2 weeks in Sicily - please help

We've had no problems with Sixt.

Your plans sound great. If you have time, an overnight in Erice might be fun.

My husband and I visited Sicily some years ago. One of the high points for us was a visit to Morgantina near Piazza Armerina. By sheer good luck, a number of university students were involved in archaeological excavations at the site during our visit, and we thoroughly enjoyed talking with them and watching their discoveries. I understand that this site is still open to tourists but is not yet tourist-friendly. By that I mean that there are no signs or brochures that will explain the excavations. However, if there is active archaeological work being done this Spring, I would recommend a visit. Be sure to take water and perhaps a picnic lunch with you because the site is a bit remote.

You might want to add one day to Palermo, so that you have time for Monreale on top of the hill. Cefalu is pretty but you can visit everything in a couple of hours and in April you probably don't want to spend too much time on the pretty beach.
On the west I like Scopello. I used it as base to visit Segesta, Selinunte, Erice (add Erice to your list), Zingaro National Reserve. All are within one hour drive from Scopello. You might also consider an Agriturismo for you base in the area from which to take day trips to the above places. Try the Baglio Poco Roba, near Segesta.
The rest looks great. In the East I stayed at an Agriturismo near Avola called Masseria Sul Mare. Just minutes from Siracusa. With a car I would stay outside of the major cities and drive in the city and park for the day while you visit. Siracusa has a big covered car park just as you cross the bridge into the ancient Ortigia islan (the historical center of the city). Park there for the day while you visit. The archaeological site is a short drive away from the Ortigia island. There is plenty of free parking nearby. From that Agriturismo you can also drive to Noto, Capo Passero, Pachino, Avola. All within a short drive.
Taormina is pretty, but parking and traffic is restricted, therefore inquire with your hotel about parking arrangements before booking if you stay in Taormina's historical center. You might also consider staying at Giardini Naxos, on the beach, just minutes away from Taormina and closer to the freeway exit.

Your planned itinerary is very good. The only place I can think of that you might want to add is the ancient clifftop town of Erice. There's a very good description of it in this article: http://www.bostonglobe.com/lifestyle/travel/2013/06/08/erice-italy-world-mist-and-stone/4WogckqWggozZsKzuvRPXK/story.html

Oops, I left out Erice (by cable car from Trapani).

Anita, I will look into Morgantina. Don't they usually dig in summer, though, when school's out? That's what they do here.

First revision:
Thursday - in Palermo, evening train to Cefalu

Saturday - the car rental's only open in the morning. I can spend more time in Palermo, if there's more to see and do, then drive to Scopello (thanks, Roberto) later in the day. Sunset's not until about 8 p.m.

How days should I allocate for Erice, Zingaro National Reserve, Segesta and Selinunte? It seems to be more efficient to spend the night in Selinunte rather than returning to Scopello, since I'm going on to Agrigento. I understand the drive from Selinunte to Agrigento is scenic. I'd visit the archaeological park then drive eastward to Agrigento in the afternoon with the sun more or less behind me.

Your trip seems perfect. The only thing that I would add would be Monreale, which has incredible mosaics, as does Cefalu. I do agree that one day in Cefalu is probably enough. I was happy to see that you were going to visit Selinunte. There are two areas there; one that has standing temples and one where the temples have fallen into ruin. I prefer the site where they are in ruins as to me it is more interesting and a great place to wander around without hordes of people. If you can't see everything on this trip, remember that you are so much closer to Sicily than most of the people on RS Helpline and can easily return. I hope your trip is as nice as ours have always been.

Hi Chani,

Here are some thoughts about your plan:

Do you already have your plane ticket? If not, look at flying into Catania and beginning your trip there - then drop off the car in Palermo and spend your last 3 nights there (but if you do this drop off the rental car at the airport - you wouldn't want to drive in Palermo.) At the end of our trip we flew from Palermo to Bologna.

I agree with Robert about adding Scopello if you have time - check out Pensione Tranchina as a place to stay - possibly day trip to Erice from here.

I'd recommend staying in Ortygia rather than Syracuse. We stayed in B & B Itaca.

