mp413

Hello, I am planning a week-long trip to Sicily for myself and my family (including grandparents and parents). I would love some feedback from those who know the distances and roads quite well and can give feedback as to whether this is a doable, realistic itinerary. We'll be in a hotel in Palermo for 3 nights first, then in a house south of Catania for 7 nights, then the last night is up in the air - either a hotel in Catania or Palermo (depending on which city we decide to fly out of).

WED May 22: arrive Palermo
THURS-FRI: sightsee within Palermo
SAT May 25:
- morning: rent car, drive to Monreale, visit Duomo (I am estimating we could be done by noon?)
- afternoon: drive to Cefalu, have lunch, see cathedral, then continue to east coast (**any town or sight we would have time to stop in on the way? I know we'd be driving through the Madonia mountains)
- 6pm: arrive at house
SUN May 26: explore area, relax at the house (around Brucoli)
MON May 27: Piazza Armerina (anything we could add on to this day trip? Other things to see in the area?)
TUES May 28: Siracusa day trip
WED May 29: day trip to Agrigento
THURS May 30: day trip to Taormina (is this worth it? should we plan something else for 1/2 day?)
FRI May 31: no agenda / hang around house
SAT Jun 1: either drop of car in Catania and sight see in Catania, OR drive to Palermo (either via Selinunte and western wine country, or via Erice & Segesta)
SUN Jun 2: fly out

Is there anything we are egregiously missing from our itinerary? Or anything that clearly won't work or will be too rushed?

Many thanks for your expert advice!

mp413

mamcalice

Seems like a lot of driving so I wouldn't plan stops other than your day trip destinations. Taormina is definitely worth it. The views from Taormina are spectacular. Also, to break up the daily driving, you might want to move the Friday (hang around the house) to the middle of the week.

You are, of course, missing things but with your available time, you are seeing as much as is possible. Have a great trip.

TDudette

Looks good to me. BTW, Noto was recommended to us when we were in Siracusa. We didn't get there so I can only pass this along.

kja

> visit Duomo [in Monreale]

FWIW, I found it utterly awesome and ended up spending more than 3 hours there.

> Piazza Armerina (anything we could add on to this day trip?

Depending on your time and interests, perhaps Enna or Caltagirone?

> Siracusa day trip

There's a lot to see in Siracusa. It might serve you well to think through your options and priorities before getting there.

> day trip to Agrigento

WELL worth seeing IMHO, but do come prepared with water and maybe some umbrellas to use as parasols - the sunlight there can be intense and there are VERY few shady places. Too, as I recall, it is not a short walk from the entrance to and around the most significant sites, so plan accordingly, particularly if mobility is an issue for any of your elder family members.

> day trip to Taormina (is this worth it?

Depending on your interests, perhaps. The views from the theater are stunningly gorgeous, but the crowds in Taormina during the day can be nearly overwhelming. IME, if you put up with the crowds long enough to get into the theater, the space there is large enough to step away from the mobs and savor the views. When I was there (nearly the same time of year, but in 2007), the main street was so mobbed during the day that I found it unpleasant. The good news was that as a result, I walked the street that was parallel, but up the hill, which was deserted and quite interesting. Nonetheless, I thought there were more features of interest on the main road (which I walked after day-trippers left for the day).

> via Selinunte

I thought Selinunte (and Segesta, if you're in that area) quite interesting, and different enough from each other, and from the other ruins you might visit, to be worth considering.

> Is there anything we are ... missing from our itinerary? ... Noto

Not an egregious oversight IMO, but yes, Noto is definitely worth considering. Sicilian Baroque at its best! I'm actually not that great a fan of the baroque, but this town had me laughing out loud as I perused its fanciful and delightful extravagances, many of which have been restored in recent days.

Should be a great trip - enjoy!

IdyllicItaly

I would recommend that you take the Palermo city bus to Monreale while staying in Palermo. Picking up a rental car can take some time and parking is very limited in Monreale. At the Duomo, buy the map that describes each section of the mosaics. I found it very helpful.

On your departure day, pick up the rental car and drive to Cefalu. That way, you should arrive in Cefalu with plenty of time for lunch. There are many restaurants near the harbor.

Catania has much to offer, including the municipal museum in an 11th century Norman castle and a museum to the landing of the Allies that drove the Germans out of Sicily in WWII, the
Museo dello sbarco in Sicilia: http://www.memorialmuseums.org/eng/s...in-Sicily-1943 There is also a fine opera house, a fascinating fish, vegetable, cheese, meat, etc. market, and much more. We love the small seaside town of Aci Castello just 4 miles or so north of Catania. It has many restaurants and cafes and a remarkable castle.

mp413

Dear all, this is such great info! Thanks especially to kja and IdyllicItaly - really fantastic specific recommendations.

One specific question, in response to your suggestion to use public transport to get to Monreale: we only have 2 full days in Palermo - is that enough time, if we use half of one of those days to see Monreale (leaving us 1.5 days for the rest of Palermo)? (Otherwise it will be difficult to fit it in, without doing so in the rental car on our way out of Palermo the first Saturday.) Given the interests of people in my group, we would be more interested in pre-Baroque (ie medieval and Renaissance) sights, not so much in Baroque. Also probably wouldn't spend too much time in museums, more just walking around and popping into churches. I'm also fascinated in visiting the Kalsa area.

Another question, I know you said Siracusa has a lot kja - do you think it warrants 2 days?

Thanks also for the info on Catania, Aci Castello (which we probably never would have known about) and Noto - wil definitely discuss with the others to see what we will try to fit into our plans.

Again, thanks so much!

