Sicily Question

We are a retired couple and going in September. for 2.5 weeks. We are planning to move around and travel by train mostly and rental car for 5 days. If I were to offer advice as doing all my research, I would definitely plan on basing in Palermo for a bit. Fro there you can day trip to Cefalu and east to San Vito and Scopella. I would also stay near Syracuse (We are staying in Ortigia as it appears more interesting) but the train station is actually in Syracuse. From there you could day trip to some of the Baroque cities (Noto, Ragusa, Modica) and could also visit Catania. I am at a loss for your third base. You may want to see Taormina, Mt Etna and some vineyards but I dont see staying in Taormina for a full week.

We were just in Taormina last April for 4 nights and I quite agree with her, that a week would be too much time there. We had visited in October 2010, and at that time it was fairly busy but not overrun. One could walk unrestricted to the Teatro Greco, and the Corso Umberto was delightful. Now...it's crowded, extremely touristy, one must pay and wait in a long queue to get to the Teatro Greco and the local cuisine is more an Italian/Sicilian mash-up than truly indigenous. It's the price of progress, but that has diminished the experience for sure.

But...if you decide to go, we took a magnificent 6-hour tour with Sicily Life, that picked us up at our AirBnB, drove us up Etna to about 6000 feet, at which point we were not allowed to proceed any further because the mountain was banging and booming, with ash rain. From there we drove back down the road to the Gambino winery, where we were served a delightful light dinner of charcuterie, Sicilian greens and no less than a five-wine tasting. Very worthwhile.

The two places you mentioned would work. For a third location, maybe select one on the west side of the island.

Palermo would be a definite, lots to do, lots of places nearby for day-trips.

Syracuse/Ortigia would work as well. There are day-trips to Noto, Ragusa, and Modica; a number of things to do in Syracuse, but the drawbacks are that it is smaller, it can be hit by cruise ship crowds and tourists a bit harder than Palermo and Catania. I guess a few weeks would be maybe a bit long, but two?

Catania does not get much love, a bigger city, but good markets, lots of day-trip options.

I won't have visited until April, but Trapani looks interesting, things to do, prices look to be less than the other locales

That's how we tend to travel. I find it gives me a richer travel experience than packing up and rushing to the next destination.
Here is a hybrid of what you asked. I added a full day (2 nights) in Agrigento because I think it is a really awesome destination that takes most of a whole day to see plus that next morning you can wake up and head to Villa del Casale

Palermo for 7 or 8 gets you plenty of time to downshift, do a day trip or two.
Agrigento 1 full day (2n) to see Valley of the Temples
Midday pitstop at Casale for mosaics & lunch
Baroque hill towns for 6=7 nights. We liked Ragusa as a base and given your description of what you like, I think you'll love this part of the trip the most.
Your choice of a third base. Ortigia or Catania for 5-6 nights.

Outbound from CAT

Hi Marty,

I live in Taormina, so I can offer local perspective on the "is Taormina worth it?" question that came up.

Jay is absolutely right about the overtourism - Corso Umberto and Teatro Greco are packed with cruise ship groups, especially mid-morning to mid-afternoon. The town itself has become quite touristy.

HOWEVER - for slow travelers like you (which is exactly how I prefer to travel myself), Taormina and the surrounding area can work really well as one of your three bases. Here's why:

The key is treating it as a base for exploring East Sicily, not just "Taormina town":

• Stay in quieter areas: Castelmola (hilltop village above Taormina), Giardini Naxos (beach town below), or Letojanni (local beach town 5 min north). These are much less touristy but you're still 5-15 minutes from Taormina.

• Use early mornings/evenings for Taormina town itself - the crowds thin out dramatically after 5pm and before 10am. The Teatro Greco at sunset is magical when it's nearly empty.

• The real value is day trips: Mt. Etna, Baroque towns (Noto, Modica, Ragusa), Godfather filming villages (Savoca, Forza d'Agrò), Syracuse, Catania's markets. All within 1 hour drive.

• For a week-long base, you'd have time to do these at leisure (which matches your style), plus enjoy quieter beach days and explore lesser-known villages.

For your 3-base strategy, I'd suggest:

1. Palermo (7-8 nights) - Everyone agrees this works. Great markets, day trips to Cefalù, Monreale, Segesta. Plenty to absorb.

2. Taormina area (6-7 nights) - Base in quieter town nearby. Gives you access to East Sicily's highlights without the go-go-go pace most tourists do.

3. Either:

   • Ragusa/Modica (Baroque region) - Chris is spot-on that this area is wonderful for slow travelers. Less crowded, authentic, beautiful hill towns.
   • Syracuse/Ortigia - Lovely, but as Paul mentioned, can get hit by cruise crowds. Maybe 4-5 nights here + 2-3 in Baroque towns?

Pro tip on timing: If you're flexible, May or late September/October are ideal - good weather but way fewer crowds than summer.

Feel free to ask as you develop your plans - happy to share more detailed local knowledge on specific areas or help with logistics!

Francesco

Our age and interests are like yours, plus flowers and little fishing boats and wine. My husband speaks Italian well, but I think we would have been fine everywhere without it, judging by how many Sicilians spoke English to me.

Maybe you have read my trip report already, but if not, here it is: https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/sicily-spring-2025

Yes, a week or so in Palermo (what we wished we had done), a week in Randazzo for day trips and the town itself, and a week in Ragusa Ibla or another Baroque town in the area (I remember enjoying a stay in Noto in 2001). We also liked being in Sciacca for 5 nights (west coast), but since I was as sick as a dog the entire week, I don't have much to report about it.

HIGHLY recommend early spring as a time to go!

Adding to Francesco's great, accurate review of Taormina...

It's still worth a visit, and the food is top notch. Last April, our group of 4 started in Florence and took the train down stopping in Rome, Salerno, then finally on the ferry across the Strait of Messina, then back on the train and another hour to Taormina. And from the start in Florence, we tried two Italian dishes whenever we could--Spaghetti alla Carbonara, and Bucatini all' Amatriciana. Finally, at our last destination, in Taormina at Ristorante Il Ciclope...we had our best versions of each dish. Just fantastic, with the irony of two iconically Roman dishes made perfectly in Sicily, of all places.

As Francesco says, it's still a great place to visit for a few days.

4 bases would be my choice

Palermo (for Palermo, Monreale, Cefalu). No rental car needed here.

Scopello/Castallammare (for the rest of western sicily). Need a car here for the various day trips to Segesta, Erice, San Vito, Selinunte, Trapani etc.

Siracusa/Ortigia for Siracusa but also the Baroque towns. I would keep the car to visit the baroque towns. There is the parking Talete at Ortigia where you can store the car while in Ortigia,

Giardini Naxos, since I like the beach (for Taormina and the rest on Northeastern Sicily), I would keep the car here to visit some of the surrounding areas, but find a hotel with parking arrangements. I wouldn't stay in Taormina, it has become Disneyland under a volcano in high season.

You can have about 5 nights in each place if you have 20 nights available.

Thanks for all the great suggestions, everybody. It's given me a good starting point for thinking about this hypothetical future trip.