Travel from catania to palermo

I wonder whether there's work going on right now, on the rail line cutting through the interior of the island. The quickest trips involving trains actually have a bus leg at the beginning. They take 3-1/2 to 3-3/4 hours. You can take an all-train route with a change in Messina, but that coastal route takes considerably longer--at least 4-1/2 hours.

The SAIS Autolinee buses are a lot faster. They're schedule to take just 2 hr. 35 min. They seem to run hourly on weekdays between 6 AM and 7 PM, with a few additional departures. Sunday service is nearly as good (something that can't be said for other bus itineraries in Sicily).

If you just want to travel between the two cities, I'd take the bus, but if you want to make stops along the way--such as at the Villa Romana del Casale, you'd get good use out of a rental car. I wouldn't want to drive in Catania, and you couldn't pay me enough to drive in Palermo, so be careful in selecting pick-up and drop-off locations. I'd assume the Catania airport would be a decent place to pick up a car. Lots of inter-city buses from Catania make a stop at the airport; one of those buses might get you close to the airport car rental agencies.

The situation may have changed, but as of 2015 Catania didn't have a centralized bus station where you bought tickets. There were multiple bus companies, and each had its own ticket office. They were close together, and close to the bus departure point, but you still needed to allow some extra time.

Logistically, it's easier to go to Malta after the tour, since it looks like the tour ends in Catania (and it's a short 40 minute flight from Catania to Malta). If that's not possible, then just take a bus from Catania to Palermo.

I just looked to see if Malta Air flies to Palermo and it looked like only once a week (I only looked at some random months, I don't know what October looks like). You may want to check to confirm.

Air Malta has a nonstop flight from Valletta to Palermo on 10/21 for $70.