14 days in Sicicily - strong recommendation

We recently spent a few weeks in Sicily, and I just wanted to share some impressions and photos with you.

If you're looking for a bit more hustle and bustle and a lively party scene, Catania, or even more so, Palermo, is the place for you. There are countless restaurants and bars. Both cities have a rustic charm. Some people might even call it dirty, but we didn't have a problem with that. Especially since our hometown isn't exactly the cleanest either. We felt right at home and didn't have any problems in the evenings either.

But there aren't just bars there, there are also countless churches and cultural sites to see. In Palermo, for example, I highly recommend the Cappella Palatina (picture 15). It's one of the most impressive chapels I've ever seen. The ceiling is one-of-a-kind, and the entire building is magnificent. I just could not stop marveling at it.

If you'd prefer a quieter setting, we highly recommend Castelbuono, Montalbano Elicona, or the area around Noto and Ragusa. While Noto and Ragusa are well-known tourist destinations, in Montalbano Elicona, for example, we were the only tourists in town and stayed in a small palazzo with a very kind landlady. But of course it is hard to say, there are like hundreds of nice villages in the monutains of Sicily.

In general, I’d recommend staying in small palazzos in the villages or at farmstay hotels or country inns at the countryside; the people there are very hospitable, and you’ll be able to escape the hustle of the more popular destinations.

Because even though we were there in May, I have to say that places like Taormina and Syracuse were already very crowded. I don’t even want to imagine what it’s like during peak season.

We traveled around in a rental car, which was sometimes a bit nerve-wracking due to the narrow streets in the mountain villages, the lack of parking, and the way Italians drive, but that’s all part of the experience. Just remember to rent a car with an automatic transmission - it will make life much easier for you in the mountains.