flyingfkb

Hi I'm looking for suggestions for a two week trip around Sicily with my girlfriend. I would like to travel 7 to 10 days around the island to see some historic sites, towns and the country side. The rest 4 to 7 days I want to relax at some nice hotel (pool is a must). I plan to rent a car the whole time. Start and endpoint will be Catania. So what are the must seed of Sicily and what hotels, B&Bs and restaurants can you recommend.

Perche

I think you should do your own research then ask for feedback, and not expect others to do it for you. Putting an itinerary together for you is something a travel agent does.

FlyingHoustonian

Do you have certain historic aspects you prefer more than others, or sites and activities you prefer? For example there are war sites that students and old timers like to visit there are family research and heritage sites, natural sites and parks, agriturismi (I'm in the process of opening my own actually), food and cooking locales, movie filming locations, festivals, ancient Greek/ Roman/Saracen/Norman/etc sites, and the list goes on.

From CTA in general you can make a "loop" around the island, but again types of sites to see is important in deciding where to stop. If you do not like architecture, for example, you could skip Noto, but if you do it is worth a stop after leaving Siracusa/Ortigia; or you go north from Catania stopping to see Etna then Taormina and Naxos, either way working west to Palermo. I am just using that as a rough example as scores of itineraries can be created for you.

When you want to come to Sicilia is also important as different sites are only open at certain times and festivals are based on seasons and religious dates. Visitors in summer do completely different things than now obviously (I just had friends into my home near Taormina for presepes which obviously are not summer activities) but different times of the summer allow for easier or harder travel and bookings- you get my point. I'd need more details to give you a better idea if best practices based on what you like to do. August is going to be your best beach time but also the most expensive and most crowded, especially around the 15th and Ferragosto. Cost, of course, and what you are willing to spend plays a part also.

Once all that is done and you select cities/locations then I can suggest restaurants.

Unrelated though when renting a car at CTA always choose full coverage insurance on the car. You can skip the personal bodily injury but definitely take full car coverage. It will be much more expensive but save you problems in the end. I have rented from all of them over the years, and use Hertz very often for visitors when I need a bigger vehicle. I know some of them well and they can be great people, but without full insurance the odds of you getting charged for a dent, scratch, or mark increase exponentially based on the days of rental (even if they were already there). Saying your credit card has coverage will not help you up front as you will have to pay for anything yourself on the return without the full insurance.

KLouis

Slightly OT (but only slightly!): Almost 30 years have passed since the last big earthquake, and I remember a Sicilian friend of mine saying a few years back that the amazing barocco buildings were still in a dire condition. Is that true?

flyingfkb

Thank you FlyingHoustonian. Very helpful and constructive feedback unlike other comments in this thread. This gives me some starting points and to look deeper into. That's what I think makes Flyertalk a valuable place. You can ask for advice an get help.

FlyingHoustonian

One collapsed a couple of years ago, several are being held up with scaffolds/beams, but several others have been repaired/saved. The "UN" sent some "experts" and then there were big arguments with the local ministries on how best to save several locations. Money, as always, is a huge issue. In my view, it is certainly still worth a visit for anyone interested in history/architecture

AAMillionaire

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slawecki

must have a pool???? don't they have any pools in germany? you gonna go all the way to sicily to get in a pool???

get a copy of FODOR's either italy or sicily. i forgot which. do a circle of the island, and visit the Greek sites. i recall the claims of more greek temples in sicily than in athens. watch the speed limits. follow their food and housing recommendations. park the car and take cabs in palermo. skip mt etna.

flyingfkb

You might not want to believe it but there are people that actually fly for 2 weeks to some exotic place just to sit at the pool or the beach. And yes there are pools in germany but most time of the years it is way to cold to use them, so in summer it would be nice to have a hotel with a pool which can be used after a long day of island exploring.

VivoPerLei

I go to Sicily every year but always for business. In fact, guess it is on my schedule again for next month. Of the touristy things I have managed to do and see, I would say that the catacombs in Palermo are well worth a visit, as is the city of Taormina. Beaches in Siracusa are also nice. In Catania there are some really nice restaurants down by the waterfront but I only ever go when I'm with locals as I don't find it an easy city to navigate on my own. It is unfortunate if you don't have Sicilian friends in the country to get you to those really out of the way restaurants. Have had many lingering four hour meals over the years.

tfred

Stay in the southeast corner. If you like historic sites Noto, ragusa, Piazza Armenina, Agregento are the best. Siracusa is worth a visit. Palermo is iffy for the time that you have. It is also a big city and a healthy drive. Been there, nice, but i wouldnt go back

there is a Rocco Forte hotel on the south coast - vedura- that there are good reviews for. We met a german couple that stayed there and they enjoyed it. Planeta winery is close to that which is worth a visit

JMN57

If you are in Siracusa I can definitely recommend Red Moon Pub. It's not in Ortegia but it's just across the water at the harbor. Simple, local place with just out of the water fresh fish. An Italian co-worker checked with his college roommate who is from Siracusa and it was recommended. We had a great meal. The kitchen is in a small building/wall at the port and the dining area is a tent-like structure with tables, etc (see the pics in the link below).


Here's a link to some pics on Google - https://tinyurl.com/yd8vqgkl

babs441

Hi Everyone,
I am starting to plan my trip for Sicily fo the end of July. I know Sicily has a lot to see and do but I don't have two weeks. I was thinking 3 nights in Palermo and 5 nights in Taormina. With my limited time I would do a lot of tours. I know I want to see the food markets in Palermo, do a tour to Agrigento, and then I am lost. Taormina I want to do wine tasting on Mt. Etna, Spend the day in Siracusa, do a day trip to the Aelion Islands, and spend some time in a beautiful beach. Any suggestions. I am traveling alone so I want to stay in safe locations. Any suggestions should I add a night somewhere and take a night out of somewhere? I hate moving hotels constantly, so I want to keep that at a minimum. Also any area should I avoid in staying? I am traveling alone, so I want a nice safe hotel.

xmrbrightside89

Planning a holiday with my DH, and since he doesn't really want to go to Greece, I suggested to visit Sicily, which might have a familiar feel - it has beautiful architecture, amazing beaches, and clear waters

We are looking to get a house (preferably) with a pool, so I started looking at Taormina, as I feel it's a good compromise between beach holiday, but you still have a nice city to visit, restaurants and so on . I don't really drive, so I feel going to a remote place might make me feel a bit "house bound", as then I'd have to rely completely on my husband (and he isn't the kind of person who'd take the car after lunch when it's super hot to go places)

My only concern now with Taormina, is that loads of people are saying it's very very busy in July, so now I'm not sure about it.

Have u been to sicily before? Which place would you recommend that can merge both a decent beach holiday+city/town? maybe a smaller island like Panarea/Lipari would be more suitable?

Thanks in advance

flyingfkb

Since I started this thread I think it is just fair to share my itinerary with you.

Trip duration 14 days.
Start and end point Catania (due to flights as most of them go to Catania instead of Plarmo)
Day 1-3 Catania and Etna
Day 3-5 Palermo
Day 6-8 Planeta Estate Vineyard, south west area between Sciacca and Castelvetrano
Day 9--11 Agrigent (Agritourismo)
Day 11-14 Noto

So the trip is mix between cities, country side, history and culinary.
if you have some dinning recommendations or some must-dos for Catania or Palermo this you would appreciated. From my research and feeling it sound to me that Sicily is in general a safe and comfortable place when you apply the regular tourist advices.