Private car service resources to get from Trapani to Ortigia

Hi Joann,
We booked driver Roberto Sapone who was recommended on the trip report below. Unfortunately this was September 2020 and of course our trip was cancelled. That said, very positive review. If we rebook our trip to Sicily we would hire Roberto again. He quickly responded to my email in arranging our transport as well as cordial when we had to cancel. Hope this is helpful.

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/sicily-trip-report-april-2019-2-weeks-2-sisters-part-1-trapani-erice

Hi, Joann, I'm the traveller who posted the trip report to which Janis linked. My sister and I had a very enjoyable long day with Roberto Sapone several years ago. He picked us up in Agrigento early in the morning, drove us through the middle part of Sicily to make several stops, including Piazza Armerina and Caltigorone (sp) and safely delivered us to our hotel in Ortigia at the end of the day. He had a beautiful, clean, very comfortable van with large windows, and spoke great English. He continued to check in with us throughout the day about where we might want to stop, eat, etc.. If his transport business has survived the pandemic, I continue to highly recommend him without reservation! Here's the link to his website (it looks like he has survived the pandemic!):
www.robertosapone.wixsite.com/centralsicily

@jmaildinuu, thanks Jane for chiming in with your experience. I too hope Roberto’s transit business survived the Pandemic.

Ladies,
I wanted to ThankYou both so much for this info. Janis I’m very grateful for you sharing Jane’s trip report. Also Jane I contacted Roberto yesterday thru his website.. I’m anxiously awaiting his response. I’m traveling solo for a month in Sicily arriving August 25,2021 start Palermo 4nocs, onto Trapani 6 nocs ( still trying to find transport to visit Sciacca or Segestra Greek ruins and temple,Agrigento 1 noc,Caltagirone 1 noc, Ortigia Island 6 nocs ( with a day trip to Ragusa,Modica and Noto), Taormina 4 nocs ( trying to find day trips to my etna, wine vineyard , Savocca ),Lipare 4nocs , Catania 2 nocs .
I researched ground transport :bus to Palermo to Trapani, train to Syracuse to Taormina then onto Milazzo port. Ferry out n back to Aeolian island. Then train Milazzo port to Catania. I had to spend 2 nocs in Catania since will need to find a place to get covid test 48 hrs preflight as well as have a 6:35 a m flight September 22,back to USA. My original flight which was the day before got canceled related to air italia issues. However a friend who does corporate air travel got me a flight home on KLM air . Anyway I really appreciate all the support …Sicily is a dream adventure on my bucket list. Especially after a tough year and a half of working in the CCU with the sickest critically ill patients I have seen in my entire 43 yr nursing career…. I am so looking forward to witnessing another part of the world.
Please feel free to share any other tips or resources.. have a lovely day.
Best JoAnn

Joann,
Thanks for your kind reply. In addition to Jane’s helpful report, I’ve added Priscilla’s trip report. We had planned to duplicate her itinerary in memory of our forum friend Zoe. Our only change was to hire Roberto for part of our journey. All of our accommodations were refundable. https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/my-trip-to-sicily-in-zoe-s-memory/

Janis
Appreciate the sharing of Priscillas trip report. I actually read that one 2 weeks ago.. she provided inspiration to challenge myself to have a backup plan “public transport as a remote possibility”. However at this time I don’t feel the mist comfortable with this option since it’s maybe not the safest mode especially with overcrowding on buses that can occur with rush hours. My travel agent friend shared they are limiting capacity to 50% which adds another time factor obstacle of possibly missing out on some destination visits along the way . However I remain ever optimistic that some sort of private transportation will become available so I don’t have to back track from Trapani to Palermo by bus to take the train to Agrigento to visit Valley of temples. I do believe I can find a bus or small day tour from Trapani to visit Segestra Greek Ruins n Temple.. it would be so lovely to be able to see the above sites. I did find one resource “my trip planner “ that has a route from Trapani all the way to Ortigia with added stops/pickups added into pricing. It’s pricey 720 euros however have no experience with this type of service. I did email them however very automated responses so not sure if additional added fees?
Anyway if any other tips evolve send them my way.. enjoy your weekend.
Best,
JoAnn

