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Ragusa

Posted by (Los Angeles, CA) on

Actually we generally like Ragusa. However, it really can not be recommended unless you have a car, or are in great shape. I arrived via bus, walked to hotel - sorta on the way to new city center - then to the old city, and back to the hotel. My phone registered 22,000+ steps, and climbing 30 flights of stairs for the day - that was all Ragusa. Another indicator is the pain in my feet.

There are other places where the train station to the city center is very close - some examples are Polignano a Mare, Sorrento, Rome, etc. Places like Milan have a good subway to whisk you around.

Ragusa has some primitive bus service (AST company) but locals say its totally unreliable. A taxi from hotel to new city center is 15 eu each way. There are some scooters but didn't want to break our necks.

Modica is not much better. Scicle is pretty good - but thats another set of problems.

Posted by
7054 posts

Visitors should be aware there is a upper town (Ragusa Superiore) and a lower town (Ragusa Ibla), and the walk between them is steep indeed, so you have to know your physical limits. We took the train from Siracusa, and the station was pretty well situtated in the upper-town (I assume the bus station was nearby or co-located?). There were QR codes and signage throughout to direct you to various sites, so it was pretty tourist-friendly if you wanted to use your cell phone to get your bearings. We stopped at the tourist office and got a large, nice walking map. The walk down was curvy, narrow, and steep, but the views from the top of that staircase leading to Ragusa Ibla were stunning. Yes, you do need good walking shoes, good knees, and stamina in the heat but it was worth it. We took the small shuttle back to the train station later in the evening (I believe it departed close to the Ibla gardens), everything worked out well. This was pre-COVID.

Posted by
700 posts

Perhaps my point was a little too nuanced. It was that there are very long distances with no option but to walk them - which is not the case in other cities.

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