Pvoyageuse

I would take a train from Palermo to Cefalu (they are frequent and take less than 1 hour) and rent a car in Cefalu to avoid having to drive out of Palermo.

thursdaysd

Both Monreale and Siracusa deserve as much time as you can give them. I actually went back to Monreale a second time (the first was with a group). In Siracusa you need time for the Archaeological sites and museum on the "mainland" and more just wandering around Ortigia, which ideally is where you would stay. When you say Piazza Armerina I assume you mean you're visiting the Villa Casale? And Erice from Trapani? Click on my name for my Sicily TR.

mp413

Ok slight revision:

1) We decided to spend a half day, out of our 2 days in Palermo, visiting Monreale using public transport.

2) We are considering now renting our car one day early to do a day trip from Palermo on Friday to Erice, the wine country, and Marsala. Mostly because Erice is really high on our list of things to see, and there is no other way we can fit it in as we'll spend the rest of our trip on the east side of the island.

Both of these things will mean that we'd have to really hone in on what we want to prioritize with only ONE day in Palermo - which won't be easy! There is so much I want to do, including just wandering the streets... Is one day alone in Palermo a really bad idea?

Thanks again for all the help!

mp413

Thanks Pvoyageuse and Thursdays - didn't see your posts til now. I did consider renting the cars in Cefalu, but a) it's too complicated with everyone having luggage (incl older people in our group) and b) the American websites I was using didn't even have Cefalu as a pick-up option!

Thursdaysd, we won't be staying in Siracusa, but in a small village about 30 mins away. So if one day isn't enough, we'd need to drive in and drive out 2 times. Which is doable of course!

Thanks

senozkadir

While in Palermo you shouldn't miss the Catacombe dei Cappuccini(Capuchin Catacombs)-a unique and interesting place.
http://palermo.for91days.com/2011/11...apuchin-monks/
As to Taormina,it is definitely worth it.

kja

> Is one day alone in Palermo a really bad idea?

Well, it's better than no time there! From what you say of your interests, I think you will be probably have to skip some of Palermo's wonderful sites to fit it into just one day. And keep in mind that traveling with 8 people probably means that you need to plan on some extra time for gathering and re-gathering because you won't all fit in a single taxi and you'll need to take time for bathroom breaks and at least one person won't be ready to leave wherever when the rest of you are.... But I thought you had 1.5 days there (or 2, counting Monreale) - what happened to the extra 1/2 day?

> you said Siracusa has a lot kja - do you think it warrants 2 days?

I agree with thursdaysd - one day for the archeological sites and one day for Ortygia

Enjoy!

Pvoyageuse

mp413 : there is a Europcar rental agency in Cefalu and it is not far from the station. We did it the other way around : drop the car in Cefalu and train to Palermo.

IdyllicItaly

We also dropped off our rental car in Cefalu and took the train to Palermo.

We rented from AutoEurope, which I highly recommend. They will match prices from other agencies. You get an 800-number for the U.S. that you can use any time of day or night. We have rented many times from AutoEurope and twice have used that 800-number - once to extend a car rental and another time to report a broken window (theft of contents stored in the hatchback trunk) and to arrange for a replacement car.

mp413

Well, we only have 2 days on the west side of the island, and everyone is very keen to see Erice. So we figured it might make sense to do a day trip out that way, and take the chance to see Segesta too. Perhaps this is a mistake... I am worried we are cramming too much in! But there is so much to see. Sicily seems like a place we'll need a second visit to!

THanks for the rental car rec - sounds like a great company, have sent your post to my parents who are handling the car. If we decide not to do the day trip to Erice, and just hang around Palermo, it does sound like a smart idea to rent from Cefalu instead.

dwdvagamundo

Some thoughts:

1. I would drop Agrigento, not because it's not worth seeing, but because it is a long drive from where you're staying (more than two hours each way).

2. Instead, see Segesta on your way to Erice (or just on a day trip from Palermo with your car). In my opinion, it's the nicest temple we saw in Sicily and in a perfect position. As you don't list "Greek Temples" among your interests, then one is plenty (as my spouse has repeatedly told me since we visited what she describes as "every Greek temple in Sicily."). Not really Greek

3. I would drop Taormina unless you want to take a tour there. We drove from Catania but could find no place to park within reasonable walking distance. IdyllicItaly is right that Catania has a lot to see and I would suggest you see it rather than Taormina. If you go to Segesta, there is a beautifully sited theatre there.

4. Be aware that if you go to Erice, you may not be able to see much. It can be very foggy there.

No matter what you see, however, you'll have a great time. Sicily is a very special place.

Marija

Hold onto your belongings on the bus from Palermo to Monreale! I've never seen so many pickpockets.

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...n-november.cfm

bon_voyage

We saved money by renting through AutoEurope UK rather than US.

kja

I think I'm losing track of your itinerary, but don't you have a couple of no-agenda days in there? Adding one of them to Palermo, so you have 2 days there, might be worth considering, particularly if you might face a bit of jet lag that first day.

Mimar

dwd, why do you say they aren't Greek temples in Sicily? Because they're not in Greece? It was part of Greece, Magna Grecia, when they were built.

Another car rental company we recommend is www.economycarrentals.com. Usually they have the best prices, with good insurance (as is required in Italy).

Are you going to rent a van? Those are hard to drive in the small towns. Two cars would be better and probably have more luggage space.

BTW, you also need an International Driver's Permit to drive in Italy. It's a translation of your license, easily obtainable at your local AAA office, where they will take your photo also, all for about $25.

Walking in Sicily can be rough and involve some climbing. Depending on the abilities of your elders, you might have to make some adaptations. Agrigento has quite of bit of walking. Taormina has a multistory garage at the entrance to town. Don't know if that has a (working) elevator. Or what the walk is from there. The views from Taormina however are magnificent, as is its Greek Theater.