Sicily

Sea, sun, culture, vulcanoes, red oranges...

Sicily Region is the largest region in Italy. It is only 3 kilometers from the peninsula, separated by the Strait of Messina, which also divides Tyrrhenian Sea from Ionian Sea. Also known as Trinacria, it offers a wide range of alternative itineraries of nature, history and tradition. Art and culture forged by so many domination over the centuries. It is surrounded by the archipelagos of the Aeolian, Egadi, Pelagie and the islands of Pantelleria and Ustica and is made unique by the evocative volcanoes, some of which are always active such as Etna and Stromboli.

How to get to Sicily

By plane

The most important and developed airports like Palermo “Falcone e Borsellino” and Catania “Fontanarossa”, guarantee national, international and intercontinental connections by both national and low-cost airlines.
New airports, which recently have been growing rapidly thanks to low-cost flights, connect Sicily with European capitals: Trapani-Birgi and Comiso "Pio la Torre".
We suggest you to check offers and promotion that low-cost company usually offer: Ryanair, Alitalia, Aliblue Malta, Blue Air, Mistral Air.

By train

You can get to Sicily with Intercity trains. To arrive to Messina you need 8 hours from Rome (tickets from 65€) and in 5 and a half hours from Naples (tickets from 50€).
You can also travel by train using a convenient cabin, and then make a trip overnight.

By car (ferry)

Only with a ferry you can reach Sicily by car. The shortest route is crossing the Strait of Messina, in just twenty minutes, from Calabria (port of Villa San Giovanni) arriving in Messina port. The ferry service is guaranteed 24 hours a day, with at least one departure every 40 minutes from both ports during daylight hours. The cost is around € 37 per way. For information, you can visit Caronte & Tourist website. You can save some money using the National Company Blue Ferries but departure is from Reggio Calabria port, the crossing is longer.
From the most important ports of the Tyrrhenian coast, you can reach the ports of the northern coast of Sicily, this is the best solution if you do not want to drive all or part of Italy. Palermo can be reached by ferry from Genoa and Livorno in 20 hours, from Naples and Salerno in 10 hours. From Naples you reach both Milazzo and Trapani in 16 hours. We suggest to check timetables and prices on Lines Ferries.

By bus

Many buses run every day from Rome and Naples and reach Palermo, Messina and Catania (return as well) in about 10/12 hours. Tickets are very cheap and range from € 25 to € 35 and include the cost of the ferry. The most important companies that guarantee the service are: SAIS Autoline, Azienda Siciliana Trasporti, Salemi Autoservizi.

Isolabella - Taormina, Province of Messina

Isolabella - Taormina, Province of Messina (Source: David Evers - CC BY 2.0)

Moving in Sicily

Sicily is a very vast region and also rich in hills and mountains. So often, go from city to city requires more time respect the average of other parts of Italy.

By train

The biggest cities are well connected with fast trains, we recommend to check routes, timetables and prices on the official Trenitalia website. It is the most convenient solution to move between the locations along Trapani-Messina and Palermo-Catania. For example, Taormina, one of the most important touristic destination, can be reached from Palermo in 3 hours and a half with a ticket of about € 20 and from Cefalù in 3 hours with about € 15.

By car

The car is the convenient solution if you are planning to discover not only the capitals, but also the tourist centers scattered across the provinces of the region.
The provincial capitals and many famous touristic destinations are well connected by motorways:
A18 - composed of two motorway trunks: Messina-Catania and Syracuse-Rosolini.
A19 - Messina-Catania passing through Caltanissetta and Enna
A20 - Messina-Palermo passing through Cefalù and Milazzo
A29 - The Palermo-Mazara del Vallo. A branch allows you to reach Trapani and Marsala.
Remember that access to highways requires highway tolls, and when you reach the city, be careful not to drive in restricted traffic areas (ZTL) and pay attention to parking fees. The car is still the most economic solution if you are traveling in group or with your family.

For example, getting by car from Palermo center you reach the center of
Trapani in just over an hour and a half with a cost of about € 12.
Catania in 2 and a half hours with a cost of about € 20.
Messina in 2 and a half hours with a cost of about € 30.
Agrigento in 2 and a half hours at a cost of about € 16.

By car from Catania center you reach the center of:
Messina in 1 hour and a half with a cost about € 15.
Caltanissetta in 1 and a half hours at a cost of about € 12.
Siracusa in 1 hour at a cost of about € 85.
Calculations are based on consumption of a citycar and included the costs of motorway toll.

In every sicilian airports you can rent a car. By visiting the site RentalCars , a very useful online tool to compare the offer of many rental companies, you can rent the car at a very convenient daily price.

By bus

Many buses guarantee a widespread coverage and allow you to reach all the provincial towns. From all airports you have buses that about every 30 minutes offer connection with the most important train stations and bus stations. From these stations it is possible to continue, by bus or train, to smallest town. Of course, smaller and remote town are not reached by the rail network, and are connected with the nearest city by at least 2 bus races a day.

Valle dei Templi (Temple Valley) - Agrigento

Valle dei Templi (Temple Valley) - Agrigento (Source: Andy Montgomery - CC BY-SA 2.0)

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