Consider staying in Ragusa rather than Noto - Ragusa Ibla is the lower town - stay in the lower town. It's a nice hike (or bus ride) to the Upper Town.

If you run out of time, consider either Agrigento or Selinute rather than both. I think they're similar.

Chose either Taormina or Catania and do a day trip to the other. We thought that a day trip to Taormina was enough. We landed in Catania so didn't see much of it - I'm not sure though that it's worth allocating time there. Perhaps stay somewhere near Mt. Etna and day trip to Taormina.

It's not perfect, but I like using Rome2Rio to check out travel times between destinations.

You'll love Sicily and you're going at a perfect time!

Does it matter if I start in Palermo and end in Catania or start in Catania and end in Palermo?

Can I see Taormina, Catania, and Mt. Etna without a car?

Hi Chani,

It doesn't matter if you start in Palermo and end in Catania but I think it might prevent some backtracking. We had a car so I'm not sure about public transportation but it looks like there is a bus from the Catania Airport to the Taormina bus station and also a train from the Catania Central Station. You might consider spending your first night or two in Taormina and then picking up your rental car in Catania and heading south.

You may or may not have time to go to Mt. Etna with your itinerary but you'll see it from a distance. If you decide to go it looks like there is a bus from Catania.

Hopefully you'll get other opinions too!

Best wishes!

When we were planning we used the advice of Vagabonda, a Sicily destination expert on the Trip Advisor Forum.

There are three beautiful churches with mosaics from the same period: one is in Palermo (Capella Palatina), one is in Monreale, an hour or less by bus from Palermo, and one is in Cefalu cathedral. If you like to hike, you can climb the rock behind the cathedral in Cefalu. For Morgantina you will need a car.

Is one day each enough for Syracuse, Taormina and Catania?

Does anyone have experience flying on Meridiana? I want to fly from Catania to Bologna and they have both the best price and the most suitable time for my schedule. The other options are RyanAir which would use up the better part of a day's sightseeing and Airone, either really early in the morning or arriving BLQ at 9 p.m.

I would also be interested in experiences with Meridiana, which I had never heard of before. I'm looking at a flight from Naples to Verona. There are three daily flights, two of which say "operated by Air Italy", which I've also never heard of.

Chani, you're going to love Sicily. I dragged my husband kicking and screaming three years ago, and we
both loved the people, the scenery and the food so much that we go back almost every year now.

Taormina is ideally situated to explore all of the Eastern side of Sicily. We rented an apartment twice,
when we traveled with two couples, and when by ourselves we stayed at a lovely little BnB in the heart of
Taormina. From the home base of Taormina (which we loved) we of course took in all the sites in Taormina,
including the beautiful Greek Theatre, and all the many very old churches in town, in addition to
La Madonna della Rocca at the very top of the mountain. The views are nothing short of spectacular.

Day trips we took were by private guide, which we felt was very worthwhile for this one time. (My
husband is very tight fisted!) He took us in one day to Mt. Etna, which was fascinating, and on the
same day to visit a winery, Gambino Vini (they have a facebook page) which was included in the tour
price where we were served many different varieties of red and white wine as well as delicious and sub-
atantial appetizers, and the family Gambino are lovely people. The same agent took care of both apartment
or BnB rental and tours. Legendofsicily.com The agent's name is Claudio Puglisi and he won an award
last year on Trip Advisor for favorable reviews. We also day-tripped to Syracuse and saw not just the
amazing ruins, but also the Shrine of the Weeping Virgin. (Our guide is very religious and extremely
well educated on the history of Sicily and quite funny, sometimes unintentionally!)

It is less expensive to fly in and out of Palermo, but it is possible to fly into Catania and leave from
Palermo.

If you're not interested in beaches, then one night in Cefalu would be adequate. We stayed in
Cefalu for the beautiful beach and an opportunity to rest up in between hectic touring and driving.
I will say the Mediterranean Sea is jaw droppingly beautiful from both Cefalu and Taormina!

