A short guide to Sicily.     Español     Italian

August 2025.

To satisfy the information requests my friends make every spring, here's a short guide to Sicily as a tourist destination, according to my tastes, with places to see, things to eat, and wines to drink. Keeping in mind the first law of Sicilian thermodynamics: July and August are scorchingly hot and people are stuck in traffic; May/June or September/October are best. The route starts in Messina and proceeds clockwise.

Messina is not worth a visit, but if you're coming from the mainland, a stop at Doddis, at Via Garibaldi 414, might justify your first granita, cannolo, or cassata of the trip. Messina's ricotta cream, less sweet and more velvety, is the best in all of Sicily. In Messina, the pignolata, shaped like a brain, is worth trying; the one at Irrera, in Piazza Cairoli, was once the best. In Savoca, a village near Messina, "The Godfather" fans can visit the church where Al Pacino marries Apollonia and the bar where he proposes.

The first stop on the tour could be Taormina, the most touristy town on the entire island, rather expensive and pretentious, but worth a visit. Taormina has hotels of all levels, allowing you to find accommodations suitable for every budget, even if the quality/price ratio is not the best. The average quality of its restaurants is poor: don't go randomly, but choose based on a guide you trust. I once had a good pizza at Villa Zuccaro, while the granita at Bam Bar was excellent every time I had it. Strolling up and down the main street, perhaps stopping for a gelato in the square, is satisfying. The Greek theater is worth seeing, but if it's too crowded, skip it: there are plenty of Greek theaters in Sicily. A crowded but impressive excursion is the Alcantara Gorges. Nearby, Rovittello and Solicchiata, two hamlets of Castiglione di Sicilia, give their names to two prized grape varieties.

From Taormina, passing through Zafferana, in an hour you can reach the Sapienza refuge, on the south side of Etna, at 1900 m, where you can park and in three minutes explore one of the two Silvestri craters, satisfying your spirit of adventure with very little effort. On Etna, the temperature is ten degrees cooler than when you set out, so those who are sensitive to the cold should keep that in mind. If you want to really push yourself, in six hours of cable car and foot, you can reach the central crater and return; it's another 1400 m in altitude and another ten degrees cooler.

Continuing towards Catania, you pass through Nicolosi, where you can stop at the Bar Vitale, or at the Pasticceria Marialuisa for a granita with brioche or an ice cream, but also for an arancino or a cartocciata.

Catania is barely worth a stage, but if you're passing through, visit the Greco-Roman theater on Via Vittorio Emanuele, the Benedictine monastery (now the university), and the fish market. In the city, keep these three bars and pastry shops in mind, all fairly easy to reach: Savia on Via Etnea, on the corner of Via Umberto, and, on the seafront, Bar Europa in Piazza Europa, and Ernesto on Viale R. Di Lauria, 91 (the seafront). Parking is tricky, but the quality is excellent, at Quaranta in Ognina. Each of these four bars guarantees the quality of their arancini.

In Catania, women find the fiera irresistible, an open-air market nestled off Corso Sicilia. Open every morning (except Sunday), it's said that Armani, Gucci, and Prada come personally to sell their creations at rock-bottom prices at the stalls. For a pizzeria in the evening, my recommendation is San Giovanni li Cuti, a former fishing village now incorporated into Catania's waterfront. Among the various places, my favorite is I Cuti Lisci. Among the restaurants, I'll mention two where you can spend very little: Trattoria del Cavaliere near piazza Stesicoro and Al pesce cotto in front of the Policlinico Hospital.

Eating fish in the Catania area usually follows a ritual: first you choose the fish from the variety displayed on the counter, and then you sit down to wait for it to be cooked. My favorite restaurant is called La Grotta [1] and is located in Santa Maria la Scala, a hamlet of Acireale. It has very few tables, making it very difficult to book on the same day, but it's worth it. Here too, as soon as you arrive, you choose your fish: prawns and calamari for the seafood salad and sea bass or sea bream for the grill, all seasoned only with salmoriglio. No frills: apart from spaghetti, they don't make much else, but it's worth it and at a price that is usually not excessive.

Less than an hour from Catania lies the island of Ortigia, the ancient historic center of Syracuse, where it's worth stopping for a night's sleep or a bite to eat (e.g., fish at Iannuzzo or pizza at Schiticchio). Ortigia is a well-maintained, touristy, and slightly crowded place. Wandering its narrow streets, occasionally snatching a glimpse of the sea, is a pleasure. Worth seeing: the Fountain of Arethusa and the cathedral, a former Greek Doric temple spoilt by Christians. In Syracuse, outside of Ortigia, the Greek theater and the latomie (stone quarries) in the archaeological park, the archaeological museum, and, I'd say, even the Eurialo Castle, are also worth a visit.

