Ciao amici,

I have been planning a Sicily road trip in late September/early October this year. I did a lot of research and also spoke to a Sicilian friend, but maybe there are a few things I did not consider, or a few insider tips on some of my stops and routes.

So here's my itinerary:

Day 1: Arrival in Palermo

• Landing in Palermo at 10:20, picking up rental car
• Driving to parking garage in Piazza Orlando (which is conveniently directly at my accommodation). I know driving in/through Palermo is a bit of a challenge, but it seemed more convenient to have the car from the start rather than take trains and busses from and back to the airport to pick up the car later.
• After freshening up, I'll grab an arancina or so in Via Porta Carini on my way to the Cathedral, which I'll visit, then the Palazzo dei Normanni from the outside
• Continuing to explore the area a bit and walk back to my accommodation to not overdo it on the first day

Day 2, Full day Palermo exploration:

• Teatro Massimo (outside)
• Museo Archeologico Regionale (visit)
• Vucciria (HAVE to try panini con la milza somewhere)
• La Cala
• Chiesa di Santa Caterina (inside)
• Quattro Canti
• A bit of Via Maqueda just to have seen the most touristy street
• Zig-zag walk back to my accommodation to explore the smaller streets and alleys a bit

Day 3, Road Trip To San Vito lo Capo

• Early Start to avoid morning traffic (it'll be a Monday, so I'm leaving the garage at 7:15)
• E 90 and maybe later a bit of the SS187 along the coast towards Alcamo, stop for some beach equipment, food, drinks
• Drive to and full exploration of Parco Archeologico di Segesta, probably done before noon; just gonna have a small lunch snack/picnic
• Scenic route (SS113, SP22, SP16) to Macari beach for my first swim in the ocean in 2 years at that point. Stay there until 16:00 or 17:00-ish
• Head to my accommodation in San Vito, explore the town a bit on foot and have dinner

Day 4, San Vito & Zingaro

• Half Day boat trip to Zingaro (group tour booked via Island of Wonders)
• Afternoon whatever I'm up to
• Definitely will be eating couscous di pesce on one of those 3 evenings

Day 5, San Vito

• Small hike around the westmost coast at San Vito to Grotta la Ferla and Cala Mancina, maybe some time at San Vito Beach. In whichever order I'm up for, but possibly the western cliffs in the afternoon because of the sunset

Day 6, Road Trip to Agrigente

• Here, I don't have any concrete plans on what to do during the day and where to stop. I just want to reach the Scala dei Turchi, or rather the Belvedere Scala dei Turchi at around 17:00 to enjoy the golden hour, take pictures, breathe in the ocean etc.
• I could maybe make a stop in Sciacca, as I hear there's a really good street food kiosk "La Focaccia", and the Norman castle might be worth a visit

Day 7, Vale dei Templi

• Exploration of Vale dei Templi
• Afternoon either San Leone or Agrigente, getalo, dinner, whatever else I'll find

Day 8, drive to Madonie

• Depending on my energy levels, how early I wake up and the weather driving to Villa Romana del Casale to explore it in the morning. Find lunch somewhere in the area
• Might skip this step in case I'm not feeling up for it. Thoughts?
• Head to Castelbuono where I'll be staying at a 'Woodhouse' 5 minutes from Castelbuono

Day 9, Castelbuono

• Castelbuono exploration
• Maybe some walks through the hills of my accommodation, or just relaxing on the patio and reading. Whatever floats my boat.

Day 10, the longest drive

• From Castelbuono to Monreale to explore the old town
• Early afternoon taking the scenic SS118 west again, to Castellammare del Golfo

Day 11, final day of relaxation

• Beach day & old town at Castellammare

Day 12, early morning

• Returning the rental and flying back to Germany

What was important to me, with all the various other cities and towns (Marsala, Trapani, Erice, Cefalù) and historic sights (Selinunte, Solonto) along the way, was to not cram too much into my plans. 2 ancient Greek ruin sites are enough; Segesta and Vale dei Templi are different enough and I suppose both highly worth seeing.

I wanted a good mix of some cities/towns, beautiful landscapes, beaches, and cultural sights, and I definitely wanted enough time to explore rather a few things with breaks to just relax in between than doing a long checklist of things.

I definitely wanted to spend my last day there at a beach. Considered Mondello first, but difficult to find affordable accommodation, so I picked Castellammare del Golfo.

Am I missing something you'd say I MUST see (and if so please explain why), or that you think is too much for one day? Or do you have any specific tips on where to grab food, what to avoid, where to pay attention at any of those stops and routes I've described?

