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Rome, then Sicily this July

Posted by on

Hi, all:

My husband, daughter (age 11), and I are traveling to Italy this summer. We will have 2.5 days in Rome, then we fly to Catania where we will rent a car to drive to Agrigento for one week (staying at an apartment right on the beach) and the following week in Noto (another apartment in the city center). I have a couple of questions.

  1. What part of Rome is the "best" place for us to find an apartment. We will only have 2 full days in Rome.

  2. What can you suggest are the best things to do around Agrigento and Noto? None of us has any Italian, except the basics (Ciao. Buongiorno. Buona sera. Hopefully, a few more by the time we leave.)

  3. Have you ever traveled to Italy with an only child preteen?

Any other tips will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.
Mel

Posted by
1078 posts

Can' help with an apartment in Rome but took our 11YO grandson to Sicily in November of 2014 because he wanted to see "old stuff" and he had a ball!
Just be prepared that the highway from Catania to Agrigento is a nightmare of construction so allow plenty of time to drive and that it will be very hot in July-suggest you pickup your sun screen in Italy as it is much stronger than what you can get in the U.S. I suggest you pickup the DK books' "top ten Sicily" guide as it has a whole section on what to do and see with kids and don't be concerned about your child starving as our GS had Pizza available when ever needed.
You are within striking distance(hour to an hour and a half) of Sellunete(?sp) and Segesta which are much neater than the "valley of the Temples" along with Evora, which is perched on the top of a huge Butte near Trapani where on a clear day the view is spectacular.
A lot of Sicily outside of the major cities still practice the 2 hour siesta, so if traveling or you want lunch, be sure to carry your food and wine(Nero De Avola is local-it's red and needs air).
We had no problem with language, however, GS slightly embarrassed in Rome by a couple of Grandmas while in restaurants!
Finally this was our third trip to Sicily and we love it!

Posted by
11613 posts

JerryG, the main temples at Selinunte are more than 50% scaffolded for repairs (I was there yesterday).

Do you mean Erice, the medieval town above Trapani (auto-spellcheck error)?

I agree with you about Segesta, including the uphill bus ride to the theatre.

Posted by
15589 posts

Not knowing Italian was not a problem for me. I found the Sicilians to be extremely patient and eager to help when there was a language barrier - and yes, in Sicily, there aren't so many English-speakers. Be sure you have hats, lots of sunscreen and drink lots of water. It's so easy to dehydrate without realizing it's happening. I used the DK Eyewitness Sicily guide - has a lot more than the Top 10. If you won't have GPS, get a good road map (Michelin?), especially if you are planning on a lot of driving. Many of the interesting places are going to be 1.5-2 hours drive from where you're staying. Much of the driving is scenic, though.

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