Summary
Short description
Let scenic drives and pretty hotels afford you the chance to explore Sicily’s widely varied highlights
Highlights
- Uncover Sicily’s diverse heritage, from Greek wonders to medieval severity
- Stay in some of the island’s finest hotels, private beaches included
- Explore with backcountry and coastal drives
- Watch the sun set over Mt. Etna from a Greek amphitheatre
- Stay right among the millennia-old Valley of the Temples
In pictures
About
Recommended for:
August holidays | Beach | Best of holidays | Food & wine | History & culture | July holidays | Self-drive | September holidays
From ancient cities and medieval villages to white sands and olive groves, this comprehensive road trip gives you the flexibility to explore Sicily’s richly varied delights. While the likes of its capital Palermo and mountaintop Taormina feature everything from remarkable cathedrals to Arab-Norman spectacles, there’s also Agrigento’s millennia-old temple wonders and Cefalù’s beaches, as golden as its fishermen’s houses. You’ll link it all with stays in pretty hotels and drives that bring you between spectacular coastal scenery and picturesque backcountry routes.
Day by day itinerary
Day
1
UK/Palermo
Begin your holiday with complimentary airport lounge indulgence before your flight out to Palermo. No other European city has hosted such a wide variety of civilisations. In between, there's a buzzing restaurant scene. On arrival, you will be transferred to your choice of central accommodation.
Stay: Hotel Plaza Opera (Superior) or Grand Hotel Wagner (Deluxe)
Day
2
Palermo
Today a private tour of Palermo will take you from its Byzantine mosaics and Arabesque domes to its frescoed basilicas and Gothic palaces, Sicily's effervescent capital wears its diverse history on its sleeve. With a wealth of the art galleries and the small matter of Italy's largest opera house.
Stay: Hotel Plaza Opera (Superior) or Grand Hotel Wagner (Deluxe)
Meals: B
Days
3-4
Agrigento
This morning pick-up your car hire and make the drive south, through the rolling Sicilian countryside, before weaving along the coast to your home for the next two nights – a 13th-century watchtower. But, there's more to the Valley of the Temples than this masterpiece of Doric art. Dating back to the 5th century BC, it's a priceless series of golden-stone monuments strung out along a ridge line and backdropped by gorgeous views out over the sea. Together, it's the largest collection of early Greek architecture outside of the homeland.
Stay: Hotel Foresteria Baglio della Luna (Superior/Deluxe)
Meals: B
Days
5-6
Cefalù
Swap coasts, back through Sicily's vineyard-dotted interior, to arrive at tiny Cefalù. Combining some of Sicily's finest beaches, all white sands and blue waters, with perhaps its greatest examples of Arab-Norman architecture, this medieval jewel is a true highlight. Wander its cobbled streets past honey-coloured buildings to discover a beautifully mosaicked 12th-century cathedral, charming squares and superb seafood restaurants that serve up the day's catch.
Stay: Baia del Capitano (Superior) or Hotel Le Calette (Deluxe)
Meals: B
Days
7-8
Taormina
Today's gorgeous coastal drive will bring you past secluded coves and yet more of those sandy beaches to Taormina in the island's northeast. Even 23 centuries ago it was famed for its beauty, with its ancient Greek amphitheatre commanding spectacular views out over to snow-capped Mt. Etna and the island's golden beach curves. However, you'll want to head out and explore Taormina's varied past, evidenced in its medieval cathedral-fortress, English gardens and Gothic palaces.
Stay: Hotel Ariston & Palazzo Santa Caterina (Superior) or The Ashbee Hotel (Deluxe)
Meals: B
Day
9
Taormina/Catania/UK
Continue down the coast to Catania, dropping off your hire car at the airport to make your flight home.
Meals: B
Map
Pricing
Any element of this itinerary can be adjusted to suit your needs. Just contact us to find out more.
Accommodation rating:
9-day tailor-made self-drive
from £1,935 pp incl. flights
Superior
Jul / Aug
from £1,935 pp. incl. flights
Apr / May / Jun / Sep / Oct
from £2,035 pp. incl. flights
Valid for travel: April to October
Package includes:
- Complimentary UK airport lounge access
- Return flights between the UK and Palermo and back from Catania
- Private arrival transfer in Palermo
- Palermo private city tour (4 hrs)
- 7 days car hire (pick up day 3 leaving Palermo)
- 8 nights accommodation in 4* hotels on a BB basis
Local one way drop off fee will apply for car rental from Palermo to Catania
Terms & Conditions
Prices are per person based on two people sharing a twin/double room; prices are subject to availability and possible change; normal booking conditions apply.
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