Driving TO Sicily

It depends on what experience you've got of driving already. I live in Italy and love exploring so I've driven around a lot.
You don't say what time of year you're planning to go....
Gargano the roads are narrow and full of bends, but you just have to not be in a hurry. No problem out of season - I've been September, October and May. The views along the road between Vieste and Mattinata are spectacular
Puglia no problem. The main dual carriageway down the east coast is quite busy especially around Bari but not impossible. Internal roads are splendid - little traffic and superb scenery.
Ordinary roads around Amalfi coast, anywhere around Naples, Salerno and Caserta etc are a challenge (I found them a nightmare), no problem if you stay on the motorway.

I’ve never ferried a car across to Messina but I’ve driven in Sicily and I can say that driving in Sicily is no different than driving in the rest of Italy, including Puglia or Amalfi. The problem with the Amalfi coast is the traffic during peak periods (like summer weekends) and the scarcity of parking (there are a few pay lots but they are expensive and on weekends they fill quickly).

So if you are comfortable driving in Italy, you will do fine in the regions you intend to go. If you have never driven in Italy, just know that in order to drive in Italy you must have the skills to navigate in narrow spaces because roads and city streets are often very narrow and, in many countryside locations, full of curves, including hairpin curves. Cities also have intense traffic like Manhattan. If you are the type that can drive only in straight wide suburban streets or on freeways, or if you are the type that has a hard time parallel parking, or has challenges parking in a 2 car garage without scraping the wall, then driving in Italy will be challenging. So it really depends on your driving experience at home. I know that our country roads in California, for example in the Santa Cruz mountains, present similar challenges to the ones in Italy. I’m sure there are curvy mountain roads in Idaho where you can practice. Driving in San Francisco or NYC at peak rush hour is also just as challenging as driving in Rome or Milan. If you live in No. Idaho with little experience driving in large cities like NYC then the bigger challenge for you is probably going to be driving inside city streets and not so much country roads which are probably no different from the narrow country roads you can find in Idaho.

When we took our rental car across to Sicily in July 2001, I was as sick as a dog before during and after (went to the ER and everything) so I remember zero about it, but my husband says it was straightforward. If it matters, we had driven from Venice, stopping in a few places, and went on to spend almost 2 weeks in Sicily, so it was well worth keeping the car. My mother and our two kids were on this trip, and everybody wanted to stay in or visit a different place, so that's why the car and the lengthy route. As for the driving, Sicily and Puglia including the Gargano were all fine, although not everybody would enjoy driving in the non-ZTL parts of cities as much as my husband does.

I am in Sicily as I write this, having picked up our leased car in Rome and driven through Sorrento and along the Amalfi coast through Puglia, Bassilicata, Calabria and taken the car ferry across to Messina. We are currently in a great ocean front air b & b in Accireale half way between Taormina (where I drove yesterday on the national holiday here) and Catania. We go from here to Palermo for 4 days then back to Rome via a stop in Salerno along the way. I will echo the comment above that provided you are : unfazed with navigating tight spaces, enjoy twisty switchbacks not really intended for two way traffic, can park comfortably in tight spaces, understand you must keep right except to pass on divided highways, understand that hesitation on your part may elicit a horn or two…and don’t care, know that you must be just as aggressive and pushy as your fellow drivers when normal driving etiquette will not suffice and derive a sense of enjoyment from all of the above, you will find driving in Sicily excactly like driving anywhere and everywhere else in Italy. I always tell people that once you are south of Naples, there are 5 lanes of travel on every two lane road, once you include driving down the centre line and on each shoulder, as every local driver is apparently taught to do from birth. And you will likely never encounter a more eager demographic of organ donors than Italian motorcyclists. Their antics are a constant source of amazement and entertainment, in both Sicily and elsewhere in Italy.

I am from Vancouver, BC, not NYC and I have been driving in Europe for more than 20 years. Personally, I prefer to drive here than anywhere else. Drivers here, and this includes Sicily, are more aware of their surroundings and generally more skilled, if less cautious.