Nearby, a possible detour is Palazzolo Acreide, home to the world's smallest Greek theater and the Corsino pastry shop. Continuing south, you'll find Noto, with its baroque architecture. The sights are all along the main street: it won't take too long, but if it's hot, it's best to skip the visit. Ten kilometers away are the beaches of Noto Marina, which have the warmest sea in all of Sicily and are incredibly crowded in summer. To avoid the crowds, it's best to go past the Eloro Hotel, continue along the dirt road, park, and walk down to the free beach. If you feel like walking, there are several other beaches in the direction of the Vendicari nature reserve, all accessible only on foot and therefore even less crowded.

Further south, an interesting nature excursion can be made in the Vendicari oasis, where you can, of course, also swim. In front of the tuna fishery, the clear water and white sand give the impression of a Caribbean beach, surrounded by a beach covered in seagrass. The presence of so much seaweed is a delight for naturalists (a testament to the clean sea), albeit a bit smelly due to the rotting seaweed.

A few kilometers further south, Piazza Regina Margherita in Marzamemi was pleasant, where you can dine at the La Cialoma restaurant, sometimes well, sometimes poorly. These days, it's completely covered with tables and has prices worthy of the Amalfi Coast. For accommodation, it's better to go elsewhere. For example, backtrack to the Turismo Rurale Avola Antica (www.avolaantica.it), which is also excellent for dining.

If it's not too hot, you can sleep in Modica (an hour from Marzamemi), where the Michelin recommends Palazzo Failla for luxurious dining and lodging. Modica's city center is largely untouched by modernity and offers a good impression of what Sicily was like in the past century.

Located 5 km from Cava d'Aliga, the Boscorotondo farmhouse offers pleasant accommodations at a reasonable price. From there, the beaches of Sampieri (without showers) and Donnalucata (with showers) are easily accessible.

Otherwise you can go to Ibla (the ancient centre of Ragusa), beautiful and picturesque, where the hotels and restaurants recommended by Michelin are abundant: Locanda don Serafino (expensive), Caelium Hiblae and the restaurant il Duomo (very expensive), U Saracinu (cheap) [2]. This is on paper, in reality I didn't find the Locanda don Serafino: Google maps only leads to the hotel; at the Duomo there was a couple of friends who could afford it and they were treated badly; at the Saracinu we were going in, but the presence of Valencian paella on the menu made me desist. In the end we went to the restaurant Il Barocco and we had a good time. By the sea, however, nice places to sleep (and go swimming the next morning) are: Pozzallo, Sampieri, Cava d'Aliga, Donnalucata and Marina di Ragusa even if they have hotels that are on average run-down. In Marina di Ragusa, Michelin recommends the restaurant da Serafino. We ended up staying at the Artemisia Resort near Ragusa, finding it excellent value. A great option if you don't have to go to the beach every morning.

From Ragusa, you can go directly to the Valley of the Temples in Agrigento, 125 km in two and a half hours, without stopping along the way, because it's not worth it. After visiting the archaeological site in a couple of hours, you can reach the Scala dei Turchi in Realmonte in twenty minutes, a very unique limestone cliff that is truly impressive; however, I was there in the low season, not sure if the crowds and heat would have made the same impression. The beach at the Torre Salsa Nature Reserve, a half hour further on, is also very beautiful, although you have to walk to get there. The ruins of Heraclea Minoa, a quarter of an hour further west, are equally beautiful.

Another 40 km and you arrive in Sciacca, a charming town where it's worth eating fish at the Porto San Paolo restaurant, at Via San Paolo, 7, perhaps on the terrace.[4] Or, nearby, at Villa Palocla, where you can also sleep in nice rooms that have one flaw: the bathroom is too small and there's no bidet.

Further west, some memories have faded from my memory, but I think the majestic archaeological remains of Selinunte still lie on the beach, and a visit to the ruins, the mysterious Kothon, and the Whitaker Museum on the Phoenician island of Motya in the Stagnone of Marsala is still evocative. Certainly, the view from the mainland on the way to the salt pans of Trapani is, because I passed through there three months ago.

Fifty years ago, Trapani [5] seemed to me the ugliest city in Sicily, but today it has improved greatly and can still be improved. The historic center is worth a visit; you'll also come across the house of the great plumber Leonardo Ximenes, always very busy, but who repaired the bathroom perfectly.

Erice, on the other hand, hasn't changed, the one up high, often shrouded in fog, which doesn't look like Sicily at all. Here, you can visit the Castle of Venus, from which you can see Trapani, the salt pans, Mozia, and the Egadi Islands, and Maria Grammatico's pastry shop, whose fame, however, is exaggerated.

