2 weeks Sicily

We just spent a month in Sicily in March/April this year --- all of your choices look good. We had 5 nights in Palermo and now think 2 additional nights would have been even better. Monreale takes up most of a day if you eat lunch there. Try to add a visit to the Villa Romana near Piazza Armerina --- we were there in 2001 and it's even better now. Knowing your interests would make more recommendations easier. But Sicily is magnificent and there will always be too many places to go and too many things to see!

Thank you! Because this iterneray is pretty city based I might want to add a more rural/coastal stop. Just to relax, enjoy the surroundings. Any tips?

Are you planning to stay in Siracusa or Ortigia? If Ortigia, you might want to check to see if you can hold off on the rental car and pick it up as you leave Siracusa. We stayed in Ortigia for 3 nights in May 2022 and loved it, but I wouldn't want to deal with a car there. We took the bus directly from Catania airport to the last stop in Siracusa, just before Ortigia. We returned to Catania city center on the same bus. I think it was 6euro each way. If you're staying somewhere in Siracusa that includes parking, then having the car there isn't as big a deal.

It looks nice and chill, I would add some islands in your place. When we were to Sicily we did Aeolian islands (from Milazzo), it was very nice. I have found this on the ferry hopper blog https://www.ferryhopper.com/en/blog/featured/islands-near-sicily for any other islands that may work for you depending on your location. Maybe since you'll head west you could check the islands close to Marsala (like favigana for instance). I've never done them personally, but you could take a look to see if you would might enjoy it :)

we loved both of our trips to Sicily, cannot say enough good things about it!

highly recommend staying in Ortigia, and it's really not that inconvenient to have a car there, if you don't mind paying for convenient parking. that would give you the flexibility to take a day trip to Vendicari and Marzamemi, which is a delightful way to spend some time outdoors on a nice day and have a charming lunch.

would also recommend visiting Villa Romana del Casale, which is even better if you stay overnight nearby and get there first thing in the morning (same advice for Agrigento). if you add on a couple of nights, I would use one in this way.

how are you traveling between Taormina and Catania, and are you doing a private/semi-private tour of Mt. Etna?

Solid itinerary! Good notes from the other posters, and I would just say that Villa Romana should be as must-see as Agrigento. If you can swing an overnight nearby it would make for an easier stop. It was pretty empty late in the afternoon. Piazza Armerina is a decent overnight stop, but is also pretty sleepy. This area is a bit cooler, with pine forests and hills which is a different vibe. It’s possible to squeeze this in en route, but would be kind of a long day. If you have a night to add, I’d do it here.

Ortigia is just the kind of charming place you can easily spend more time in. Another day there for a day trip to the hill towns would be a worthwhile addition, but I would not take it away from your current itinerary.

Why not stop at Mt Etna on the way between Catania and Taormina? You'll be going through Mt Etna anyway.

Having a car for part of the time in Siracusa would be helpful for seeing some of the Baroque towns in that part of the island: Ragusa, Noto, Modica and Scicli. They are accessible by bus or train, but those are slow options.

I agree that Palermo could use more time. I definitely wouldn't shorten any of your planned stays in order to add additional destinations. You just cannot do everything of interest in Sicily in two weeks.

I wouldn’t move to Catania to see Mt Etna. We took a tour from Taormina.

We stayed in Ortigia as others have suggested and rented a car as we left. We returned it at Palermo airport. That worked well.

You could easily add a day to Palermo.

We stopped at Villa Romana del Casale And would highly recommend. You can stay in Piazza Armerina- the nearby town. We powered on to Agrigento but would have been nice to not have.

Another option is to visit the Baroque Towns. We spent two nights in Ragusa and actually could have easily spent three.

There is just too much to see in Sicily!!

Based on our trip, agree with touring Mt.Etna from Taormina; parking in Ortigia is not a big deal if you are willing to walk a bit; and recommend visiting Valley of the Temples, Agrigento, at dusk. Also, depending on your rental car company, it is possible to drop the car on arrival to Palermo city versus going to the airport.

So many good tips! Thanks again.
If I would visit Mt Etna from Taormina should I add an extra night there and skip Catania? Or stay with 2 nights Taormina and 2 nights Catania?

I liked Catania, and others have said its WWII museum is good. However, compromises have to be made since there is so much to enjoy in Sicily. I didn't care for Taormina, so that's the place I'd just daytrip to. If Taormina is a must for you, I'd consider dropping Catania and adding one night to Taormina for the Mt Etna trip and one night to Palermo.

Hello,
You don't need a car in Siracusa, Ortigia and you may find parking there difficult. You can take a Bus from Catania Airport to Siracusa it is inexpensive and a nice ride. Tickets are purchased at a booth right when you exit the Airport and the Bus stop is right there. If you are staying in Trapani, take a day trip by Bus to Erice. There is also a cable car you can take up as well. It is a medieval village with shops restaurants and fantastic views! It is also easy to take a bus from Palermo to Agrigento you can buy tickets day of on the bus. I and my in-laws have been to Sicily many times and never rent a car because it's so easy to use the Buses and Rail.

Enjoy, Sicily is amazing.

I see the recommendations about not needing a car if staying in Syracuse or Ortiga, but would you need a car for day trips to the smaller towns like Noto, Ragusa, Modica, etc?

You'd be able to see more places, more efficiently, if you used a car. All the commonly-mentioned towns have either bus or train service, or both, but the trains are no faster than buses and neither runs at great frequency--and there is unlikely to be any bus service at all on Sundays. Although I've never rented a car in Europe, this is one of the areas where it would be handy.