One word of caution, however, must be reserved for the car ferry crossing from Villa San Giovanni on the mainland to Messina. I do not lose my patience with Italian disorganization or lack of adequate signage anymore, especially south of Naples. But there should be a special place in Hell for the person at Caronte & Tourist Ferries Inc who designed how it is you get on that ferry. You will come off the highway and follow the very large and well marked signs (do NOT follow your GPS directions at this point) and either “convert your web ticket” to a paper voucher or just buy your ticket from what you will be forgiven from thinking is a self-service machine intended for that purpose, primarily because that is what the sign says it is. Of course, like so many of those types of machines you encounter in Italy…they don’t work. Or at least they did not two days ago. Just buy your ticket from the cashier. You will recognize that line as it will be the longest line. This is just the beginning, however, of your fun with Caronte. Once you have your paper ticket, you leave the ticketing area and you find yourself back in the streets of Villa San Giovanni. Now where?, you might reasonably find yourself asking. Well, eventually I just followed the transport truck that had been in front of us at the ticketing booth. There is a small “Imbarchi” sign after you keave the ticketing area that directs you to a “T” intersection where there is…nothing. No sign or other direction. Once you turn right and then left again you will see a massive “Imbarchi” sign, but only then. I will not bore you with the 30 minute trial and error episode that I went through to determine this process, other than to say I only hope the return trip is less frustrating.

You will have a great time getting to and being in Sicily if your trip is anything like ours has been. Puglia should not be missed. And time permitting, take the back roads. Most divided highways look the same the world over. Oh, and whatever you do, stop and have the real buffalo mozzarella in Basilicata south of Salerno at a dairy. Italians don’t do signs well, but no one does quality food better.

Every word that ScottNicolleMail says is TRUE! So hilarious. We also went round and round at the Messina ferry, adding like 5 kilometers to our journey onto the ferry, due to (we thought) our own stupidity and not purchasing our ferry ticket ahead of time online (it loads onto your phone). The ticket machines did not work. We could not find the actual paper ticket office. A friend gentleman offered to "help us", but we could not figure out where to go. Upon finally figuring it out (we had to take the next ferry 30 minutes later than our plan), this same gentleman rushed over to us with his hand out for payment for his "help". LOL. what's 5 euros to a rich tourist??? Lesson learned: buy your ferry ticket online a day or two ahead of time.

We were there in September 2022. We flew into Rome, drove down to Matera (do not miss Matera), then the tip of the heel (Marina San Gregorio), then made our way across Calabria (overnight in Pizzo, highly recommend), and on to the ferry at Messina. A very short ferry ride, then 2 hours to Cefalu. Eventually we drove from Cefalu to Scicli in the south of Sicily, wonderful Google offered to shorten our trip by 20 minutes ("the autostrada was closed" but it really was not). We did this and spent the journey, 3 hours, on a ONE lane road. It was thrilling. My husband does love driving, and I enjoy navigating, but it is not for the faint of heart.

On our return, we overnighted at Hotel Gabbiano in Maratea (recommended). Scenery was spectacular on the north/east of Maratea. Very suburban from ferry landing leading up to that town.

Enjoy your trip!

This so so cool and helpful. Thanks each of you for taking the time and sharing your first-hand experiences. I am printing all of your replies and will carry them in a journal as we travel. We have driven in Italy and Europe before, a lot, including UK and Ireland "roads" so kinda know what we're getting ourselves into. But we love the freedom of having wheels, even though it often means shouting matches--not at other drivers, at each other. Scott, very informative and cracked us up. And Joan, thanks for emphasizing buying Ferry tickets ahead of time, online! I've scanned Sir Ricky's info in his latest Sicily book and don't think he covers the ferry very well, uncharacteristically. If you have any other insights, Scott, as you drive the rest of your trip, please keep the info coming! Thanks again!

Hi everyone, and thank you so much for your in-depth contributions to the forum. My questions are fairly simple:
1) any recommendations as to car rental when leaving Rome for Sicily?
2) we will be traveling in February. Anything in particular we need to know that time of year? For example, after some research it seems the ferry doesn’t operate to Sardinia (or, at least, is very limited)
Thank you!

ffm, we used AutoEurope. We took zero deductible insurance (which we never do here in the US). Cheaper than booking directly with Avis.

Re: Rental cars, we use Auto France since we will be having the car for (way) more than three weeks. Technically, you buy the new car and agree to a resale price at the end of the trip, the difference is what you pay in terms of the "lease." We've done it before and it is the only way to go if you will have a car longer than 3-4 weeks. Brand new Peugeot, you choose model, fully insured, no taxes, etc. We will be using it for almost three months, renting would be crazy expensive.