In Palermo -- which is much like Naples, hustle/bustle, horn honking, gritty -- still damaged from
bombings, but quite exciting. As a previous poster advised, do NOT drive there! We stayed in
Centrale Palace Hotel which is in the very center of all the sites and well within walking distance
to everything except for Monreale - which you can get to via bus. I find that a few dollars more
on a hotel can sometimes be worthwhile in savings by avoiding expensive taxis. When I travel with
just my female friends, we are more likely to use taxis and avoid the city buses.

So, you will need to get the map out, perhaps fly into Palermo, tour Palermo. Rent the car on your way
out at the airport, do the West side, Agrigento (Valley of the Temples), go inland to Amerenia, then to
Taormina (stay 5 days) and tour the East side from there. You can take the bus from there to the
Catania airport. This trip would skip Cefalu completely.

Have fun! Sicily in April has the beautiful Almond Trees in full bloom. Mt. Etna will be pretty
cool, so you will need one heavier jacket for that trip. You can PM me if you have any questions

I would give Siracusa at least 2 days and skip Catania, except for its airport. My Michelin Green Guide lists Catania's duomo as the only noteworthy sight (1 *). Siracusa, on the other hand, has a wealth of archaeologically and architecturally interesting sites. It's also a quite pleasant town for just roaming and soaking up the atmosphere, especially the island of Ortygia.

Agree to skip Catania unless you fly in or out of there!

I believe Meridiana and Air Italy are both essentially budget/regional lines for some of the bigger European airlines (KLM and Alitalia, respectively). We flew Meridiana from Rome to Amsterdam once and it's a typical short-haul budget carrier flight, half a step above Easyjet and the like. We had a somewhat major catastrophe that required us to buy new tickets at the airport counter to make our flight, but that was the U.S. carrier's fault, not Meridiana's so I don't hold it against them.

Catania doesn't have much besides its airport, so I would not dedicate any time here at the expense of places like Erice, Segesta, or Siracusa. I think if you're in the area, Taormina deserves one day, plus one day if you wish to go to Mt. Etna. Siracusa deserves at least two days - one to explore the island of Ortigia and one to explore the Archaelogical Park.

There is a bus from Catania Airport to Taormina and vice versa. I would suggest you don't bother with the train from Catania and when you read my trip report, you'll understand why.

Chani, my daughter and I spent a week in Sicily last May and had a wonderful time. We flew into Catania and took a direct bus to Agrigento, spending 2 nights there at Le Casette di Lu, a cute little B&B with a great breakfast. It was a very short walk from there to the bus stop to take us to the Valley of Temples and the museum; we spent all day those two locations. After the second night, we picked up a rental car from Hertz and drove to Syracuse, stopping at Piazza Armerina for an hour or so. Traffic was a bit slower than expected so we did not have time for Morgantina; my daughter had seen that with her college study-abroad program in 2011 so she was sad to miss it, but the mosaics at Piazza Armerina are amazing. We drove on to Siracusa and dropped the car off, so it was just a one-day rental. Spent 5 nights in Siracusa, which was too many - 3 would have been good. We stayed on Ortigia at Mini-hotel B&B Spiraglio, which I also recommend highly, and our hostess Rita was great. She even drove us to the Syracuse bus station on our last day, to head to the airport at Catania. You get a great view of Mt Etna flying into/out of Catania! Since we were there in summer, we saw Oedipus the King at the ancient theater; the 2014 season starts on May 9, and you can find out more at http://www.indafondazione.org/en/ . Seeing a play in the theater that Aeschylus acted in is amazing. And I loved wandering around the little streets of Ortigia and Agrigento.

A few more recommendations in Syracuse/Ortigia: Syracuse 3D Reborn, which sounds rather cheesy but was a nice intro to the Greek history of the site, the Arkimedion, the Duomo, and Castello Maniace at the tip of the island if you have time [not a must-see, like the theater and the archeological park]. And we went twice to Barcollo for drinks and a light supper; it's a sort of jazz bar in a little courtyard not too far from the Piazza del Duomo.

Have a great time! I definitely want to go back some day; I know there's a lot more to see than we were able to fit in.