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Trapani vs. Erice Sicily

We are a couple (late 40's) and will be traveling around Sicily end of this coming January and early February. Working our way west out of Palermo on my trip plans so far, and after stopping at Monreale and Segesta, trying to figure out our best plan from there. Was thinking either head to Trapani, and stay there two nights (and one night do a day trip up to Erice). Or maybe vice versa and we stay in Erice and day trip to Trapani (I just figured maybe easier to find a place in Trapani and day trip to Erice). That would give us one day to see Trapani and one day to see Erice. Didn't seem like we would have time to make it to any of the islands (and that time of year maybe not the best time I'm guessing anyway and things maybe dead off season on islands there). And then the plan was to head towards Marsala. But would welcome any thoughts and advice there. If there are places surrounding Trapani that maybe nicer to stay at (and then go into Trapani and Erice from there), we are game to look into that.

Posted by
26840 posts

I have not been to Europe in the winter, much less specifically to Sicily, so my input is of questionable value. Still:

Although two nights in Trapani/Erice may be sufficient, depending on how much time you want to spend wandering around those two places, it will definitely not give you two days there. I believe you are ignoring the time it takes to move from one place to the next. Will you have been in Palermo the night before, meaning you plan to stop in Monreale and Segesta before driving to the Trapani area? The driving time alone is over two hours, and I'd expect you to spend perhaps an hour at Monreale and maybe longer at Segesta. You'll have check-out procedures at your lodgings and you'll need breakfast and lunch. Realistically, are you going to get to Trapani/Erice before mid-afternoon? It gets dark very early in January/February, so you'll have precious little daylight time for sightseeing on your arrival day. I'd count that as one day to see Trapani and Erice--both of which I really like (in June).

I'm also concerned that you don't mention how you plan to travel around. I'm assuming you'll have a car ("stopping at" places doesn't work well via public transportation), but driving in Palermo is a really bad idea. Crossing a street as a pedestrian is challenge enough. If you're staying in town, you'll presumably need to budget time to pick up a rental car on the day you head west, making you even later in reaching your ultimate destination for the day.

On the positive side, I don't think you're missing a great deal by skipping the Egadi Islands. They have nice, relatively uncrowded beaches. Otherwise, I though they were underwhelming. With all there is to see and do in Sicily, I regretted spending a day in the Egadis.

I haven't been to Marsala.

What does the rest of your trip look like? How many nights in total will you have on the ground in Sicily? Are you flying into Palermo from the US/Canada, or will you be arriving from elsewhere in Europe, jetlag-free? Do you depart from Catania?

Posted by
98 posts

Thanks for the details. To answer some of the questions we are actually first going to Malta (for about 5 days) then heading to Catania. Picking up a car as we leave Catania. We are basically making a counterclockwise loop around Sicily over the next 3 week roughly. Will have a car the whole time (somewhat of a pain sometimes, but other times a great benefit, so overall just going to keep it the entire time). Outline (at least what I have planned so far) is Catania (2 days, including the partial day we land), Taormina (2 days including the day we arrive), Cefalu (one day), Palermo (4 days including the day we arrive there). Leaving Palermo in morning, and trying to hit Montreale and Segesta, then trying to figure out where to land end of that day (Trapani or Erice). Was thinking maybe stay Trapani that night and have that evening to look around, then head to Erice next morning to see it for most of day, then come back to Trapani later day and see a bit more of it. But don't know if that is shortchanging Erice or Trapani. Just getting into the research of that part of the trip. After that area, next stop Marsala. Then working counterclockwise around rest of Sicily. So any thoughts/suggestions would be great.

Posted by
171 posts

The RS Sicily tour is my favorite of the 10 tours I have taken. My RS Sicily tour stayed in Erice 2 nights. If I had a do-over those2 nights would have been spent in Trapani. More to see and do in Trapani, Erice closes up about 830pm-930pm and there is not too much to choose from. I was there in early June, I can’t imagine the end of January other than DEAD. That being said, definitely visit Erice from Trapani, there is a very convenient gondola car ride from/to Trapani/Erice. Enjoy Sicily, I will be back!

Posted by
26840 posts

It does seem that Trapani would be a safer choice from that standpoint of finding places open. Erice was hopping during the (afternoon) hours I was there, but it had the feel of a day-trip destination, though I know there are places to sleep there.

It sounds as if you'll have time to have a very nice visit to Sicily. Just strategize what you're going to do with the car while you're in Palermo.

Posted by
2119 posts

We did a Malta-Sicily trip last April. If you’re interested in seeing the Hypogeum (underground burial chamber) in Malta, be sure to purchase tickets well in advance.

In Sicily, I’d say definitely stay in Trapani. You don’t want to make that twisty drive up to Erice in late afternoon, with the possibility of bad weather.

I fear you may be underestimating the time it will take to navigate to places & find parking. And days will be short. Be sure to allow some cushion in your schedules.

