Ten days in Sicily (soon)

[Phyllis]

It has been years since I was in Italy and I really appreciate the guidance that helped us in Torino and Piemonte 5 years ago. For now, Torino is one of my favorite cities in Europe and I would have never gone without the sage advise here. We are going to Sicily this month. Palermo - 4 nights,
Cefalu -1 night, Taormina -1 night, Siracusa - 4 nights, then flying out of Catania. If there are any must Restaurants or special wineries, neighborhoods please let me know. I promise to write a report when I return : )

 

[milgreen2]

You will have a wonderful time in Sicily! here are a few suggestions:

Palermo: CiCala wine bar is a lovely, friendly place to try Sicilian wines, and the food is excellent as well. Great small plates and delicious pizza.
For excellent seafood, Osteria Mercede is wonderful, but reservations are a must.
Opera de Pupi! -- the style in Palermo is different than the style in Ortigia, and we recommend going to a show in both locations

Cefalu: we are in the minority, I think, for not *loving* Cefalu, so 1 night sounds about right. the walk along the seafront is lovely, and the Duomo is quite striking, especially the new modern stained glass windows. the walk along the roof is great. we had a really nice dinner at Locanda di Marinaio which was not our first or second choice but those places were closed on the night we were there. pricey, but inventive, delicious food and the service was spot on.

Taormina: again, we're in the minority for loving Taormina despite the crowds and touristy stuff. the gardens are gorgeous and the views all around are spectacular. get out early to walk around, and enjoy evening walks through town as well. the most memorable we had here, over 6 nights on two separate trips, was a private cooking class dinner at Villa Brittania. Rosmarino was also good, and for pizza, salad and wine Villa Zuccaro is our favorite

Syracuse/Ortigia: lots of choices. morning coffee at Crema e Cioccolato on Via Giudecca was our favorite, hands down. better than the places near the Duomo and cheaper, too. Our best dinner in Sicily was at Cortile Spirito Santo -- rather expensive but everything was fabulous and interesting and delicious. nice option of you're in the mood for a splurge. we also had a great leisurely lunch at Dave Sicilian Taste also on via Giudecca, in a lovely small square. Best gelato: Gusto

Have so much fun!

 

[Phyllis]

Thank you for such a great list! I have already made a couple of reservations, unfortunately Opera de Pupi will not be in town.
I see that some city tours include puppeteer, looking forward!

 

[Phyllis]

Another question, in Taormina, should we eat at Villa Zuccaro Pizzaria or Osteria?

 

[Phyllis]

Is it worth going on a beach day outside of Palermo? I have an impression or an idea that it would be nice to go to a small town where we can enjoy the water and lunch and take a cab or bus back to Palermo.

 

[Lilyaylmer]

Cefalu is a wonderful beach town very easy to travel to from Palermo by train but it does get crowded in the summer.

 

[milgreen2]

we've only eaten at Villa Zuccaro Pizzaria, but I'm sure the Osteria is great as well.

In Palermo there's another puppet theater, Argento, near the Cathedral, and that's the one we attended as the Cuticchios were out of town when we were there, as well.

We spent a few days in Castellammare del Golfo and hiked in the Zingaro reserve, where we took a nice dip in one of the secluded coves, but I don't know much about other beaches near Palermo. Honestly, we go to Cape Cod for a week or two every summer, and spend about 10 days on a gorgeous Caribbean island in the winter, so we don't tend to seek out beaches when we travel in Europe, other than as part of a hiking excursion.

 

[Mary Hanson]

Don't miss the val di Noto. An entire area was wiped out in 1693. Now a UNESCO world heritage. The towns rebuilt and the area has the most stunning italian baroque architecture. Noto, Caltagirone, palazzo Acreide and Modica are the do not miss
Palazzo has the most amazing tradition of french pastry and a spectacular city center. The drive Palazzo to Caltagirone is one of my favorites. Caltagirone is the Deruta of southern italy with its bright vibrant sicilian patterns. Modica is the historic center of european chocolate. The museum is fascinating and the chocolate very different. They dont sell the chocolate oil it stays in the chocolate so very intense. Try a bar or two before you go whole hog. I love cooking with it but dont particularly like eating a bar. Noto itself has a spectacular city center. The ancient town that was destroyed ruins are in a park outside town. We lived in the area for 6 weeks house hunting. Found it a constant delight.

 

[lisaonthecape]

We recently returned from 2+ weeks in Sicily and loved it. We chose to make Trapani our base in the west instead of Palermo, with lots of day trips to Favignana, Erice, Segesta. We were hoping to hike in the Zingaro, but we had a bit of rain and visited Marsala instead. Can't give you any dining tips for Palermo, but one thing I would be sure to do is to visit the cathedral in Monreale.

We spent two nights in Cefalu. I wouldn't go in July or August, but I'm guessing the crowds will have thinned by September. The lungomare is lovely, and a climb up the Rocca gives you some lovely views. We had a very good dinner at La Galleria, recommended by our host. A little more upscale than traditional trattorias but not over the top. Sadly, the cathedral is under restoration, so you can't see the famous mosaic.

I would definitely stay in Ortigia when you go to Siracusa; it's much more interesting and attractive than Siracusa itself. From Ortigia, it will be a bit of a walk to the archeological park, but I think it's worth it. There's plenty to do without leaving Ortigia: lovely market, small museums, several churches. We ended up only doing one day trip to Noto--definitely worthwhile. (We decided to save Modica and Ragusa for our next trip.)

We liked Taormina better than we had expected. Stunning views all around. We had a wonderful lunch at Osteria Rosso di Vino--highly recommended.

 

[Colo]

It has been years since I was in Italy and I really appreciate the guidance that helped us in Torino and Piemonte 5 years ago. For now, Torino is one of my favorite cities in Europe and I would have never gone without the sage advise here. We are going to Sicily this month. Palermo - 4 nights,
Cefalu -1 night, Taormina -1 night, Siracusa - 4 nights, then flying out of Catania. If there are any must Restaurants or special wineries, neighborhoods please let me know. I promise to write a report when I return : )

Just posted our trip report for our Spring trip to Sicily (late April early May). Hit many of the same places on your itinerary. Bring a healthy appetite - Not sure there is a bad restaurant in Sicily!