Getting around Palermo... as dire as this suggests? Recent visitors?

Getting around the city center on foot was easy. We took the bus into Palermo from Monreale (on time) and when we left it was right on time too. I’m sure there are nightmare stories out there.

We walked most everyplace. The one bus we did take was to Monreale to see the Cathedral, and yes, it is infrequent, and crowded, and much faster by car or cab.

But really, this article is talking about using the bus to get around the outskirts of the city, even states that within the city center is not an issue. Likely, you will not be venturing out, and probably not even using the bus if you stay in the city center.

I have not been there, so I'll let those who have give your their responses.

To me, this reads like clickbait overreaction. Here is another viewpoint. There are those who exaggerate, but from what I'm seeing, you won't be in any more danger than you would be in Atlanta. Nothing beats common sense. If you're a seasoned traveler and have good situational awareness, you shold be able to go trouble free.

The author recommended renting a car as the best way to get around. That would be at the bottom of my list in an Italian city of any size. We've driven in Italy, but when we want to visit big cities and have a car, we take a commuter bus/train from the outskirts.

@ jaimeelsabio I've read that and done a good bit of mapping and street views and such and I'm happy to hear it. I prefer to walk and don't mind walking relatively far. But traveling completely alone and with only a short time to visit, it would be good to have my expectations straight and not miss ticketed times or get stranded.

@Paul Good to know! Thank you. I was hoping to make it to Monreale myself. I usually do venture out a little. In Rome, my favorite pizza is in Testaccio, we went to Tor Marancia to see the art and smaller monuments and I did drive to Bomarzo to go to Sacro Bosco. I will need to adjust my expectations and be more selective if I need to walk everywhere.

@DougMac
I'm not particularly worried about being in danger. I have found, as you say, that particular claim to be overblown in most places and I hope that continues to be the case.

I'm more thinking about whether I should attempt anything ticketed and to temper my expectations of how much I'll get to see and do. I wouldn't consider renting a car based on a blog. I don't have any interest in doing so and I drive automatic only so far, so that's 4-5x the price most times.

I think that entire blog is clickbait in a sense, but most travel blogs are. (10 AMAZING THINGS YOU CAN'T POSSIBLY MISS IN_____) It is written by a local or I wouldn't have bothered to worry.

I was reading a trip report on Trip Advisor on Palermo and one thing the author made a point about is to pay attention to opening and closing times. She said she did not (some places close in middle of the day) and saw far less than she would have had she planned better.

I think the only screwed people are those who fall for the nonsense in that article. People who peruse this forum generally go to Palermo on vacation for a few days or maybe a bit longer but most stay in the city center. You can walk pretty much anywhere in the city center and buses (or taxis) are plentiful and reliable. For those who choose to stay in Mondello, at the beach, the city bus can take you in the city center in less than 30 min. Palermo and Siracusa are the most beautiful cities in Sicily.

I had no trouble getting where I wanted to go because I walked everywhere except for taking the public bus to Monreale. That said, the city has relatively few traffic signals, and traffic can be quite undisciplined, with vehicles not staying in their lanes. Crossing the street can be scary. But however difficult things may occasionally be for a pedestrian, it would be a disastrous mistake to rent a car for use in Palermo.

Palermo is incredibly walkable and exploring it on foot is probably it’s greatest attraction. It’s relatively cheap to stay in the tourist center, so there’s no upside to sleeping somewhere that would have you relying on the bus. The bus up to Monreal is the only one you’ll need. Even then, if the prospect make you nervous there are pricier, comfortable tourist busses that leave from the same spot.

Palermo is a thorough delight, and I would not sweat a solitary aspect of the place.

We stayed near the central district and walked everywhere. We found Palermo very interesting and always felt safe . Crossing streets was usually not so difficult for us but then again we were schooled in Naples.

We picked up our car rental at the airport for touring the rest of Sicily at the end of our time in Palermo. We visited Monreale on the way from there so we didn't need to use the bus.

Thanks all for the reassurance!

I'm not one to buy in to wholesale negative opinions of places, especially since I love Rome when many find it unbearable, I found Parisians to be kind and warm despite what I was warned, and I found Amsterdam to be not any more seedy than anywhere else (but far more interesting than many places) despite warnings that it was dull and immoral. (Funny combination, no?)