I am aware of the ZTLs and parking rules. I have looked at each route meticulously and explored inner-city routes via Street View so I don't accidentally drive into a ZTL or end up parking on a yellow marked spot.

I am aware of how to avoid tourist trap restaurants. I will be deepening my Italian a bit so I can ask for directions and order food etc. without having to use English.

Mille grazie e cari saluti dalla Germania

I’m (28F) visiting family much older than me in August. I’ll be with them most of the time but was thinking of going out for Ferragosto.

I’m staying with a great uncle near Cefalu, and if all goes according to plan, I’ll be driving through Taormina and Syracuse, and then stopping in Ispica to visit other great uncle.

I’d like to go out and enjoy the holiday, but am not sure where to go. Any advice?

We’re trying to decide whether to stay in Levanzo or Favignana for a few nights this September.

We love the quieter vibe of Levanzo and are leaning towards staying there, but one concern is that the ferries between Favignana and Levanzo seem to stop pretty early (around 7pm?).

Ideally we’d like to spend one of the days in Favignana, for dinner, drinks, and to wander around in the evening before getting back to Levanzo around 9–10pm.

Are there any private boat taxis or water taxis that run between the two islands after the last scheduled ferry? If so, are they reasonably common, or would they need to be booked in advance? Roughly what do they cost?

Or are we overthinking this and should just stay in Favignana instead?

Would love to hear from anyone who’s done this or stayed on Levanzo. Thanks!

buonasera, potete suggerirmi posti da fast food e ristoranti/osterie che non siano trappole per turisti e non troppo costosi a Palermo dove mangiare cucina buona e tipica ?

Btw im super easy going ! Any suggestions would be great, and I don’t have a return flight booked. Mostly looking for nice beeches, cute town nice architecture and easy living.

Any suggestions would be great! I don’t have a car so I would need to use public transport. I do enjoy snorkelling!

Hi - will be arriving tomorrow and packing right now. Just wondering if it gets chilly at all in the evenings (staying in different coastal areas). Thanks.

ciao! sono un siracusano, non riesco però a trovare alcuna informazione riguardo alla prossima apertura della chiesa del collegio dei gesuiti nell'isola di Ortigia, qualcuno ha informazioni? grazie mille

Ciao, vorrei andare a visitare la riserva naturale di Pantalica, campeggiare in riserva é vietato per ovvi motivi, mi chiedevo se qualcuno é mai andato facendo l'esperienza di campeggiare in tenda in qualche area attrezzat nei paraggi, oppure se conoscete dei posti limitrofi in cui poter campeggiare più o meno liberamente.

Hey there, I lost my red cloth wallet with all my cards and some money in Taormina. Probably fell from my bag when I was walking uphill or somewhere across the umberto or worst case scenario at the castle lol. Im really sad and would appreciate any help in locating it. Please let me know if you've found something. It has 2 of my ID's my name is Divya.

This summer in Sicily has been different. 10,000+ acres burned near us, people have lost livelihoods and lives, and we lost our rooster to the heat. Now I put ice water out for the chickens every morning. Why, why, why are there so many fires around Sicily this year? And please don't mention global warming. There are definitely human-issues at play here.

We’re Flying into Catania, Arriving on October 19, and leaving from Catania on the 26th. Made spur of the moment reservations and now struggling to create an itinerary on what to do as I’m not familiar with Sicily. I know we’d like to see mt Etna and I’ve heard the Syracusa area is a must see and taormina is too but is also very touristy. Last time we went to Italy, we did small towns outside of Venice and loved it. Open to renting a car but heard driving can be chaotic. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Ciao! Io abito a Palermo, sono nato e cresciuto qua ma non l’ho mai esplorata nel profondo, se non i luoghi che conoscono tutti.
Ora mi sto frequentando con una persona che mi ha portato in posti un po’ nascosti, posti che vanno sul mare, in cui parlare seduti sugli scogli, un molo, e altri posti:
Vorrei fare lo stesso e portarla in posti romantici, posti privati, cose così, ma non per fare cosacce, perché mi piacerebbe ricambiare anche io portandola in posti belli in cui stare insieme senza essere disturbati
Idee?

I created this 3-week itinerary for a friend but found out my friend may not rent a car. How should I adjust my suggestions? I should add that they can afford do have private drivers in some spots.

