Sicily for the First Time! Drive??

Renting a car is the more efficient choice. The main roads between cities and major tourist sites are fine. As in many old European cities, the urban streets were not designed for cars and parking will be a problem. So, when you arrive in Palermo, Siracusa, etc., you will probably want to park at your hotel and rely on walking or city bus systems to get around the urban streets. The typical tourist route basically goes around the island. For example, you could start in Taormina, Siracusa, Piazza Armerina, Agrigento, Segesta, Erice, Monreale, and Palermo.

My husband just spent 10 days there and said that they highways were beautiful. He did say that he was glad he rented a Smartcar because some of the city streets were exceptionally narrow! Even moreso than other places we have been in Europe. Parking was not an issue for him. Sicily is quite big so having a car that you can use on your own schedule is an advantage here.

Yes, I know that's it's part of Italy but I've never driven on the mainland either. Thank you, Ed. Your info was also helpful. I looked it up on line and printed an application.

Application for what??? Anything on line is worthless. What you do is march yourself down to AAA with a couple of photos and a twenty dollar bill. They copy stuff down off your regular license, snatch your money, and boot you out the door.

Thank you, Anita. Your reply is a big help!

Thank you Anita (from Long Beach) your reply is also a big help. I feel better now about renting a car.

Do I need to get a driver's license to drive in Sicily?

It's part of Italy. You need an IDP.

If you've never driven in Europe, a GPS system will help. I'd strongly suggest buying road maps or printing out maps to take with you. The Via Michelin website is useful because you can get detailed directions, including estimates of travel times, tolls, gas costs, etc. I particularly like to print out maps showing routes to our hotel in each city. Check out parking options ahead of time. Usually hotels will respond to emails asking whether they have parking available or where they recommend you leave your car. Write if you have any specific questions.

Do I need to get a driver's license to drive in Sicily? Italy, especially southern Italy, would not be my choice of place to learn how to drive. Yes, you must have a full valid drivers license from your home state, and show it to the rental dude (dudette) behind the counter, to any police, to any other driver in case of an accident. Each driver must also have a valid International Drivers Permit (only available at AAA and CAA in the US and Canada) to show to all the above, but perhaps the rental dude (dudette) will not ask for it. If its an International Driving (Drivers) License it is a fraud and not worth the paper you print it on - it is only a way to get your money.

Driving in Sicily is easy and a much better way to see the island than depending on public transportation. It is also nice to be able to stop if you see something interesting, which you can't do on a train. Be sure to rent your auto stateside, as it is much less expensive than renting once you get there. If you are flying into Catania, it is particularly easy to pick up your car and get out of the town, as it is on the outskirts.

I've visited all the places Andrea mentioned by public transportation. It's doable but you have to schedule efficiently. A car will be much more convenient, except for parking/driving in Palermo.

There are plenty of places you can go in Sicily on public transportation. We've spent at least five weeks there doing it, as Zoe has. You really need to decide which places are important for you to visit and how much time you have before you make the decision to rent a car and spend those extra $$. You can go basically all around the perimeter of the island on the train. We took buses to get to Erice, Scopello, a mountain town north of Cefalu and on to Enna and Piazza Armerina, and a few other out-of-the-way places.

I would opt for a car. Driving in Sicily was easy. You do need an IDP as the others mentioned. The only two places I would recommend not driving in is Palermo and Catania unless you just want a white knuckle experience. The autostrada on the western half is free and pretty much uncrowded with traffic. The only place we had trouble finding parking was in Palermo. Even Catania was pretty easy as far as that. I would say if you could do an open jaw trip and start at either Palermo/Catania and end at the other you could avoid the car in those two as most everything you'll want to see is in walking distance of each other.

I live in Sicily and I would say that it would be much easier to have a car. I would recommend you get the smallest car that will work for you. Some roads in the towns can be quite narrow and a smaller car will also make parking easier.