Sicily Questions
 

We will be in Sicily for just over a week next month.
Trying to get a true flavor of the island but not go crazy.

The plan so far is 2 nights in Palermo, 2 in Agrigento, 2 in Siracusa, 2 in Taormina. Thoughts?

Would you choose the Greek ruins at Agrigento or Selinunte?

On the drive from Palermo to Agrigento would you go straight there, or west through Erice, or back roads through Corleone, or...?

Any favorite meals or great hotel experiences in Palermo or Siracusa?

Ever hike Etna?

Grazie Mille!

can't imagine anything being more impressive than the Agrigento Greek ruins - awesome but haven't been to Selinute.

Sounds like a nice itinerary - Syracuse may IMO rate a brief look.

I'd do 3 nights Palermo, 1 night Agrigento, 3 nights Siracusa, 1 night Taormina.

From Palermo, do not fail to go to Monreale (by local bus).

I'd skip Erice - it's a hill town and not that interesting. Also difficult to drive up to.

You could do Segesta (wonderful temple and theatre) and Selinunte on the way to Agrigento. There are lovely simple fish restaurants over the water at Marinella di Selinunte.

From Siracusa, you could visit one or more of the Baroque towns of Noto, Ragusa and Modica.

Taormina is a resort town; its location is superb, but once you've seen the view and the Greek theatre, there's not much there.

On Christmas Day, 2006, we left Palermo early in the morning. We were able to visit:

- Monreale. Stayed for about 1.5 hours to see the church and cloister;

- Segesta. Stayed for about 2 hours, including hiking up to the Greek Theater. Could have saved some time by taking shuttle bus;

- Selinunte. Stayed also about 2 hours, including hiking out from the Eastern Hill to the Acropolis. Could have saved time by driving out there;

- Arrive at Agrigento. And it was still too early for restaurants to open for dinner at 8pm.

I was able to go the summit of Mt. Etna a few summers ago. We based in Taormina for that. Can you check on the temperatures this time of year? Will there still be snow? It was a heat wave in August and very windy and chilly at the top then. However, warm jackets (and I think boots also) are available at the stop where you get off the gondola before the final climb to the top. We opted to pay for the big "moon buggy" vehicles to drive up almost all the way from there, although we saw people hiking the whole way. If you can experience a puppet show in Taormina (only on certain days-ask at the TI)you will be amazed! Have a wonderful trip!

One night in Agrigento is "enough".
On the way to Agrigento stop at Segesta.
Forget Selinunte. The drive from Agrigento to Siracusa is long and laborious. Allow plenty of time for this. In Siracusa try Don Camillo Restaurant

For ZERLINA: Re: bus from Palermo to Monreale--how long is the trip?; is the area around the town of Monreale easy to navigate on foot. It is one of the places I had marked--leaving on 3/22 for Sicily with a day and 1/2 on our own in Palermo. Also planning to go to Chefalu (sp??). Thanks for any information. Ciao. mhm

Monreale is just outside Palermo. With no traffic, our drive takes about 10 minutes. A bus won't take too much longer.

The main sight there is the cathedral. No need to walk far to anywhere else.

While I'm always encouraging people to stay longer at destinations, I'd agree that as long as you get to Agrigento by mid afternoon, then one night there is enough. There is really no reason to stay two nights.

I'd actually probably add the night to Palermo to give you two full days there between the three nights. Unlike the poster above, I really enjoyed going up to Erice, which you can do by bus, and liked Trapani as well, particularly wandering the fish market. And Monreale can take the better part of a half day as well. I happened to really like Palermo.

Palermo is certainly a fantastic city. I would absolutely trade one night in Agrigeto for one more in Palermo.

In Palermo we liked Sant Andrea for local food. It is tiny and you should book ahead.

In Siracusa Don Camillo was my favorite.

Mercy, Montreale is basically a suburb of Palermo. The local bus - the number has three digits; something like 398 - leaves from one side of Piazza Indipendenza. With all the stops, though, it takes longer than 10 minutes, probably closer to 20-25 minutes. The cathedral - with its cloister - is really the only thing to see there.

Are you planning to go to Cefalu during your 1 1/2 days in Palermo? I wouldn't; there's too much to see in Palermo and not that much in Cefalu. You can take the train from Palermo to Cefalu: www.trenitalia.com

We stayed in Cefalú (lovely own to stay, probably not worth day trip from Palermo if only sightseeing) and did a day trip to Agrigento and Selinunte. It was a very long day, but rewarding.

I prefer Selinunte to Agrigento (Personal choice - cannot put my finger on the exact reason). Segeste is also spectacular.

The other site on Sicily that I found stunning was the roman villa near Piazza Armerina.

I found nearly all the meals we ate in Sicily to be of a very high standard. Although it gets mixed reviews, I thoroughly enjoyed Da Mariano in Siracusa.