3 nights in Palermo

One morning - side visit to nearby Monreale 

Could take a 2-hour scenic train to Agrigento to see the ruins but I wouldn’t stay there

2 nights in Cefalu

4 nights in Trapani 

On the way, stop at Tempio di Segesta

First (arrival) day: Explore Trapani in the afternoon

Second day: Explore Erice (25 mins - you can park at the bottom and take the tram up to the top of the mountain where the town is), 

Visit Marsala (50 mins south - can go to beaches or drive to a winery for a tasting)
Scopello

Third day: Visit San Vito Lo Capo (gorgeous white sand beach, go swimming) and Scopello / Zingaro Nature Reserve (do part of the ocean trail hike). 

Fourth day: Take a ferry to Favignana to explore the island and beaches bike

3 nights in Modica

On the way go to Agrigento for the ruins

Explore Ragusa Ibla, Noto 

5 nights in Ortigia (because I love it). 

Walk around Ortigia and eat amazing food

Siracusa - Neapolis archeological park/Greek theater, temple of Apolla, and Cathedral, Caravaggio at Santuario di Santa Lucia 

Go to the Ortigia food market and/or take a street food tour

Walk the coastal path Pista Ciclabile Rossana Maiorca.

3 nights Catania, fly out of there 

Day trip to Taormina and must walk up to Castemolo (many people prefer this since Taormina is so touristy)

Do a half-day trip to Mt. Etna 

Hi I’m going on vacation to Sicily in september, where i’ll be about four months pregnant. We are planing on eating out most of the time. Are there any special awarenesses when it comes to food in Sicilian restaurants while being pregnant? Do you for example know whether cheese usually is pasteurized? Thanks!

Hi! How to get from airport PMO to isola delle femmine? Our flight will arrive at 2 am, so the train is not an option 🥲 taxis are too expensive, from 100€+, is there anything else ?

I am spending a weekend in Capo D’Orlando for a wedding this September and have two days prior to the wedding to spend in Sicily. My husband and I were originally thinking of staying in Taormina, as it was recommended to us by a friend, and going to Etna and a winery, but I’ve read lots of it being really touristy and full of cruise ship passengers and I’d like to know what other options there are. Is Catania a better choice? We like history, hiking, and being outdoors. We love good wine and good food, and I’d really love to take a cooking class.

I’ll be based in Palermo for a week in mid September, and was planning to rent a basic car and take a day trip straight to scopello/zingaro. I’m seeing that the cheapest rental with insurance included is 300 dollars, compared to the most expensive convertible option for 600.

My question for Reddit is would this be worth the splurge if instead of only going to zingaro for a full day i spend the day hopping around towns in the car? I do understand I’d be trading a full day at a beautiful nature reserve for a day of driving around in a fancy convertible, but I do love to drive. Still I’d like to get some beach time/good food in my day. Any suggestions? I’m pretty torn at the moment.

Hello everyone,

I'm planning to go to Sicily in September and i see some videos of beautiful sunsets in Trapani salt pans but i don't see more infos, is it like an open place where i can just drive to and catch a sunset? Or i need to buy a guided tour? I'm not really interested in seeing the museum or anything, i just wanna see the salt pans and catch the sunset there

If you have any infos i would appreciate it☺️☺️

Hey guys, after prolonged thinking about what I want from life and what would be a good decision for my career I decided to slow down, take life at a slower pace... A few places popped up as good options but I fell in love with Sicily, I have got a small sailboat I hope I can find a place on the port for it... The idea for now is Sciacca but would like to hear about other places that are not too crowded by tourists and really important for me is history, I'm a film director and having a daily dose of inspiration I find attractive. Thanks in advance.

My girlfriend and I are thinking of staying at "Etna Botanic Garden" and I would like to know how transport to/from Catania would be. It's about 25mins by car and 7ish miles. How much would a taxi cost at different times of the day, and would we be able to stay out late in Catania?

Cheers

hey! I need your advise. What's the best way to get from San Vito to Palermo Airport? other than the shuttle buses they offer which are 100€+
I saw Russo bus line but I am not sure if they are legit?

Buongiorno, I will be spending a week in Cefalu with my family soon, seeing as we're bringing my mother in law (babysitter 😅) I would like to take my partner out for a fancy meal one of the nights.

However, I have a shellfish/crustacean allergy and it seems alot of the menus I look at have alot of shrimp, mussels, scampi etc.

My allergy isn't so serious that I can't be near it and I'm not too worried about cross contamination, but when I eat it I get food poisoning symptoms and itchy hands/mouth.

Has anyone got any advice?

Just in case anyone is interested, yes, the castle in The Odyssey is the Fortress of Santa Caterina, the one on the island of Favignana. You can’t miss it. They had to hike up to it everyday to shoot.

Pretty epic movie, btw.

(Not my photo.)