many tourists from northern countries in Europe visit it, as well as locals, but I just love the atmosphere, especially in the evenings. Mid September is not its peak tourist season, August is, when the Italians have their Summer break. Saying that, I have been in mid August and still enjoyed it.

Also before we had kids me and my husband were driving overland to mainland Italy from Sicily, and we drove and stopped for lunch in Taormina (I told you - I just love this town). We had managed to find parking somewhere up the hill at that time, but of course the pedestrian-only zone was already there in its centre.

People would be strolling up and down the main street in the evenings, maybe stopping for a gelato or a coffee or a drink at one of the bars,there is also a belvedere and beautiful gardens, as another Fodorite mentioned. I just love it in the evenings.

There are public lifts from upper Taormina in the centre, to lower Taormina, where the long sandy beaches are. We used to lo ve our swims there in our younger days. There you also find plenty of restaurants, bars, discos etc to enjoy.

It is not really a town where you go for culture or sight-seeing. It is more a relaxing holiday to enjoy the seaside, for nightlife and its lovely views. If you intend to stay in the centre of Taormina I would stay in a hotel that offers a view, really breathtaking.

Agree with ggreen that you might want to find hotel with parking, as main street is a pedestrian only zone, otherwise you would have to park on outskirts, or down the hill close to where buses etc stop, and then maybe take a very short taxi ride up the hill close to hotel.

Just in case you are interested, there are a couple of coastal towns, just a few km away from Taormina, they are not up the hill, but still offer spectacular views and are summer resorts with lovely beaches. One is called, if I remember well, Letojani - sorry I can't remember the other name, but if you want I can research for you.

One thing I must tell you. Since Taormina is a popular tourist resort, it is not cheap. Accomodation and restaurants are expensive compared to rest of Sicily. These coastal towns I mentioned above might be a cheaper option for sure, plenty of restaurants, bars and lovely beaches for a swim,lovely sea views,and you can easily visit Taormina, Etna, Catania and so many other places from there. Many tourists prefer to base themselves from there, due to more affordable hotels.

You might very easily experience nice hot weather in September, so if you love swimming in the Mediterranean Sea, I would suggest you take your bathing costume with you.

If you need any advice, I would be more than happy to assist you.

ggreen, we also stayed at the Schuler, and could not have been more delighted. Personally, I am amazed that it's considered a "budget" hotel...it was one of the nicest, most beautiful, most pleasant stays I've ever had in all the years we've been traveling, and we've stayed in a few "luxury" hotels.

Cappuccinos and brioches with fresh melon on the Hotel Schuler patio in the ever-so-quiet of the intense morning sun, looking at Etna, is going to be a memory that I carry to my grave.

Forgot to add - Erice and Trapani, are worth a visit, and also Monreale and a day visit to Palermo. The scenary to the north west of Sicily is really breathtaking. Messina is also a lovely old city. There is a clock tower in the centre of the city that has statues that move mechanically every day at noon.

Wow, both of you just gave me goosebumps - such an instant, vivid memory of Taormina from your descriptions! I absolutely loved walking around in the evening and browsing the amazing window displays, and then in the morning exploring the narrow streets out to the English gardens and the Greek arena...

My trip was two years ago, and we were starting our vacation in Sicily in order to visit my sister who was living there at the time. The Icelandic volcano shifted our trip by a week, and she wasn't able to put us up on the first night, so we went to Taormina instead. I'm so happy we did! She picked us up at the airport in Catania, drove to Taormina and parked in a parking structure on the edge of the pedestrian zone. (From what I remember, the parking was reasonably priced.) We then schlepped our bags all the way down the street to Hotel Schuler! We could have easily driven there, dropped the bags and returned to the parking garage...

At any rate, Taormina and the Hotel Schuler were the perfect antidote to all that cattle-car travel. LucieV, I agree that it's so surprising that the hotel is considered budget! It was so reasonably priced for a room with a sea view. And you described the morning perfectly. In all the subsequent hotel breakfasts we had on that trip, only one had a comparable view, and none had comparable quality (even the "luxury" hotel in Rome). For me, too, I won't soon forget it!

ggreen - I absolutely agree with you that in my opinion Taormina is a must if you visit Sicily. It is considered the elite town of Sicily and many tourists from Switzerland and northern countries visit it repeatedly - at least they used to when I used to visit it. Now you are making me want to go there again after many years, lol (I always tell myself that I have had enough of Sicily).

Yes, it does get way too crowdy in July/August, but I guess that is the case everywhere in many cities in Italy, like in Florence or in coastal towns and resorts like in Rimini,, but also in so many other countries in Europe. That is why nowadays I prefer to take holidays in September or in the Wintertime. But in my younger days, when I was single and used to go on holidays with friends, I used to love joining with the crowds and holiday makers in the peak season, especially for the fun atmosphere and nightlife.

And yes, unless I am just passing through for a stop (this happened to us on the way to Salerno to visit my cousin) , I would definitely prefer to spend at least one night there to savour the atmosphere in the evening, plus the daytrippers would be all gone. You would be missing out on the best of Taormina if you don't.

EuropSept2012 - Try and avoid at all costs that you drive into Catania, it is the ultimate nightmare in its centre, my husband many years ago had sworn he would never drive into that city again - it was his worst driving experience in a city centre for sure. It is congested, crowdy and with cars driving in every direction with no attention to driving rules whatsover, and motorbikes crossing in front of you all the time - a bigger nightmare during the day as they make an open air market in the centre. Unless you are a really experienced driver in Sicily (which is already an experience on its own level) I would not dare to venture into Catania. But very close to Catania, there are three small coastal towns that are really really beautiful, one is called Aci, another Aci Castello - sorry I can't remember the third name, but you will find it if you do some research. They are really lovely and have a promenade, and you might be interested in doing a day trip to Catania from there, maybe using public transport.

If it were me, I would be unsure about staying in Palermo, maybe I would stay in a nice nearby coastal town and do a day trip to Palermo from there. Strangely, Messina is not much mentioned on Fodors - I would certainly include it in my visit to Sicily. And I repeat, try to head to the north west at least for a day, it is really really breathtaking scenary.

Just remembered - the other coastal town close to Taormina is called Giardini Naxos.

anna - thank you so much for your invaluable information.

i am storing it all up for our hoped for trip next spring.

You're welcome, annhig. You will enjoy it for sure in the Spring, when it is not yet too hot, and not the peak tourist season.

Thank you Anna and everyone! We will definitely check out Taormina even if we can only do one night. And we will not attempt to drive into Catania! In fact, we are looking into taking a bus from CTA to Taormina. We then need to get to Milazzo from Taormina however, which seems more difficult by public transport. Anyone with any thoughts on that, I would love to hear them! Thank you!!!

To get from Taormina to Naxos, you catch the train at the Taormina-Giardini Naxos station and change in Messina; it takes about an hour and a half. Though buses are usually recommended for Sicily, we took the train from Siracusa to Taormina and found it very clean and comfortable.

An alternative is to catch a boat from Messina directly to Salina. Here's the schedule: http://www.usticalines.it/en/dettagl...estinazione=46

Another vote for the Hotel Schuler. And we wished we had more time in Palermo.