Sicily questions

Here is link I used for all kinds of info on Sicily.

There are hundreds of links here, maps, ideas.....
Best of Sicily

You should search this forum - there are countless posts about Sicily. Rick Steves is not the only writer of guidebooks - try Lonely Planet or National Geographic. Yes, it's perfectly safe (the mafia will not get you :-) I would pick Palermo. For things to do there as well as eateries, search guidebooks and TripAdvisor for each locale you plan on visiting. Yes, Easter shuts everything down - it's a major holiday in Italy. Sicily is rather large and there are major sites in every direction (including the interior)...so depending on how much time you have, you may need to narrow focus on a limited area (e.g. northwest, southeast, etc). If you have 10+ days, then obviously you can see a lot more.

April is a great time to be in Sicily. I also think that Palermo has more to see, and you can day-trip (or an overnight) to Cefalu by train.

In Spain all the restaurants are open on Easter Sunday - it's one of their biggest days of the year. I don't know about Italy.

Chris, it sounds as if you may have only 3 or 4 days for the entire island. If that is the case, I would not go at all. There's too much to see in Sicily for such a short visit to be satisfying, given the hassle of needing two flights to make it happen.

If the cited 3 or 4 days are only part of your Sicily, then I agree that Palermo has more to see than Catania. Do not under any circumstances skip the Cathedral at Monreale. It's accessible via public transportation, though there is some (uphill) walking from the bus stop. Understand that much of Palermo looks sort of scruffy. But the interiors of the churches and oratorios are fabulous. I have no idea what their opening hours will be like around Easter, however. (And that goes for Monreale, too.)

Rick does not cover Sicily in his books, but that's because his publisher has decreed that he cannot add any more pages to his Italy book, and there was some problem with publishing a separate Sicily book (this information is from his staff that answers posts here).

Sicily is perfectly safe. It's also no harder to visit than any other part of Italy, although there is less train service than there is north of Rome (buses fill in many gaps, and a car can be handy outside of Palermo and Catania).

I didn't get to Catania, but liked Palermo a lot. Before I went, the accounts I had read of it made it sound like Naples on crack. Once I was there, I found it to be a slightly scruffier Rome, and a bit outside the old sections it can be quite posh (there's a street lined with Gucci, Prada, etc).

I agree with acraven's points, though - if all you have is a few days for Sicily, it's probably not worth the two flights. There is always more of mainland Italy to see in that time, with less travel hassle.

If you have 10 days or more, however, GO!

Here is my VERY detailed trip report from April-May 2014 (we went after Easter): https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/sicily-palermo-caltanisetta-siracusa-taormina

Thank all for your wonderful tips/suggestions, which lead me to focus on Palermo with my limited time.
One question on travel to Palermo, if taking a flight to Palermo and arriving around 11:00pm, is there still public transportation from the airport to the city center ? (It's said the airport is 35 miles away from the city center) If not, will taxi be available and how much the fare might be at almost midnight?

Chris, how many full days will you truly have? I too would say that a trip that's only 3 days or less may not be worthwhile, especially if one of those days falls on Easter. It will feel very hectic if you're the type of person who has many interests and wants to do some side trips, like Monreale.

I think this is the bus website (hopefully someone else can confirm)...just have it translate into English if you don't speak Italian.
http://www.prestiaecomande.it

I can have four full days there, excluding arrival and departure days. It will not be in Easter week. Will four days be enough for Palermo and surrounding areas? Will it be too hectic if I split these four full days between Palermo and Catania (say two full days in Palermo, then half day traveling from Palermo to Catania and then one and a half day in Catania)?

Don't split the 4 days between 2 distant bases, way too hectic and you eat up time on the road. Palermo and Catania are on opposite sides of the island. There's enough to do in Palermo and Monreale to fill up your time. You can even go to Erice from Palermo one day by bus (or to Cefalu by train) - both could be nice day trips if Palermo isn't your cup of tea or you just need some variety. With the short time you have, I would try to keep a reasonable geographic focus. Street food and public markets are a highlight of Palermo, so that partly relates to your question on eateries. Also, a noteworthy specialty dessert is called "granita", so you'll see it all over the place. One thing to watch out for is public transit service on Sundays is very poor, so be sure to plan around that.

Lonely Planet has its guidebook online where you can pay a very reasonable fee (it is less than 5 USD) just for a Palermo chapter instead of the whole guide book (you can see all the chapters that are individually available on the Lonely Planet website). So you can have a nice concise guide at a fraction of the cost of a whole book, or an e-copy you can load onto a reader/ipad.

I beg you not to do this. At least pick up a guide book to Sicily (an old one from your local library will do) and read about what you will be missing in Siracusa, the baroque towns of Ragusa/Noto/Modica/etc., Taormina, Cefalu, Trapani, Erice, and the Roman/Greek sites at/near Piazza Armerina, Segesta, Selinunte, and Agrigento. And there's more. Truly, you can find lovely places to go on the mainland without dealing with airports.

If you must go, my favorite spot in Sicily is Siracusa. In four days you could see the medieval district of Ortygia, the local archaeological park and museum, and some of the baroque towns (Ragusa would be my #1). Catania would be the best airport for Siracusa.

Agnes and all, thank you so much for the wonderful suggestions/tips! I will focus on Palermo for this time and leave the rest for my next trip there.
Best regards again!

From Palermo you can get to Cefalu, Segesta, Erice and Monreale.

We spent a week in Sicily this past fall. We spent two nights in Palermo, one in Cefalu, two in Taormina and 2 in Catania. I could have done without Catania and enjoyed Cefalu and Taormina so much more. We rented a car and navigated on our own. The airport is about a 35 minute drive to Palermo we arrived at night and were using a GPS - what a challenge! We finally found a taxi and paid the driver to allow us to follow him to our destination! Enjoy your time!

I just saw a Facebook post from Rick Steves' page that says he's getting started on a Sicily guidebook, something to look for in the future!

Rats. I was hoping it would remain pretty much off the radar of other American tourists!