North West Sicily - Best Location

Erice is at the top of a hill, you will need to drive down to get to sea level. Hopefully you can get to Cefalu and Monreale while you are in Palermo.

I say Erice-it's at the top of 2500' butte and the views from all angles are spectacular. It's a twisty drive up and the same down but well worth staying it. You can see the sun rise from one side and set on the other and there are several very quiet trattoias to eat at as the tour buses leave around 3. You can easily access Segesta and the salt marshes during the day.

On the Rick Steves Sicily tour, we stayed in Trapani and visited Erice from there. Trapani had a nice walking downtown with several nice restaurants and a very nice enoteca.

Lorie, I stayed two nights in Erice in May 2014, and absolutely loved it! Yes, you need to drive up something of a hilly, curvy road, but there is not much traffic there, and it's not bad. Erice was an ancient Greek town called Oryx, and is now an ancient stone hill town. Especially in the early morning and evening, I found it to be misty, romantic and mysterious. On the full day between my two nights, I drove to Segesta, then on to Selinunte, then through Marsala and Trapani on the way back, and arrived in Erice in time for dinner. Just say the word and I can refer you to a great apartment, wonderful restaurant, and my favorite bakery (which was not the most famous one!).

That's a tough choice! My pick would be Scopello over Erice for easier access to other destinations. For visiting the salt marshes, Trapani might be a better option. We thought that Mozia near the salt marshes is worth a visit.

Stick with Scopello. Erice is wonderful for a day trip. Fom Scopello you can easily reach Erice, Segesta and Trapani. The beaches around Scopello are amazing and it is a wonderful spot for a bit of relaxation. You will love Sicily!