Sicily Itinerary and Transportation

I haven't driven in Sicily (I'm a train/bus traveler), but I think your transportation plan makes sense.

The itinerary, though, is not what I would do.

Are you arriving in Sicily from the US/Canada, jetlagged, or will you already have been in Europe so you are in great shape when you reach Palermo?

You have only eleven nights, so you will have to make a lot of compromises, but I would not sleep in both Palermo and Cefalu. Cefalu is only 45 or 55 minutes from Palermo by train. It's a small town, and you can probably walk every street of the historic area in 2 or 3 hours. I'd eliminate the two nights in Cefalu. You might want to add one of them to Palermo (definitely do that if you will be arriving in that city jetlagged). You can then decide on the spur of the moment whether you want to spend a chunk of a day on a day-trip to Cefalu.

Taormina is a very pretty place in a stunning setting, but it is not exceptionally large. I visited it during the summer, and November may be somewhat different, but I am not sure of that. I found Taormina so thronged with tourists that I was glad to leave after a few hours. I realize that not everyone has that reaction, but I hope some other folks who have been to Taormina relatively recently will comment. I'm sure the experience was quite different 10 years ago. Even if you have a high tolerance for being part of a throng and enjoy browsing in high-end stores, I would consider 4 nights in Taormina serious overkill when you are not getting to my favorite part of Sicily at all...

I would take one of the Cefalu nights and at least two of the Taormina nights and spend them in the Ortygia area of Siracusa. (Personally, I'd consider one night in Taormina sufficient, much as I dislike one-night hotel stays). I'd spend a full day seeing Siracusa, then I'd spend a full day seeing what I could of the little Baroque towns in that corner of the island: Ragusa, Noto, Modica and Scicli. Actually, you could spend just two nights in Siracusa and the third night in Ragusa, which is kinda/sorta on the way to Agrigento or Piazza Armerina--whichever makes logical sense from the driving-time standpoint. Ragusa is, to me, the most interesting of the towns.

I'd use ViaMichelin.com to check driving times.

Edited to add: I'd encourage you to spend more time in Sicily. You are really shortchanging it. I didn't even bother to mention Trapani/Erice, because you simply don't have time for that area.

Thanks, acraven, I appreciate your thoughts. We will have spent a month in Italy already before we get to Sicily (if we decide to do it). We may be a bit tired but not in the jet lagged way. I like your idea of going to Siracusa, it looks like an interesting place. It sounds like there is enough to see in Sicily that we may just want to save it for a trip on its own at another time.

Honestly, I would do that. You'd be more efficient if you were willing to use a car for part of the time, but I had to skip things even with 18 days, and I'm not interested in either beaches or classical ruins, though I did enjoy the archaeological park and museum in Siracusa. I didn't have time for the Aeolian Islands, which sound very interesting. (I tried the more-convenient Egadis and was underwhelmed.) And I tried to see a bit of the interior around Piazza Armerina on a day-trips from Catania, but your idea of sleeping there is much better. If you planned a separate trip you could really do Sicily right.

If you're flexible on dates, you might consider spring. I don't think the short days in November would be a plus in a place like Sicily, though I suppose the temperatures would probably be reasonably mild. Definitely don't go in the summer. I did; not my smartest decision.

I agree with acraven, who always seems to know best. If you can postpone your trip and spend at least 2 full weeks in Sicily, it's a better idea. I spent 2 weeks there in April-May and had to make a lot of compromises. I loved Palermo, Cefalu, the Greek temple sites, Piazza Armerina - and the Villa Romana - and Siracusa. I didn't get to Taormina. Driving was easy and spring is a great time to be in Sicily, more wildflowers than I've ever seen anywhere else.

BTW, I just looked at the ferry service. I guess that November would be winter schedules. The ferry is an overnight, leaving at 8.15 pm, arriving around 7 am. A 2-berth inside cabin for January is $172. Booking further ahead would be cheaper. Sounds like a pretty good deal - no airport hassles and a decent night's sleep.

I would consider that ferry myself. I have taken two overnight ferries in Europe, one in Greece and one Croatia-to-Italy. As a budget traveler used to small hotel rooms, I found the ferry cabins (with bath) fine. Both trips were decades ago, but I assume things haven't changed all that much. Overnight trains, on the other hand, are the work of the devil (just my opinion; others are OK with them).

Yes, we've spent a total of five weeks in Sicily over two trips (all by public transportation) and still haven't seen it all. You might consider Puglia/Basilicata if you haven't already.