- Two weeks was NOT enough. Sicily is enchanting.
- Gear: Traveled with my RickSteves backpack suitcase - the ONLY way to go!
- Itinerary: Palermo (2 nites); Segesta & Erice (Hotel San Dominico - 1 nite); DaVittorio Hotel (1 nite)(Porto Palo) on the way to Agrigento; Camere A Sud Hotel in Agrigento (2 nites); Hotel Sicilia in Enna (1 nite); Hotel Gutkowski (2 nites - in Siracusa/Ortigia); Ragusa-Modica-Noto on the way to Le Corte del Sol Hotel & Cooking School (1 nite); and then 4 nites in Taormina (hotel I would not recommend). Highlights: Puppet Show in Palermo. The Mt. Etna/Alcantaro Gorge Tour to the top of Mt. Etna. Cooking School at Le Corte Del Sol (one day). Erice sunrise (before the tourists arrive - so need to stay there). Museo Archiologico di Agrigento after touring the Valley of the Temples. Skip Taormina - all tourists. Spend as much time as you can in the little towns.
Posted by
Mahopac, New York, USA
51 posts
Also recently returned from Sicily....a 2 1/2 week trip that was pretty amazing: 4 nites Taormina, 3 nites Siracusa/Ortygia, 2 nites Piazza Armerina, 2 nites Agrigento, 4 nites Trapani, 3 nites Palermo. Also got to Segesta, Erice, Mozia, Selinunte, Morgantina, Caltagirone, and did Etna/Alcantara.
Though crowded, the Villa Romana Del Cassale was spectacular. We loved Trapani. I must disagree about Taormina. Yes there were a lot of tourists but the beauty of the place with Etna on the background and the sea below was one of the highlighs of our trip. Once there you understand why people have been raving about it for thousands of years.
Posted by
Toledo, Ohio, US
11613 posts
Interesting that the city you didn't like also had the hotel you don't recommend. I used to think accommodations didn't matter much (just a place to sleep), but as I get older, I have found this correlation between hotel and enjoyment of the place overall. I stayed in several do-not-recommend places over the years and now, while the pleasant memories overtake the disappointment of the hotel choice eventually, I find I take more care in choosing hotels than I used to.
Posted by
New York, NY, USA
11294 posts
I agree with Zoe. I loved Taormina, and I think a major part of the reason why was my hotel (the Casa Cusaeni, reviewed in this thread: https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy-reviews/taormina-accommodation-casa-cuseni). Sure, there are a lot of tourists in Taormina, but as Allen said, there's a reason they're there - and have been going for a long time.
So, if you're willing to splurge a bit on a nice hotel, consider returning to Taormina.