Sicily trip

Please include more about your interests - food, history, beaches etc. and transportation modes so that we can provide more helpful advice.

You might look at the itinerary for Rick Steves Best of Sicily tour for an idea of what might be possible. Just keep in mind that it is difficult to completely replicate the tour because you will not have the benefit of door-to-door transportation, a knowledgeable guide, etc.

Hard to say for you without knowing what you want to focus on. But here goes...

3 Nights in Palermo is fine, time to see the sites there with a day trip to Monreale. From there, Cefalu is a popular spot for beach and a smaller town experience, Taormina gets raves, but we skipped it. We spent time (2 or 3 nights) in Piazza Armerina visiting the Roman Villa there, well worth the effort, also down near the Valley of the Temples, seeing the temples and relaxing on the beach. My wife though would go back to Syracuse and Ortigia in a heartbeat, maybe exploring the area around there more. Catania we only used as a transport hub.

For Piazza Armerina and the Valley of the Temples we rented a car, bit difficult to do by public transport, but it could be done.

It appears you’ll have 20 days. Many people travel in a circle staying along the coast lines. Inland is gorgeous if you put in a stay for a couple days.

Here’s an itinerary suggestion.
Palermo 4, Trapani 4, Argento 2, Ragusa/Noto 3, Taormina 4, Catania 3

If you make a list of places, activities you want to do in each area you’ll have a better idea of how many days to stay at each base.

If you don’t wish to travel like this place yourselves in 3 or 4 places geographically located to do day trips and things you want. Sicily is bigger than one realizes especially for allowing yourself time to enjoy it.

i was in sicily in 2021 for 28 days. strictly airbnbs and public transportation except once. as others have suggested please list your interests; art, architecture, food, wine, beaches, nature etc. i could give you my opinion on the first two but not the rest!

We flew into and out of Catania. We visited Catania, Ortigia, and Noto but stayed in a nearby town. We also stayed in Agrigento, Marsala, Erice, Monreale, Cefalù, and Taormina. In addition to the towns we stayed in, we stopped at Piazza Armerina to see the murals, Selinunte, the salt farms at both Marsala and Trapani, Trapani (cable car from Erice), Palermo (bus from Monreale) and Caccamo castle. We had a rental car.