Highlights
- discover the fascinating history, churches, and street markets of Palermo
- visit the Norman Castle and Palatine Chapel in Palermo
- see the beautiful Cathedral and cloister in Monreale
- visit 5 of the 7 Unesco World Heritage sites in Sicily, including the mosaics of the Villa del Casale, the Greek Temples of Agrigento, and the ceramic tiles of Caltagirone
- enjoy some of the best food in Italy
- taste delicious Sicilian wines and enjoy a visit to a local winery
- discover the beauty of the Baroque towns of southern Sicily including Ragusa, Scicli and Ortigia
Trip price includes
- 9 nights in 4-star hotels and country estates
- 9 breakfasts and dinners plus 1 lunch
- all visits and transfers as per itinerary
- at least one bilingual guide
Not included
- 7 lunches
- drinks other than water at meals
- activities not listed in the itinerary
ITINERARY
Days 1-2: Arrival in Palermo
Make your way to fascinating Palermo, whose airport is well connected to Rome and other European hubs. We start off with a guided visit of the historic city center and then have dinner at a local trattoria. On our second day we’ll tour the local market and visit some of the city’s amazing sites. Two nights Palermo.
Days 3-4: Agrigento
Transfer to the southern side of the island to visit the “Valley of the Temples,” featuring some of the best-preserved Ancient Greek ruins in the world. Our hotel is a renovated country estate featuring extensive gardens and views of the temples lit up at night. 2 nights near Agrigento.
Days 5-7: Ragusa
Head east to arrive at another UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Baroque towns of Ragusa, Modica and Scicli. They were all built following the earthquake of 1693 that devastated the island, so they have an architectural unity that will astound you with ornate balconies, wedding-cake window trim and golden limestone facades. We stay in another country estate, this one owned by a winery – so you know a tasting is in the books! We also take a day-trip to see the magnificent Roman mosaics in Piazza Armerina, and see some ceramics workshops in Caltagirone. 3 nights near Ragusa.
Days 8-9: Siracusa/Ortigia
Our final transfer takes you to the east coast and the wonders of Siracusa, which once rivaled Athens as the most important city in Magna Graecia (“greater Greece” of the ancient world). At the tip of the island is the tiny island of Ortigia, where we’ll spend two nights in a fabulous and charming hotel. Explore the coastline and some of the Greek ruins on your last full day on tour. 2 nights Ortigia.
** If you’ve already been to Siracusa/Ortigia, you can skip the last 2 days and go straight to the Catania airport on Day 8, cutting two days off of the itinerary and 400 euros off of the cost
Day 10: Departures for Catania airport
We offer one group transfer to the Catania airport, about an hour’s drive, to be timed to the group’s plans. You can also extend your journey for a few days to go up the slopes of the volcano of Mount Etna or see the tiny but well-known town of Taormina.
Getting there and away: You can fly directly into the Palermo airport, which is well connected to a variety of European hubs. And we end at the Catania airport, which also has flights to Rome and other European cities.
JAM –
My wife and I took a 10 day trip to Sicily in March 2023 with Claire Duiker from Wild Sage as our guide. This was our first time in Sicily and the tour had a perfect combination of seeing much of what the large island has to offer and time to relax and enjoy our group. The itinerary combined time in the amazing coastal cities of Palermo and Siracusa and in the middle of the island near Agrigento and Vittoria. Claire organized everything very well, from hotel selections, restaurant choices, and visits to sites. With her deep knowledge of European history, she provided historical context covering the many layers of Sicily’s past as we moved around and visited sites but gave us space to explore things ourselves too. And she was extremely flexible – if our group wanted to alter the schedule some or stay a little longer (or shorter) somewhere, she was always responsive to impromptu changes. I don’t like to move from hotel to hotel so much when I’m travelling so our itinerary was great in that regard: 2 or 3 nights in each location gave us a chance to unwind and enjoy the location without always worrying about packing and getting out the next morning. Claire is fluent in Italian and English, and it probably isn’t always easy to be working around the clock, including dinners out with your “customers”, but she is fun to be with socially and made it seem easy. I enthusiastically recommend Wild Sage and Claire as a guide for this trip or others. If Sicily, make your trip as long as you can- there’s a lot to see.
JAM, California, U.S.
BBK –
Our trip to Sicily with Wild Sage in mid-October (perfect time of year) could not have been better. With Claire as our guide/interpreter and Giuseppe as our intrepid driver, we spent 10 days exploring the island from modern cities to Baroque towns to ancient temples, from the coast to the interior. All we had to do was soak in the amazing environment and enjoy ourselves – everything else was taken care of for us. The food, wine, and cannoli were delightful, the hotels and country inns lovely. We had any number of experiences (visiting a cheese maker, a cart-making shop, an ancient ritual bath deep under a church, a Roman villa with spectacular mosaics) that we undoubtedly would have missed had we not been with Claire. She not only planned a great itinerary but was also attuned to our group’s interests and differing energy levels. This was our first trip with a personal guide, and we’re sold on the concept – especially with Claire and Wild Sage.