i did a 28 day trip through sicily in june july entirely by public transport. Unlike what many people say, the roads were great and the busses and trains were pretty much on time.
what can i say, i loved sicily! sicily is italy but not quite. the influence of a couple of thousand years of disparate groups of people is palpable. you see and feel it, from the food and the architecture to the faces of sicilians, here are my thoughts based on your itinerary and my experience:
-palermo: it has so much to offer that 4 nights may be just enough. i am particularly fascinated by norman architecture and palermo and its surrounding has some of the finest examples. san cataldo, cappella palatina, la cuba and castello ziza to name just four in the city. Then there is monreale and the duomo in cefafu. both must see in my opinion! certainly agrigento is easier to get to from palermo by bus train or car. not to be missed-street food at the ballaro market!
-trapani: personally i didn't find trapani particularly interesting. i was there 3 nights but felt 2 would have been enough. good base for visiting segesta and erice though. segesta is less extensive than agrigento but the landscape is more picturesque. erice is a must-see with its serpentine cobblestoned streets. instantly takes you back hundreds of years. a day trip to mazara del vallo was a wonderful surprise especially the district called the kasbah with its whimsical wall decorations.
caltagirone: did a day trip. while the ceramics are amazing, the town itself not so much. the famous steps look better on camera. my opinion is based on only a few hours in the 'centro'.
ortigia: lovely with plenty to see. siracusa proper is less interesting but the ears of dionysius cave and caravaggio's 'the burial of saint lucy' (if you are into art) are worth seeing. yes, siracusa makes a great base for visiting the sicilian baroque towns. i don't think you can do them all in one day though. perhaps with a car. noto is my favorite but ragusa, scicli and modica are all beautiful, especially if you enjoy not just baroque, but sicilian baroque!
lipari: haven't been but i strongly suggest stromboli. been there several times and it's beautiful. the narrow streets, the sparkling white asymmetrical houses with colorful doors and windows, and of course the active volcano! stay overnight if you can. eat at punta lena and order the pasta alla strombolana. you won't be disappointed!
catania: great base for etna. acireale and randazzo are wonderful day trip destinations. especially randazzo with its unique black lave stone churches.
one place you have not included is piazza armanina. if you can, visit villa romana del casale. the mosaics are breathtaking. the city center is gorgeous too. i would not have bothered if the taxi driver (could be the much-recommended roberto) hadn't insisted i should see it.
i could go on and on. i love art, architecture and history so sicily was a dream destination for me. what i didn't expect was the experience of meeting the people of the island. i have to say they are some of the warmest and kindest i have met on my travels. they went out of the way to point me in the right direction when i could barely articulate my question. from my airbnb hosts in enna who insisted i have lunch with them every day to the teenagers in acireale who walked me to the bus stop, sicilians disproved over and over again every stereotype they are subjected to. anyway, hope this helps a little. enjoy your trip!

On our first visit to Sicily in 2014 our Southern Italy tour ended in Taormina. We took the train to Siracusa and spent 5 nights in Ortigia. It was our favorite city. The piazza at night was magical. Our BnB host arranged a driver for a day tour of Noto, Ragusa & Modica. It worked out very well. He gave us plenty of time to tour the highlights. We spent our last day in Catania and flew home the following day.

Alomaker
Wow .. awesome share.. you are also a wealth of information., ThankYou so much. Yes I can see now that maybe taking a bus back to Palermo from Trapani to catch train to Agrigento might be another option . Especially since I have yet to make a connection with Roberto hope he’s ok or better yet enjoying a well deserved weekend off. I was planning on using Trapani as a base to visit Segestra .. the Greek ruins, Eurice, by cable car, salt flats and Egadi islands Levanzo, etc . The day after Agrigento over night heading to absolutely see Romana del Casale and Piazza Armerina with a climb up the ceramic stairs to the church. I booked a night there in Caltagirone however now I’m considering just adding that night in Palermo, so can catch an early train to Agrigento or add to Ortgia island stay? I’m visiting Taormina mostly as a base to visit the Mt Etna, as well as the medieval villages of Savoca, Castlemola and Forza D’Argo. I’m going to be on Lipare for 4 nocs planning on taking ferry to day trip to some of other islands so Stromboli will definitely be a nice day trip.

Janis appreciate the confirmation of how much you enjoyed Ortigia … I’m really looking forward to that part of my trip … the baroque towns .. I really would love to spend a whole day in each however the bus trips might be a bit much to n fro. This is when a driver would be especially appreciated for sure.
ThankYou all so much !