flights to and from Sicily

We flew from Rime to Palermo, and out of Catania to Pisa using Ryanair. No problems with Ryanair. No need to backtrack to Palermo. You can fly out of Catania to Rome.

I have never flown on Vueling, but I have read reports on other travel forums from people who have. There were a lot of complaints, as I recall. They might be perfectly fine, but I'd definitely do some more research before booking with them.

I have flown Vueling and found them fine. Main down side is no leg room . I flew from Bilbao to Barcelona 1 hour flight on Vueling for 20 euros so it was fine. Would I do it again? Yes since it cost less than the 40 euro cab ride to the airport. Like Ryan air, easy jet etc you get what you pay for so for short flights it should be fine. I will be flying on Vueling from Catonia to Florence in October . Short cheap flight so it should be ok.
Liam

I've done the slog from Sicily to Puglia by bus; it's faster than the train but still a very long trip. I absolutely recommend flying. My only serious concern would be airline safety, and I haven't read of safety issues on Vueling. I think it's the budget subsidiary of Iberia. Although I haven't specifically researched Vueling, I think a lot of the complaints are related to lost/delayed bags. If you are considering a non-stop flight, that should sharply reduce the likelihood of luggage issues. The Sicilian airports and Bari's airport are not terribly large, which should also help.

Also, look at Volotea as they fly between Puglia/Bari and Sicily.

I flew Vueling a few years ago and the flight was perfectly fine. I used Alitalia for my Rome to Palermo and Catania to Florence (via Rome) flights last year. The flights were on time and pleasant. When deciding on flights to/from Sicily, my main criteria were convenient times and price. And you're correct, there's no need to back track as flights within Italy are priced by segment as opposed to round trip.