I'm more nervous this round because I've never traveled alone and it's not my safety that worries me, but rather my ~creative~ brain. Preparing reduces the anxiety since, inevitably, there's plenty one just has to take as it comes... I have a reputation for being both very responsible and completely scatterbrained. I compensate for the second by being the first, so I try to research and get input when I can, and I appreciate all of yours very much!

I did choose less luxurious accommodations so that I could stay in the city center. When I plotted my points on google mymaps, it seems to be pretty much in the middle of most of what I want to do, and I was planning to walk as much as possible so I'm glad so many have been happy doing so.

I already knew I wouldn't be renting a car before I saw that article, which is why I asked about public transportation, since it'll be that or walking for me!

@Bethfl
Google has been maybe 70% accurate for us on opening times, less so the further we get from big cities. I try to look at the websites for historical sites, but it's Italy... I don't get the impression anyone feels particularly obligated to make people aware of schedule changes. :) If you talk to your friend, tell her someone appreciates the advice and will use it!

@Roberto da Firenze
Well I am very excited to see at least one of those beautiful cities!

@acraven
100% agree. I think I'm in your debt. If I ever go somewhere you haven't, please feel free to grill me endlessly!

@awrzesinski
I love that evaluation. :)

@MA Traveler
Good to know! My daughters said, on our last day in Rome, "Mom, we're like real Italians!" (ha) once we became the intrepid pedestrians Italians seem to be at birth. We nearly lost a toe more than once, and they found this was somehow more thrilling than the Coliseum.

OP, based on your experiences of Rome and Paris I think you’ll really enjoy Palermo. It’s one of the most underrated and under-the-radar cities I’ve visited. I think expectations have it somewhere near Naples in terms of “urban grittiness” but it’s not really. I found it exceptionally clean, sophisticated and cosmopolitan. It has great energy pulsing through its faded grandeur. I walked all over town and never had, nor felt like I would have any issues.

It’s great that you’re prepared to be an intrepid pedestrian. There aren’t a lot of traffic signals on the major streets, so when you’re in Palermo, find a crosswalk and practice your intrepid skills. Our local street food tour guide told us that we needed to be brave in crossing the streets, but that drivers respect the crosswalks. We spent 6 days in Palermo, all on foots except for the Hop-on, Hop-off tour bus. I did have to navigate by myself for a couple of days and felt very comfortable. It’s a wonderful city.

I will give you another baffling statistic to dispel your fears about Palermo.

In spite of the mafia, there was only one homicide in Palermo in 2020, population 700,000. There were 51 in the same year in Pittsburgh, PA, population 300,000. In 2022 homicides in Pittsburgh increased and so far they exceeded 60.

If you stay at home in Pittsburgh your chances of being murdered are 140 times higher compared to Palermo.

Going to Palermo will increase your life expectancy (the Sicilian diet is healthier too).

@sleight thanks for this post! I hope you had a great trip. I read the same blog and was very turned off by the negative attitude of the writer. We plan to walk most places as well during our 4 day trip in May.

Do yourself a favor and read the other pages on the site. It's really good, and realistic. And not clickbait. The guy has a real love for the place, and if he disses the public transport he's got a reason to. It's my father's hometown, and I've spent a fair amount of time there, and his overall advice is spot on. Stay in the centro storico, or if you want a more formal experience, in the Via Libertà area. Walk everywhere, except for Monreale and Mondello if you want to hang out on the beach.

I had one of the funniest experiences when I was in Palermo with my family as a teenager. My father's friend picked us up to go to dinner in his old Lancia. On the way home, the old car overheated in Mondello. The friend stopped the car in front of a pretty fancy restaurant that was in full swing at 1 am (this was summer). He went inside to tell the maitre d that he had an overheating car. The guy sent out a bucket brigade of waiters and busboys--only the "buckets" were empty bottles of Champagne that they'd filled with water. It was a riot seeing the formally dressed staff pass the bottles along so that my dad's friend could cool his car down.

That's the kind of experience you remember for life, and that's the sort of kindness you'll find there. Enjoy your trip.

Love the champagne bottle story!
The article in the original post is over 3 years old, so hopefully things are slightly better now that Sicily needs to attract people to make up for the pandemic losses.