Wife and I are planning our first trip overseas. We want to spend about 3 weeks in Italy. We are interested in Sicily. If anyone has a better suggestion we would welcome it. Anyone know some good web sites or books that we can start our planning with? Also, would very much appreciate airline info for this trip. Being that this is a long flight, we want to be as comfy as possible. We've even thought of flying over in business class. I would very much appreciate any help or suggestions as we start our planning. My email is included and I welcome replies to that also. Thank you to all who can help us with our planning. <BR><BR>BTW, if there is a certain travel company to use and/or avoid, please let me know. Thanks again all.

Hey Mel! Give us some more to go on, such as when you are traveling, what your interests are. You'll get great suggestions.

Dayle,<BR>Thanks for your reply. We are thinking of spring time or maybe October. We've heard that summer can be hot and very busy. We like to shop, eat, go to museums, and so on. We're not heading over there until next year at least so we're trying to learn as much as we can now. Starting early I know but we want this to be a memorable one. This will also be our honeymoon that we couldn't take over 20 years ago. Everyone we have spoken with said Sicily is the place to start. So, point me in the right direction. We were thinking of mostly using hotels unless someone has suggestions for otherwise or found their experiences staying elsewhere more memorable. I welcome any information at all and appreciate all who respond. Any more questions? Please post here or email me. Thanks

Good afternoon, Mel Have been into<BR>Sicily about six times in the last 30<BR>years mostly to visit relatives near<BR>Palermo. However we did on one occasion<BR>take a 8 day trip around Sicily and we<BR>did this on CIT with which we were very<BR>much satisified. They used the Jolly<BR>Hotel chain for their hotels and the<BR>food was supprising good/ Overnites<BR>were at Agrigento, Siracusa, Catania,<BR>Toarmina and Palermo. Tour tho escorted was not full or rushed....<BR>There is much to see in Sicily and possibly by taking the tour you would<BR>find places that you would want to return to and spend more time at...<BR>A couple of suggestions would be the<BR>west coast of Sicily, Segusta, Sciacca,<BR>Siracusa and Cefalu (don;t miss) Wonderful small town, nice little ristoranes, beaches. etc. There is<BR>also outside of Palermo is Mondello<BR>and the area around Siracusa that have<BR>some fine beaches. The beaches at Toarmina are pebble...<BR>You can expect some very good dining<BR>experiences in Sicily, they come up<BR>with some perfect dishes and then their<BR>desserts. Richard of LaGrange Park, Il..

Three weeks - lucky you!<BR>Do a lot of searches on this sight for Italy itineraries. Heed the advice of Bob the Navigator, Rex, and Elaine. If you love to shop, eat well, and like museums, DO NOT MISS FLORENCE! Siena, too! Drive through Tuscany for romance! Bob the Navigator has nice itinerary plans. I think he also custom plans trips for people (not sure, but he's been there a lot and is mentioned on a few websites and has his own - a gentleman, too!) My husband and I went for the first time last year for our tenth anniversary and I planned the entire trip from a lot of people's advice on this forum. We had a wonderful time. If you don't travel a lot also read everyone's packing suggestions. Dry cleaner bags and ziploc bags are lifesavers! <BR>We bought our tickets at a reasonable price through tiss.com and flew Lufthansa economy class. We were bumped up to business class on the way over. LA to Frankfurt (11hours) and then Frankfurt to Florence on a smaller plane. Business class is heaven if you can afford it. One of the best parts of our trip. "Would you like a blanket, some fresh squeezed orange juice, chocolates, wine?" reclining seats with footrests, personal video screens, hot terry face towels, and the food was great! We flew back coach, but Lufthansa was still nice - more cramped in economy and the bathrooms were not as clean, but it was better than any American airline I've ever flown. Since you said it was okay to use your e-mail, I'll send you some notes on our trip and advice I've gathered here to save you some search time.<BR>Have fun!<BR>Carin

Carin, I would love to have a copy of the notes you offered to Mel regarding your trip. My husband and I are also going to Europe for the first time next June3-18 and appreciate all the information we can get. Thank you. Karen

Hi Mel:<BR><BR>Lucky you! We have been to Italy 10 times in past 20 years; from the Alps to Sicily. I still have close relatives in Friuli and Venice.<BR><BR>For your first trip, I would give Sicily a lower priority. Don't worry; you will go back! I suggest starting with Rome (allow 5 days minimum). If you want to see the Amalfi coast, Pompei and Herculaneum you can do this with a 2 day side tour from Rome. Next to Florence and Tuscany (Pisa, Sienna, Volterra) for 4-5 days; then on to Venice for 3-4 days. Finish up with a few days in the lake country; Lakes Como and Garda (Sermione especially).<BR><BR>This itinerary can be done by flying into Rome and returning from Venice or Milan (or vice-versa). If you fly business class, all airlines are fairly equal. Stay away from Alitalia for economy class. <BR><BR>If you have some command of the Italian language, go independent. If not, use a package tour. If one of you is 50 or older, I strongly recommend Grand Circle Travel, 347 Congress St. Boston, MA 02210 (800-221-2610). We have used them several times all over the world with great value and quality. They offer 2 or 3 tour packages for Italy.<BR><BR>May and early June are good times to travel, as is September and early October. July and August can be very hot and crowded. (But Rome and Florence seem to be always crowded unless in the middle of winter)<BR><BR>Email me if you want mor info. Bon voyage, Chet.

