Sicily

Short-haul planes true out at 350 or so average; Rome is about 250 straight line and Milan about twice that, simple head noodling says it's not that long a project.

Seven days would be pushing it, but it's darn well worth it. See everyting you can; poke around in the corners. Great place and a welcome change from the Rome - Tuscany - Venice grind.

You could see highlights of Sicily in 7 days, but would need to be selective. Fly into Palermo and back from Catania or vice versa to save back tracking. Flights from Rome aren't long. My flight from Rome to Palermo was about 40 minutes in the air. What to see will depend on your interests. Taormina and Villa Casale are the 2 places I would definitely recommend not missing. For temples, I would pick either Segesta or Agrigenta. Temple at Segesta is better preserved but Agrigenta site is much more extensive. Palermo is definitely worth a day. Cefalu and Siracusa are 2 other good towns to consider. Mt Etna clouded over the day I visited, so my visit was a little disappointing.

Do not miss the cathedral at Monreale, about 20 minutes outside of Palermo, even if it means another half day for Palermo. The mosaics are breathtaking.

I took the RS Tour last Sept and really like Sicily. My favorites were Taormina and Agrigento. My least favorite was Palermo. I found it dirty and crowded. While in Taormina I was lucky to have great views of Mt Etna. We stayed at Hotel Continental there and the views from the hotel terrace were magnificent.

Palermo is worth a day. Many beautiful museums and sights. I have visited 3 times to Sicily, and recommend the following cities: Siriacusa, Cefalu, Agrigento, Taromina. There are many small beautiful towns to visit. Driving is easy, road are good, most areas offer parking with out much trouble. Mt Etna also. We have normally spent a week each time and will continue to return. Beaches are wonderful.

From the airport in Palermo, the drive to Segesta is easy. We went to Sicily in 2007 and found Segesta to be our favorite temple site. It is in a beautiful setting, the temple is magnificent, and there are fewer people there than at Agrigento. Selinunte is also worth seeing if you get down to that area.

Driving in Palermo is a nightmare, so I would suggest heading from the airport to the west or south. If you go to Monreale, you can head up to it from the south.

If you only have 7 days, it might be worth while to pick one corner of Sicily and visit it, rather than trying to see the entire island in that amount of time. It can be done, but you'll spend a lot of time going from one point to another.

Taormina is indeed wonderful. If you visit it, don't miss the public garden - it was our favorite spot in Taormina.

Don't miss the pastries in Sicily!!! They are the best in all of Italy. Anything with almonds in it is usually simply incredible.

Here is a link I used for a lot of info when I went to Sicily

http://www.bestofsicily.com/