cheapest transportation to Sicily

http://www.fodors.com/world/europe/italy/sicily/travel-tip_1951973.html

I haven't been so really can't say. Would cost them out though. Check Ryanair website.

You can also take the train to Sicily but it's a slow journey, maybe not something for teenagers.

Air Italy flies from Naples to Catania. It's a one-hour flight. 4 adults 228Euro.

There is a ferry from Rome to Palermo and a ferry from Naples to Palermo. It looks like it leaves at 8:00pm and goes overnight.

Finally, the train. Naples to Catania. There are a couple of runs with no train changes. Trip takes 8.0hrs. 160Euro for 4 adults 2nd class. I have no info on a rental car.

That is a much cheaper flight than I had been able to find! Thank you! Any ideas about cost with a ferry? Is is worth bringing a rental car or renting a new one once we're on Sicily?

Cindy, try http://www.ferryticket.gr/ for researching the ferry. About 273Euro for 4 adults plus a car.

Thank you so much, Larry! I appreciate it!

Air One flys between Rome and both Palermo and Catania. It's a good airline and they run some great sales. No extra charge for one-way fares, so flying one way and doing train, ferry or car the other way is an option. Their website is www.flyairone.it.

blu-express flies from Rome to Palermo or Catania.
http://www.blu-express.com/cgi-bin/airkiosk/I7/181002i?BV=2&LANG=IT&LFF?zanpid=1218043872828177408

easyJet flies from Rome to Palermo.
http://www.easyjet.com/en/book/index.asp

I also neglected to mention that Wind Jet flies from Rome to Catania or Palermo.
http://w2.volawindjet.it/

This is GREAT information! Thank you so much! I keep reading that I can buy these plane tickets cheaper if I wait until I'm in Italy rather than buying them over the Internet from the U.S. Is this true?

If the schedule is good, and the fare is cheap, book it!

Some site do post by country. Check around and call the airline if there seems to be a discrepancy from the rates on the Italian site. Also carefully check the baggage allowance for each airline.

Whoever wrote that it is cheaper to buy plane tickets after you arrive in Italy is totally wrong! On European budget airlines, the earlier you book, the lower the fare. The price keeps going up as seats are sold. Last-minute fares can be very expensive. The only exception would be a special sale that is announced for a particular route--and the odds of that happening for the route of your choice are pretty low.

I suspect Cindy is referring to the huge discrepancy on some sites based on the country selected. For example, if you were to check the Air One site, and indicated "Italy" as your country, the price is significantly less than if you were to indicate the "United Stated of America" as your country.

Exactly! What's that about? One traveler said she put in her country as Italy, but then when she completed her purchase (she thought because of her USA address or her credit card) the charges were much higher.

It's not all airlines, but it does happen with some. Checking conversion rates, there's a significant difference in prices. Rather than book on the website, deal directly with an agent.

We were able to find a ticket into Palermo and out of Naples...for less actually then if we went Naples-Naples last Nov. - just check around (we found them on Travelocity I think)! We drove from Palermo to Naples though - turned out to be the most economical for us (since we were renting a car anyway and there were three of us).