If you come to sicily in spring time or autumn you'll find a lovely weather, I think that summer can be too hot for you.<BR>You'd better hire a car in Palermo airport, it will be easier for you to go around the island.<BR>We are a French Italian couple, we run in SICILY a SCIACCA TERME<BR> in the middle of the ancient Greek temples itinerary our self catering accommodation,<BR>(fully equipped, 1 or 2 bedrooms, kitchen, bathroom, lounge, and patio or garden)<BR>situated in an old farm house recently restored and converted, 1 mile from town <BR>center, 2 miles from the sea, <BR>We speak English and french. Please visit our site:<BR> http://verdetecnica.tripod.com <BR>http://membres.tripod.fr.verdetecnica

Hello Mel, Sicily would not be my choice for a first trip to Italy. I suggest you start by going to my web page www.bobthenavigator.homestead.com and reading the 3 articles under the links on that page. That will help you to narrow your options. It takes 6 weeks to see Italy, and you will be able to get a good start with 3 weeks.<BR>Start with the big criteria--see the planning article. Good luck and let me know if you need help.

Hi, Mel.<BR>If you want start-up from Sicily don't forget there is now from Messina to Salerno a very speed boat to achieve South of Italy without car.<BR>From Salerno, by train or renting a car, you can visit Penisola Sorrentina and my opinion is that minimum 3 days you have to spend in this sweet region of Southern part of Italy.<BR>So that you can visit Pompei and Naples and, last but not least, you'll eat very very well. Write me if you need help. Ciao.

He says he's inteested in Sicily. Why do the last handful of posts have to tell him to go someplace other than Sicily? (That's like telling someone to go to New York and DC when what they really want to see is the USA's national parks in the west.) One person advises him to heed the advice of three people, two of whom have never been to Sicily. For once, here's someone who doesn't seem to be trying to see "everything" on a first trip. He's choosing as his destination one of the most beautiful and interesting regions in the world, let alone in Italy, and a whole bunch of people, including a few who've never even been there, are advising him not to go to Sicily. Maybe he has an interest in, among other things, fascinating mixtures of historical influences--north African, Greek, Arab, Norman, Spanish, among others, unusual delicious cooking styles and some of the best fruit in the world, spectacular scenery including active volcanoes, exposure to a dialect that has status as a "language" (with it own literary history) in its own right, friendly and hospitable people, unspoiled and unvisited mountain villages, Greek ruins, Moorish and Greek and Christian architecture all combined in the same building, beaches, some of the most interesting folk music and folk dnacing traditions in Europe which many Italians recognize as the richest and best preserved in Italy. In that case, why shouldn't he start with Sicily, instead of with some of the places which, though also wonderful, offer only a fraction of the appeal and rich variety of Sicily? <BR><BR>I'd give Sicily high priority. Italy is NOT the only country I'm interested in. Of my six trips to Italy, three, including the first, included Sicily, and one (two years ago) was to Sicily only, and I'm considering taking a short trip this spring--to Sicily only. I can't imagine that this island and its history and culture and landscape and food will ever get boring.

Dear Mel<BR><BR>Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe went to Sicily in early April of 1787. What he wrote of his trip there still holds true today 215 years later. "To have seen Italy without having seen Sicily is not to have seen Italy at all, for Sicily is the clue to everything." <BR><BR>You knew that, didn't you. Go there first. Ammoninni!(let's go! in Sicilian)Meanwhile, take a look at Dorling Kindersley Travel Guides Sicily. My copy was $19.95 and very well worth it. <BR><BR>

Mel<BR>We have traveled many places and find that Rome, Florence and Venice rank at the very top of the list! The history, culture and food, all are exceptional!! I think with 3 weeks you can do it all... including Sicily. There are many web sites to help you with information on Italy and I would also recommend buying Foders and Frommers books on Italy found at any bookstore.