I’ve not visited Marsala but did enjoy Agrigento, which I imagine is next on your list. I would allow plenty of time — 4-5 days? — for Ortigia, which is almost everyone’s favorite place in Sicily.

Posted by
11247 posts

Trapani, especially in winter.

We spent a week there one March and Erice was enveloped in fog for 5 of the 6 days we had for sightseeing. The day it cleared, we went up and were buffeted by 40 mph winds! Suffice it to say we were happy to be in Trapani. Also, there are a ton of great restaurants in Trapani. Very easy to tour Segesta, Lo Zingaro Riserva, and Marsala from a base in Trapani. The little island of Mozia is interesting and just a simple ferry, not far off shore.

Perhaps you can add a night and make it at least 3 in Trapani. The Egadi Islands may be inaccessible due to weather, FYI. That was the case for us due to winds.

Posted by
6386 posts

I too have not been there that time of year, so my opinion is based on my recent experience. We spent 3 nights in Erice (hotel San Giovanni) taking a day trip into Trapani. To me, weather would be a deciding factor. The road up to Erice is full of twists and turns and not something I’d want to drive in sleet or snow. Also, almost all of Erice is cobblestone streets which are slippery if wet. Trapani is pretty flat closer in towards the historic center with not nearly as many cobblestone streets. The main part of Erice is really one plaza and a street. There are plenty of side streets for wandering. One can walk completely around the town in a hour or so. Don’t spend the money to go into the castle as there is little to see. After the tourists leave, the town shuts down. Restaurants started closing by 9:30pm. For us unfortunately, we were in Trapani when almost everything was closed so we didn’t get an accurate impression of it. The weather would not be as severe in Trapani as it would be in Erice.

Between Erice and Marsala, stop at the Marsala salt pans/farm. It was worth it especially since salt was being farmed when we were there. We didn’t go into the museum. In Marsala we stayed at Hotel Carmine. It was easy to get to. It has free parking on the street beside the hotel. Baggage drop off is in front of the hotel in an authorized vehicle only zone which is why the hotel will move your car to the side street. Very nice hotel and it had an expansive, included breakfast buffet. The historic center of town is fairy small and easy to walk around. For dinner we ate at restaurant Osteria II Gallo e L’innamorata. It was nice. We got lucky getting in without reservations since it gets very busy.

Rather than drive in Palermo, we stayed in Monreale and took the bus into Palermo. The bus was very inexpensive. We also visited Selinunte, but if going to Segesta, I’d skip Selinunte and visit the Valley of the Temples day in Agrigento. Just west of Agrigento is Scala de Turchi. It’s worth a short stop to view the unique rock formations and take a couple photos.

Ensure you take a GPS as many of the rural roads are poorly marked (both road and speed limit signs). I had a GPS as well as google maps of Sicily downloaded for offline use. I used the google maps to get to a couple really small stops that were not on my GPS.

Posted by
3112 posts

I was in Trapani and Erice on a RS tour in mid-February 2017. We had nice weather (cool and sunny) and encountered no problems visiting an island. Trapani was quiet, with some businesses closed or on off-season hours. Erice was extremely quiet the day we visited, with barely a cat roaming the streets within the town. That time of year, I would stay in Trapani and day trip to Erice. I don't recall whether the cable car runs that time of year, but it would be the easiest way to get up to Erice. A half day to visit would probably be more than sufficient.

Posted by
11056 posts

After leaving Marsala, do stop in Selinunte en route to Agrigento. The seaside setting of the temples is dramatic. They offer shuttle rides around this very large property which I highly recommend.
In Agrigento we were extremely pleased with Collevetde Park Hotel. Their dining room is excellent.

Posted by
2767 posts

I was in Erice in the summer, so my experience is not directly comparable. But I will offer my thoughts for whatever they are worth. Erice is the kind of place that is hopping with day trippers during the day and very, very, very quiet at night. Quiet to the point of things not being open. And that’s in summer, I’d bet winter is quieter. I personally don’t like overnights in places like this - I prefer to walk around in populated areas, have plenty of restaurants and street life to see. So I would visit Erice in the day (arrive early) and return to somewhere more populated and local for evening. Trapani fits the bill there.

However I know some people like staying overnight in super-quiet towns. What I find uncomfortably ghost-town like others find peaceful. So take your personal preference into account.

Posted by
1103 posts

On the RS Sicily Tour (April 2016) we stopped for a couple of hours in Erice but stayed in Trapani. Erice was beautiful but very quiet.

The Residence La Gancia in Trapani was very nice and centrally located.

Posted by
1103 posts

After Agrigento, I recommend seeing the Villa Romana del Casale which contain a rich and colorful collection of Roman mosaics

Then consider staying in Ragusa and Siracusa (Ortygia) before returning to Catania.

We particularly enjoyed the Hotel dell'Orologio in Ragusa. This is what's know as a dispersed hotel, which means that the central location is supplemented by apartments in the neighborhood.