I'm signed up for the Best of Sicily tour next year. The tour starts in Palermo and ends in Catania. However the best flight option for me (if I want to use mileage) is to fly home from Palermo, not Catania. Has anyone else taken this tour (or on their own) and gone back to Palermo from Catania to catch a flight back to the USA? If so, how did you get from Catania to Palermo? Rome2Rio shows a train between the 2 cities. Any suggestions would be much appreciated. Thank you!
Posted by
Washington DC Region, USA
7049 posts
Take a bus instead, there are very good bus connections from Catania to elsewhere on the island.
Posted by
near San Francisco
4600 posts
You could rent a car (check the one-way drop off fees) and do some additional sightseeing in towns that are not on the tour. For example, Ragusa and the Baroque towns of Noto and Modica. I found regional driving in Sicily to be quite easy, though parking in the towns can be challenging. Ragusa makes a great base for a few nights and has a free parking lot at the base of town where you can leave your car during your stay.
Posted by
Folsom
2705 posts
Catania is a bigger airport. We flew to Rome and it was cheap. Used miles from Rome to the US.
Posted by
Mid-Atlantic area
6521 posts
If you’re not spending any more time in Sicily and you’re dead set on flying out of Palermo, then take the bus like Agnes suggested.
Posted by
Irving
2945 posts
It looks like there’s a direct bus from Catania-Fontanarossa Airport to Palermo (2h 30m). In Palermo you’ll need to transfer from Palermo Centrale to get to the Palermo Airport (45m).
Posted by
The Heartland USA
8434 posts
We had to go to Palermo to get our flight back, as the airport in Catania closed due to Mt Etna eruption. We (4 of us) took a taxi from Catania because we were in a hurry, and and had an expensive and exciting high speed ride through the middle of Sicily. But if we had had time, we would have taken the bus from the Catania airport. Note that people refer to the airport in Palermo as Punta Raisa (due to location) so if you did take a taxi, make sure you make that clear.