Sicily is roughly 250 km across, has an active volcano in the middle of one side, and holds the best Greek temples outside Greece, the best Norman mosaics anywhere, and a Baroque region rebuilt wholesale after an earthquake. It is not a week.
The roads are slower than the map suggests — the motorways are good on the north coast and indifferent elsewhere — and a circuit means four hours of driving on too many days. Choose an end.
The east
Base: Taormina, Catania or Siracusa.
- Etna. Europe's most active volcano, and you can drive most of the way up it. The lower slopes are vineyards on black soil; the upper are lunar. Go early — cloud builds through the day.
- Siracusa and Ortigia. The old island city is one of the most complete and liveable historic centres in Italy, and the Greek theatre in the archaeological park still stages performances.
- The Val di Noto. Noto, Modica, Ragusa, Scicli — towns destroyed by the 1693 earthquake and rebuilt at once in late Baroque, which is why they have a coherence almost nowhere else has.
- Taormina, which is beautiful, has a Greek theatre with Etna behind it, and is by some distance the most crowded place on the island. Stay nearby rather than in it.
The east is the easier half: better roads, more infrastructure, shorter distances between the major sights. It is the right choice for a first visit and for anyone who wants to drive less.
The west
Base: Palermo, Trapani or Marsala.
- Palermo, which is chaotic, layered and far more interesting than its reputation. The Cappella Palatina and the cathedral at Monreale are Arab-Norman work of a standard that has no real parallel — Byzantine mosaic, Islamic ceiling, Norman structure, in one room.
- The markets — Ballarò and Vucciria — which are North African in character and are the best street food in Italy.
- Segesta and Selinunte. Greek temples standing in open country with almost nobody there. Segesta's temple sits alone on a hillside and is one of the great sights of the Mediterranean.
- The salt pans between Trapani and Marsala, with windmills and shallow pink water, and the Egadi islands offshore.
- Erice, a medieval town on a mountain top, frequently in cloud, reached by cable car.
The west is rougher, less visited and more rewarding for a traveller who has been to Italy before.
When to go
April to early June and late September to October. Sicilian summer is genuinely severe — inland temperatures well above 35°C are normal in July and August, and the archaeological sites have no shade whatsoever. Walking around Selinunte at midday in August is not a cultural experience, it is an endurance one.
The island stays warm late; October swimming is normal and the sea is at its warmest in September. Winter is mild, green and very quiet, with some coastal places closed.
On driving. A car is close to essential outside Palermo and Catania, and Sicilian driving is assertive. The specific thing to check is the ZTL — restricted traffic zones in historic centres, enforced by camera, with fines arriving months later via the hire company. Book accommodation with parking outside the zone and walk in.
The food, briefly
Sicily's cooking is the most distinct in Italy because of who ruled it: Arab influence in the sweets, the almonds, the saffron and the citrus; Spanish and Greek layers underneath. Eat the street food in Palermo, the tuna in the west, the pistachio from Bronte in the east, and the granita with brioche for breakfast, which is the correct way to have it.
The short version
- One week, one half. A circuit is a driving holiday.
- East for Etna, Siracusa and the Baroque towns. Easier, better roads, first visit.
- West for Palermo, the Arab-Norman mosaics and empty Greek temples. Rougher, better for returners.
- April–June and late September–October. Avoid July and August inland.
- Hire a car, and check the ZTL before booking a hotel in a historic centre.