Time in Palermo

We spent a week on Ortigia Island, Siracusa and could have stayed longer. There is an outdoor food market six days a week, vegetables, fish and more. The Piazza Duomo is one of the most beautiful in Europe.

Siracusa has a Greek Theater and the Archeological Museum. Baroque town Noto is half an hour away by bus or train.

We were there for 4 nights. We visited the open market, opera house, palace, cathedral and walked around a lot.
And really enjoyed al fresco dining nightly with caponata on the menu always.
There are daytrips u can take from Palermo that I have not included. Palermo is enjoyable, fairly safe, and fun. Enjoy Sicily. We were advised to stay away from the port areas.

We spent 4 nights in Palermo. More than sufficient. We did hire a private guide for a full day city tour including Monreale and the same Palazzo that Rick includes in his tour. We spent two nights on Ortigia and hired a guide for a full day tour of Ortigia/Siracusa and used him for Catania/Mt. Etna - including the wine areas/Taormina and Savoca. We spent two weeks in Sicily.

We stayed in Palermo for 6 nights in a great Airbnb near Pallazo delle Poste. We found lots to do and enjoyed being able to just walk around and explore neighborhoods. We also enjoyed Cefalu, Siracusa and Noto.

Siracusa and especially Ortigia is a very relaxing place to spend time and there are some nice day trips from there.
Instead Palermo, while having many beautiful places to see is much more chaotic so I would see it more as a place to visit for sightseeing for a shorter stop, than a place to savour and relax in, although you should definitely see Monreale from there, and also Cefalù is a good trip if you aren't planning a stop there

I spent 4 nights in Palermo on my last visit and found the city safe, walkable (except Monreale), not overly hectic and very interesting. I could easily have spent a few more days there.

Will send private message with Airbnb details, when I find them.

Well, you’ve got the luxury of time for sure. A week in Palermo sounds pretty great to me. I would probably tell people that three nights would be an absolute minimum. I found Palermo a wonderful, fascinating city. It’s nothing like I expected. It’s lively, beautiful and quite cosmopolitan. There’s plenty to explore. Check out the evening/nightlife in La Kalsa in particular, very cool neighborhood.

I adored Ortigia, but a week might be a bit much if you’re not day tripping to Noto in that time. I mean, it’s an effortless joy, but it’s small. The swimming platforms should be open, so that may add appeal.

Not sure what else you’ve got lined up for that month. These are just two places on a big, beautiful island.

We were there for 4 nights, including a half-day to Monreale but no other side trips. This was a good amount of time to experience the city, but I would have been happy with more. In those 4 nights (3.5 days) we did the Norman Palace and chapel, cathedral, a few other churches, a food/market tour, Monreale and a lot of walking, wandering, eating, and market visiting.

Siracusa - we also did 4 nights on Ortygia, with a day trip to Etna. Definitely wanted more - Ortygia is a wonderful place to wander and just hang out as well as sightsee. The sights in the mainland part of the city are great as well.

Maybe I missed something, but to me, 3 nights in each place is more than sufficient. Too many other places to see around the island.

Sounds like they’re planning to be in Sicily for more than a month, so taking more than 3 days in several places makes sense. It allows one to slow down and get a better feel for a place. And as. RS often says, “you need a vacation from your vacation” at times. We now try to spend 5+ nights in most places and we’ve never regretted it.

More replies than I expected, you folks were wonderful. Yes Becky, we will take it slow, meander a lot. In the past we have dashed about parts of Europe exhausting ourselves. Now older, if no more wise, a slower approach has been adopted. We have planned, we believe, for all the major sights, yet only once staying at a place for only one night, and may rethink that. Getting a car, except of course, in Palermo. Yet I have driven-terrified I might add-in Naples and emerged from the bumper car city unscathed. Sounds like we can't make too much of an error with about a week in both Palermo and Siracusa. Also Becky for longer stays we tend toward Airbnb, so if you come across that address, we'd appreciate it. Again, thank you to everyone for the assist.

Spring is a great time to visit Sicily. I was there last Spring (2018) and loved the wildflowers everywhere!

I spent 4 nights in Palermo; took a day trip to Cefalù, and spent part of an afternoon visiting Monreale.

Ortigia is one of my favorite places in Sicily and I wished I'd spent more than the 5 nights that I did.

Lipari was also a favorite of mine and I loved my accommodation at Residence Acanto. I stayed in the 2 room apartment with terrace (#103) The apartment manager, Guiseppe, is very helpful and friendly, and he'll be happy to arrange or assist with any day trips for you.

Enjoy your time in beautiful Sicily!

At least 3 nights for Palermo, but 4 are needed if you want to include Monreale, on the hill above Palermo.
If you use Palermo as a base for some day trips (for example to Cefalù or a beach day at Mondello) then add one night for each day trip you plan to take.

3 nights in Siracusa are enough for both Ortigia and the Archeological Park.