marcopizzaiuolo

(Fellow Italian here, Ciao) That is fair enough, but I would hope not everywhere in Noto you will get similar prices to conclude prices are generally a lot higher than it past. I am not saying prices aren’t higher, as inflation and energy prices have driven prices high everywhere (personally I was surprised by prices in Atlanta GA-USA last month, very close to prices in Miami Beach for instance, not the case in previous visits) but I actually found prices in Catania, Taormina, Syracuse (and towns in between) quite affordable last September (2022) when I was there.

travelmad478

We were also in Sicily in Sept. 2022 and were amazed at how cheap everything was (particularly food and alcohol) compared to prices in the US. We live in a relatively modestly-priced city in the US, and Sicilian prices were substantially lower than at home—I think there might have been one or two times, maximum, when we paid more than EUR 5 for a drink. That’s less half the price we would pay at home (including sales tax + gratuity) for something similar. Granted, the USD was particularly strong right at that moment (USD 0.99/EUR) but even now it’s not much different.

duyibest

Last time I visited major Italy tourist cites and I loved it. For the second time, I am curious if Sicily is a good choice to experience Italy differently.

1. what cities in Sicily and time do you recommend? For a family with a toddler?
2. Is it safe for tourists? (Mafia?)
3. We also want to visit Amalfi. Any tips to visit the two in the same 2 week trip.

Thank you very much!

KLouis

Easy answers:

1) Simply read all posts in this thread...
2) Absolutely. As for the Sicilian Mafia, it is neither involved in petty criminality, neither in kidnappings for ransom.
3) In principle yes! But is that really worth the hassle (e.g. getting from the one to the other for a couple of hours drive?). Unless you want to spend a few days in a Costiera town, in which case I'd personally say why? Priorities: Sicily very high, Amalfi town rather low.

Some notes on the above:

1) There's a good chance that having a toddler with you will limit your local trips (valid for both Sicily and the Costiera amalfitana). So just carefully choose a base which will satisfy all of you.
2) I'm older and I've been to these parts of Italy quite a few times. Therefore, as a... lover who is still, after decades, still... very much in love in the South of Italy (thus, sort of blasé) some of my suggestions (even if I only provided few) may be one-sided.

duyibest

Thanks for the insights. I appreciate that very much!

13901

Safety in Italy is a question I get a lot, especially from Americans; the short and sweet is that you're far more likely to be murdered/robbed/have something bad happening to you in your home country than in Italy. Some numbers to give an idea:

1. In 2021, there were 302 murders in Italy, 4 less than Memphis in the same year. Italy has 60 million people, Memphis 630 thousand.
   1. A chart, provided by the italian gov't, compares Rome & Milan with some world cities:
   2. 
      source:
      1. https://www.interno.gov.it/sites/def...d_28-12-22.pdf
2. In terms of theft and robbery, in 2021 there were 811,578 reports of theft and 22,093 robberies, of which almost 13,000 happened on what the government calls "public roads" - purse snatchings, that sort of thing. Again, for a country of 60 millions it's not that high.
3. If you look at "furti con strappo", meaning acts of theft happening on the road like pickpocket, purse-snatch and the evergreen 'Rolex nicking' the highest chance of that happening is in Naples, where there have been 68 reports/100,000 residents in 2021. I can't quite find an exact match for the crime, but if I look at Burglaries in NYC the rate is 141/100,000 (2018), and that's the lowest of the handful of cities I could be bothered to compare with (San Jose, San Diego, Boston)
   1. https://lab24.ilsole24ore.com/indice-della-criminalita/
   2. https://www.opendatanetwork.com/enti...f=related-peer

So, bottom line: Italy is a very safe country, a lot safer than parts of the US. Sure, it's not Japan or other Asian countries where you can use your wallet to keep your place at a table while you go to the counter or the loo: if you walk around the Navigli at night with your bag open, you are bound to find our that your wallet is on its way to Quarto Oggiaro. Ditto if you leave your sat nav on the windscreen at night in via Nizza in Turin. But, overall, if you exercise a modicum of intelligence you'll be alright.

PS: please please please don't go asking around "Is it safe here? You know, the mafia..." when in country. It's quite insensitive. It's a bit as if I went 'round in the US asking if I'm safe because you have so many guns and mass shootings. I know this is a forum, a safe space for asking questions, and one won't know until you ask but I've heard it when in country (or here in London for that matter).

behuman

Excellent post 13901, thank you .

Coming from an educated well traveled person it might seem insensitive, but from people with litte travel experience considering there is only one center of the world it is understandeable.

And yes, of course Italy is safe as is Europe as a whole. Not much guns around .

gobears293

Thanks JMN57 and others in this thread for all the great advice. Following up from my question way back in February, wanted to share our experience. We had four nights in Catania, did two day trips around Mt. Etna (one hike, one wine tasting), but then had one day trip south, focusing on Ortigia. Probably one of the best decisions of our trip and could absolutely envision spending a couple days there and in Siracusa. We got a late start so just parked at Parcheggio Gelone (super convenient) and walked a little extra onto the island. Ortigia was even more beautiful than I expected. We saw the Tempio di Apollo, Cathedral and Castello Maniace. Had lunch at Ortigia Fish Bar (highly recommended!) and pistachio cannoli at Amandorla Marciante (divine!). Really loved walking around the island, taking in the sights and enjoying the atmosphere.

Otherwise we also really enjoyed our time in Catania, had several great dinners, enjoyed a city historical walk and the fish market. Really vibrant and energetic city. Look forward to taking more time and exploring more of Sicily during our next trip.

Acasoncrew

The series is available on MHZ international mystery as a channel through Amazon or a separate account. Other wonderful foreign mysteries, like Murder in....which goes to regions of France with very appealing female and male detectives. Subtitles in English, which is never an issue for me.

lionelhutzskis

I'll make this easy for future travelers: Sicily is where the Italians go for "good food." Let that sink in. All the Emilians, Milanese, Romans, Genovese, and Tuscans I've met, traveled with, grown up with, whatever, DROOL when they talk about Sicilian food. It's just that good.

I've been four times and if you like to eat, there isn't a better place to do it.

I'm happy the OP had a great trip. Catania is a wonderful and vibrant city.

Lefly

Not exactly my experience. And I am Italian, with Italian family & friends. Ok, some of the typical food is good, of course, but it's not considered a "food destination" by the majority of the Italians.

13901

Ditto. I will admit to being a polentone, but in fairness I've always considered everywhere in Italy to have great food as standard. Perhaps Bologna has, in my subconscious, somewhat of a primacy in terms of quality but that's about it.

KLouis

I think it's the combination of really decent, "honest" food and the environment (i.e. weather, nature, antiquities, cities) that makes people believe that the food is "ambrosial". Same in Crete; after coming back to Greece and living in Heraklion for exactly 40 years I'm so used to the food here that I just find it, simply, good. In contrast, friends visiting from abroad find it "strepitoso" (I'm using the word to justify the inclusion of the post in the Italian forum ).

mreynolds767

Not sure the best food in all of Italy ; but Sicily does have some really good regional specialties that are better there than anywhere else ; which is true in most regions of Italy I suppose.
Point being the food will unlikely disappoint ; nor will the weather and the crowds are not as bad as most of the mainland of Italy.

Just returned from a trip to Sicily if anyone has any questions, maybe I can help. Drove a decent number of KM with a rental car but only saw about half of the island.

annaschummi

None of Italian regions is disappointing from food prospective. I would not consider Sicily to be gastronomical Mecca of Italy. Being Genovese, I still consider Piedmont food my first choice.