The question should ot be whetehr to visit Sicily when going t Italy but whether to visit Italy when going to Sicily <BR>Even prior to Roman Empire, cradle of today's Italy, there have been a magnificent culture. Magna Graecia, Major Greece, included Sicily, birth place and home of many philosophers who we learn about in school as Greeks. You can find a lot of ancient Greek culture, mixed with younger Roman one, both western and eastern, you can find footprints left by Arabs as well as Normans - where else would you be able to find the best of so many cultures? Ice-cream was invented by Arabs on Sicily, Sicily was birthplace of marzipan... Syracuse, city on Eastern Sicily, is one of the oldest cities mentioned in ancient literature that still exists. Ancient Greek columns laying down in the mountains, appaently remnants of a magnificent temple destroyed long time ago. Roman buildings from two thousand yars ago... and examples of the most splendid baroque you can se... all at the same city. The most wonderful pizza with sardines, pasta with tuna, the best fish, the most beautiful music. Culture that together with Georgia and Greece belongs to the oldest surviving culutres on the world.<BR>Given, if you want to see museums, galleries, go for concerts, Sicily can offer you a lot, but you may want to go to Firenze or Bologna instead... if you want to see ITALY, go to Sicily!<BR><BR>"...and on the sixth day, God completed his work. Pleased with his beautiful creation, took the earth in his hands and kissed it. There, on the very point where his lips touched the earth rose Sicily..."<BR><BR>Bruno

Oh, I got carried away and I guess I answered all uestions except those you have actually asked Have a look at the following websites:<BR>www.sicilian.net (you wll find info about very good Sicilian guide who can also arrange all your tours on Sicily)<BR>www.viaggioinsicilia.com<BR>www.bestofs icily.com<BR><BR>I do not know where are you flying from, I guess from the US... well, flight is not so long, save money on the business class, save it for Sicily, you may buy yourself wonderful ceramics over there, besides many other things You can rent a car on Sicily very easily, I would recommend you some of the international chains like Hertz or National. If you do though, be very careful, Sicilians are good drivers, but very passionate. Sicily is generally safe, pocketpickers are not uncommon in bigger cities though. If you want to learn about Sicilian winemaking, visit Marsala, city in western part of the island, home of the wine of the same name. Arts... Palermo is your choice. Nature - anywhere in central Sicily for the mountains, you will be amazed! Food... just about anywhere!

We traveled to Italy last April. We were in Venice and the Lakes area of northern Italy, mentioned in a previous post. Venice is so unlike any other city in the world; I felt like Alice stepping through the looking glass! It was absolutely enchanting. We also went to Bellagio, a city on the shores of Lake Como (north of Milan) I wish we could have spent more time there. My husband is a teacher and we were on spring break so we only had a week. Our son was stationed there for three months (right near Venice). He loved Florence and i've also heard great things about Florence from others. Email me for more info on places I've mentioned here. Thanks

An interesting book to read as background in preparation for your trip is On Persephone's Island by Mary Taylor Simeti.

Mel, are you still checking this thread?

I think Carol and others said it well --why are you jokers trying to divert Mel and his bride of 20 years to Venice, Rome, Florence, whatever, when he said they want to go to Sicily? I've taken many trips to Italy over the years, to all the cities I've just cited, and more, and I think Sicily is absolutely the most fascinating region in Italy. I won't repeat what has been said about the Greek ruins (Agrigento, Gela, etc.), which are very much worth exploring, but I'd like to add this anecdote.<BR>Italians are very friendly to tourists, especially to Americans. But the Sicilians are the friendliest by far. One, in Palermo (if I recall correctly; I don't have my Sicilian travel diary nearby), my wife and I wanted to visit a private garden, open to the public just a couple of days a week.The gate was locked and there was no signs of life. We were about to leave when an elderly gentleman came by and, with his imperfect English and our imperfect Italian, he understood that we wanted to visit the garden and the palazzo on the grounds. So he began shouting through the gate, "Maria, Maria." But Maria either didn't hear him or decided to ignore him. So the old guy said, "Un attimo" (one moment), and went up the street. There, he found his 10 or 12 year old grandson, brought him back to the gate, and ordered him to climb the fence and bang on the door. Soon, Maria opened. And the old gentleman said that he wanted to show the gardens to his dear friends from America. Maria gave him a bit of an argument, "Closed, come back tomorrow," but he persisted and we were admitted and he showed us around for about an hour. Try to find someone like that anywhere else in the world.<BR>A suggestion. Either fly into Naples and rent a car and drive down to the ferry opposite Messina (I forget the city, but the auto rental people will set you straight), then spend a couple of days in or around Taoromina (a wonderful beach resort, lots of tourists, but that's unavoidable) and then drive West, to the aforementioned Greek ruins, to Sciacca, up to Marsala (and bring back a couple of bottles), Erice (a stunning hill town), and into Palermo.<BR>Sicily can't be beat.<BR>Besides, pasta was invented in Sicily (not in China). My source: The Pasta Museum near the Trevi Fountain in Rome.<BR>Have a great trip.<BR>Tony S..

Mel -- If you can, visit Piazza Armerina in central Sicily. It's a Roman villa, preserved by an ancient landslide, with marvelous (restored) mosaics showing the life and customs of affluent people of the time. It was a hunting estate, so there are lots of animals and hunting scenes. You'll be able to find web sites with info. This was one of my favorites among many places in Sicily.