Hey friends,
I and a dozen family members will be making a visit in May with arrival in Palermo. Half of us will be staying one week. The other half, myself included, will be staying an extra 8 days. We will be staying for the first week at a villa in San Marco d'Alunzio which is approx 1 hour drive east of Cefalu. I was wondering if I can have some input for an itinerary. Interests would be food and beverage of course.... but some of us are interested in off the beaten path adventure... some great hikes... untouristy villages, etc. On the radar is Taormina, Ragusa and Etna all day hike. Also, I would like to spend some time in the Aeolians for some hikes. Would 2 or 3 nites be good for that portion and if so, what islands would you visit and where would you base your stay? Lipari comes to mind with day hike to Stromboli... Any help would be appreciated. Thank you in advance.

If you are looking for off-the-beaten path and untouristy, I'd advise against Taormina -- IME, it gets so crowded with day trippers as to be truly, decidedly unpleasant. Ragusa and the other Baroque towns are also rather firmly on the tourist trail.

For the Aeolians, look for a trip report by Dayle. It's been a while, but IIRC, she spent a chunk of time there.

Get a copy of a good guidebook or two, maybe the Rough Guide or Michelin Green, and browse trip reports and planning threads here on this forum.

With your time and your interests, I suspect that you will miss most of the things that draw many people to Sicily -- those things take closer to 2.5 or 3 weeks, not counting all the extra time that a large group demands. And that's fine, of course -- I'm just being explicit.

I vote for you not to miss Taormina. Yes, it can be crowded. Fortunately, our visits there have been in November. Go early morning or late in the day. There is a reason for it being crowded. It is one of the most stunning spots in Sicily, with its Greco-Roman theatre and coastal and Etna views. There are some hiking trails that will be without crowds, one that we enjoyed from Taormina to Castelmola, the hill town above Taormina, and there is another trail down to the shore. You might consult such things as local cruise ship arrivals to determine what you might expect, since those cruise ship groups can be overwhelming. The nearest cruise port is Giardini-Naxos. Here is their 2019 schedule: https://www.cruisetimetables.com/cru...os-sicily.html

If you are staying on the north coast you can hike in Madonie National Park, but you will probably need a car. Friends of mine did one hike using public transport for access but recommended a car for more extensive hiking.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mado...l_Natural_Park

Go to Taormina, admire the view, visit the theater and gardens, leave.

There is a great deal to see on Sicily, hope you have a good guidebook. Basing in one place on the north coast is not the best plan unless you are only interested in the beach and hiking.

un-touristy villages< How about Corleone? Not far from Palermo and a nice hill town and of course totally safe for tourists:

https://www.google.com/search?q=corl...ih=625&dpr=1.5

What makes you think Corleone is not touristy?

I'm not sure what counts as a hike vs. a walk, but FWIW, it took me about 2 hours (maybe a bit more, once you count stops to take pictures) to walk from Castelmola to Isola Bella. I found it pleasant enough, and certainly, a reasonable way to escape some of the crowds. (And I do agree that Taormina is beautiful, even though I hated the crowds.)

I didn't visit Corleone, but in 2007, I was on a train that stopped there back The station was packed with tourists when we pulled in and again when we pulled out. Many of the people who got on the train there remarked that they thought it an overly touristed waste of time. I didn't go, and so can only speak to what I heard and saw.

Well I have rarely heard anyone here say they are going to Corleone and - in fact I never remember any but appears it is - and it seems according to kja most just went for novelty.

Taormina is lovely with a mesmerizing view of Mt Vesuvius and, far below, the sea. But it is a tourist town for sure. I stayed in a hotel down on the sea in Naxos-Giardini (sp?) and in October prices were really cheap and it was a rather neat place with relatively few tourists. There is (was) a funicular running from Naxos-Giardini-Taormina train station up to the town or a steep path.

For a while, Corleone received a lot of attention as "the" place to go in Sicily to see the roots of the mafia.

The view of Taormina is, of course, of Mt. Etna, not Mt. Vesuvius.

The town by the sea with the train station is Giardini-Naxos, as even a simple google search will show.

Are you able to stay somewhere else on your extra 8 days? If so I'd move further west, actually preferably several places. Erice on the west coast was lovely and less touristy than others (certainly than Taormina - which I agree you should still visit even though it was overrun when we were there and that was 10 years ago). Other highlights for us were were the ruins at Segesta, Selunite, and Agrigento; the inland hill town of Polizzi Generosa (totally untouristy) and the city of Siracusa. Are you planning to visit Palermo at all?
Here's my photos - https://andiamo.zenfolio.com/p379649825

That is a meaningless data point. I don't think I saw a single post about visiting Syria before I went in 2009, but I had a hard time getting a hotel room in Aleppo because there were so many tourists in town. Not American, perhaps, but there nonetheless.

Hi
As far as I'm concerned our greatest moments/sights in Sicily were (in this order)
- Agrigento - valley of people (yes, touristy)
- Taormina (yes touristy)
- Villa Casale (is it close to Ragusa ?)
- Stomboli by night with some kind of small cruise
- a daytrip on a small boat stopping around some small islands (forgot which, remember seeing floating pieces of lava all around us)
- Palermo
- hike of Etna was nice but a little bit disappointing
The rest was ok too ! Good food, nice people, good weather, good wine (not as good as French wine though).

Mine were, in rough order:

Monreale
Erice
Ortigia
Villa Romano del Casale
Trapani
Palermo
Zingaro Nature Reserve
Agrigento

I found Etna disappointing up close, and would only recommend Taormina for a brief look. I am not a great fan of roccoco, so Noto wasn't a highlight, but YMMV. I visited the Egadi Islands, but they were very quiet ahead of the season and probably really of interest to beach people. Definitely on my "revisit" list.

No one ever mentions Catania in Sicily plans but I stayed there are loved it - a certain elegance and a great base for Syracuse, Taormina and Etna.

I didn’t care for Catania; grey, dirty, depressing. Would much rather stay in Ortigia or Taormina, which is very nice in the evenings and early morning before the hordes arrive.

Wonderful. I just wrote a long and detailed response regarding the Eolie and Stromboli and got an error saying I had to reload the window whatever the heck that means. My response is gone. OP, I will just refer you to my long and detailed TR that kja was kind enough to mention. It's called "Solo in Sicily" and under my name, Dayle.

This is one of the reasons I'm not on Fodor's much anymore.

Happy planning.

@ Dayle: How frustrating! I don't know if it's possible for you, but many of us prepare our posts in word and then paste them in. And please don't leave us -- you've offered such valuable input over the years!

Yes, I can do that. I would rather not take the extra step. Thank you for the compliment kja. Yes, I'll still be around, but not as much. There is so little going on here anymore.