I'm undecided whether to recommend San Vito lo Capo, whose beach is still beautiful, but incredibly more crowded than fifty years ago, with many more hotels, and where today they make fish couscous everywhere. On the other side of the Cape, not connected by any coastal road, Scopello is worth a visit, especially if you find (very expensive) accommodation at the tuna fishery. When I was in high school, swimming among the Scopello sea stacks was considered the best.

Castellammare del Golfo can be a pleasant stop. I tried the Al Madarig hotel. It has pleasant rooms overlooking the square, but rather dark at the back. The breakfast is good, but with chemical-based orange juice, while nearby the oranges are rotting on the trees.

Continuing east, you reach Palermo, which I always try to avoid due to traffic and the impossibility of finding parking. To cross the city and continue towards Messina, you're forced to drive along the congested ring road. This inconvenience prevents me from lingering on its beauty, but those who wish to visit the city can find all the things to see online. I'll simply suggest Mondello (out of season) and the archaeological museum (where the Palermo Stone is exhibited) and three bars: Pasticceria Scimone, Via Imera, 8; Pasticceria Macrì, Via Carini, 42; Pasticceria Mazzara, Via Generale Magliocco, 19. In the immediate vicinity, however, I must mention Monreale with its cathedral and adjoining cloister.

After Palermo, a stop in Cefalù is worthwhile, the island's second tourist destination. It's charming, with a lovely seafront, hotels of all kinds, artisan shops, and seafood restaurants overlooking the sea.

After first passing Santo Stefano di Camastra, famous for its ceramics, and then the long beach of Capo d'Orlando, a town that seems stuck in the 1970s, you arrive at Gioiosa Marea, unexpectedly pretty and overflowing with benches, where I can recommend two restaurants (this is swordfish territory) that are worth a visit: Canapé in the square along the main road and Vecchia Posta at Via Mazzini 44. Nearby, there's the sea of Capo Calavà, neither good nor bad.

In the interior, in Sinagra, a friend of mine [6] pointed me to the Borrello brothers' butcher shop/restaurant in Contrada Forte, where you can taste the Nebrodi black pig ham.

A recent discovery for me was Milazzo, whose town lies beyond the pier for the Aeolian Islands. On the western side of the promontory, beyond the castle, is Tono beach, with incredibly clear water, making it a wonderful place to swim.

For those who enjoy archaeological sites, I'd like to point out a few, in addition to Syracuse and Agrigento. The Pantalica Necropolis, a particularly interesting Bronze Age canyon whose walls are dotted with square holes (tombs), extends along the Anapo River. To see the few archaeological remains directly, it's best to enter from Ferla and stay in the upper part of the canyon. However, the most pleasant walk is along the river, in the valley floor, walking along the disused section of the old railway. For this walk, it's best to arrive from the Sortino side, reach the former Sortino Fusco station using Google Maps, and from there, still by car, follow the signs for the Anapo Valley, parking wherever you can before the park entrance.

At the other end of Sicily, fifty kilometers from Marsala, at the site of the Elymian city of Segesta, the majestic Doric temple and theater are impressive.

Near Aidone, roughly in the center of Sicily, a visit to the Siculo-Greek city of Morgantina will immerse you in the atmosphere of a 19th-century Grand Tour, thanks to the absence of annoying tourists. Not far away, in the crowded but beautiful Piazza Armerina, is the Villa del Casale, the Roman domus of a wealthy importer of wild beasts for use in circus shows, where you can see the world's first bikinis.

Sicilian wines

About twenty years ago, several winemakers, both Italian and foreign, discovered that the Sicilian terroir yielded well and was inexpensive. They replanted some native grape varieties and made excellent wine. Ten years ago, several good wines emerged that were also reasonably priced. Then, human greed and the Sicilian's superficiality led to an increase in price and a decline in quality.

Today, uncorking a Sicilian wine brings the pleasure of surprise: discovering whether they still make it well or have ruined it. In any case, I've tasted the following wines and found them good (at the time):

Abraxas – Kuddia del Gallo (Zibibbo & Viognier) (lavorato a secco), bianco.

Alessandro di Camporeale – Kaid (Syrah), rosso.

Avide – 3 Carati (Nero d’Avola), rosso.

Benanti – Rovittello (Nerello mascalese & Nero cappuccio), rosso.

Cantina sociale Trapani – Forti terre il rosso (Nero d’Avola & Cabernet Sauvignon), rosso.

Cos – Rami (Insolia & Grecanico), bianco.

Cos – Vastunaca rosso (Cerasuolo di Vittoria), rosso.

Cusumano – Cubia (Insolia), bianco.

Gallo dei Bardi – Etna rosso (Nerello mascalese), rosso.

Maurigi – Coste all’Ombra (Sauvignon blanc), bianco.

Settesoli – Bendicò (Blended), rosso.

Zenner – Terra delle Sirene (Nero d’Avola), rosso.