Baroque Riches of Sicily

Three beautiful cities that showcase the history of Sicily and the Baroque. The Bellini Museum in Catania is a must for opera lovers. You can still swim in the sea in Ortigia in November!

We have just returned from a wonderful 15 days exploring the fascinating island of Sicily. In spite of its being mid October/early November we had hot sunshine and blue skies every day which felt essential to our experience. We wandered at leisure around the wonderful Moorish influenced towns of Trapani and Mazara del Vallo on the west coast. We loved the coastal town of Marinella on the south coast where we enjoyed an alfresco Sicilian- style karaoke evening at the Ristorante Baraonda! We were fascinated and a little horrified by the Museo of the Mafia in Salemi but very glad to have visited it. Marvellous ancient archaeological sites of atmospheric Selinunte and Agrigento were further highlights of our first week.

We drove from Agrigento to Siracusa via the Villa Romana de Casales to see the amazingly well preserved mosaics - an add-on we managed to find ourselves!

The beautiful Baroque towns of Siracusa and Ragusa lived up to expectations and we particularly enjoyed exploring the Neapoli Archaelogical Park on the mainland at Siracusa. Our last two nights in Catania rounded off the holiday perfectly - a vibrant city, much cleaner than we'd expected with its wonderful fish market and Baroque Cathedral and the ever present Etna as a backdrop. We were delighted to have a view of Etna from our 4th floor room at Il Principe.

Hotel accommodation was varied and on the whole excellent- the swimming pools at Nubia and Menfi were a real bonus given the hot weather.

As always Inntravel's directions throughout were a joy to follow- a bit like being on a treasure hunt -  and the notes very informative and insightful. 

We feel we have seen enough Baroque churches to last us a lifetime but that wont put us off returning as we'd like to visit Palermo one day.

Many thanks to Inntravel for an excellent experience.

INNTRAVEL NOTE: These customers combined our Western Sicily's Temples & Coast, and Baroque Riches of Sicily journeys.

We enjoyed a memorable week of Sicilian sunshine, food and hospitality in addition to the beautiful sites - from ancient Greek and Roman ruins to the stunning baroque architecture in Catania, Siracusa and Ragusa. We only scratched the surface of this stunning island and will have to return. All our travel arrangements ran smoothly. All our accommodation was very comfortable and of a high standard. The air conditioning still needed mid-October! The walking notes as ever were helpful along with the local maps. We couldn't get round to all the recommended sites so plan to re-visit. We relished the food, wine and local specialities. Cinzia and Davide at Domus Mariae Aubergo deserve a special mention for being so friendly and helpful. Similarly at Locanda Don Serafino the reception staff ensured our stay ran smoothly. We appreciated the local dining recommendations they made. Thanks to Inntravel for another wonderful holiday.  

We stayed in Taormina for 3 nights at Villa Sirina near the coast & rail station in Naxos. Excellent small hotel with pool & seaview from where we could walk to local restaurants on the seafront, & the bus stop to Taormina. Then in Syracuse by staying for 3 nights we had a day at the Archaeological Park & a day trip by rail to Noto. Noto train tickets need to be purchased a day in advance as we could not travel on the day as the train was full. Lunches at the market at La Salumeria Fratelli Burgio & dinner at Retro La Locanda were highlights. Also coffee after dinner in Piazza Duomo & Piazza Archimede.  We had 48 hours in Ragusa & visited Modica by rail in the morning, arranging a taxi to the station & on return walking back via the Cathedral in Ragusa Superiore. We had dinners in Trattoria Agli Archi (good view) & I Banchi (gourmet) & a lovely lunch in Il Barocco.

Each town/city had its own charm and the seafront location of the hotel in Siracusa was particularly special.

A great trip - Siracusa and Ragusa hotels lovely in contrasting ways, lovely climate in early Ocutover. Loads to see, eat and drink!

I was very impressed at the differences in the three locations in a relatively small area of Sicily. All the hotels were centrally located and comfortable rooms to relax in. 

Lots of sightseeing, great restaurants and choices of food.

Beautiful architecture. Well, it is Italy ☺️

Cortile Alessi up the steps from Il Principe Hotel was excellent - it had a lovely courtyard garden and the food was lovely. The Trattoria near Locando Don Serafino was recommended by the hotel and had amazing views over Ragusa from its terace, and the food was excellent too. Highlights were the train trip round Etna, the Archeological Park at Siracusa and the Roman Amphitheatre in Catania and the suggested walk in Ragusa.

It is an extraordinarily beautiful generous Island but has a complicated history of multiple invasions, devastating earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, corruption and at times unforgiving climate. We combined the Baroque Riches Tour with the Western Sicily Temples Tour and it was a fascinating journey into Mediterranean history punctuated with beaches and pistachio pesto and gelato. We loved Segesta Temple for its position and limestone Doric pillars, the clear waters of Scopello, the Norman fortified hill town of Erice, beautiful Ragusa and ancient Greek capital Syracusa. We had the time to drive into the middle of the Island and visit the Norman castles of the various quiet hill towns of Naro, Enna and Spelinga which was a different experience to the busier coastal towns and cities. 

You can’t avoid the magnificent views from every corner and the glimpses into the many influences from past empires in the culture, agriculture, religious practices and architecture. It’s fascinating and confusing, often things are open when they say closed and vice versa and train station clocks can be out by 5-10 minutes. My advice is get up early and do as much as your energy allows, plan as much as you can but be prepared to be flexible and if you are going to drive in Palermo you will need a sense of humour and full insurance on the rental car. 

The churches in Palermo were stunning. Bus and train journey fron Ragusa to Palermo was fascinating 

INNTRAVEL NOTE: This customer did our Journey 'Baroque Riches of Sicily' followed by our city add-on in Palermo

A really enjoyable self-guided rail journey staying in 3 quite different locations. Each hotel was located close to the sites and run by teams who couldn’t have been more helpful. The architecture, food and Sicilians were lovely. The train journeys between each location worked well as did the private transfer at the end of the trip. We added an additional night in Siracusa and Ragusa which I would recommend. We also trekked up Mount Etna rather than taking the circular train around it and took the bus to Scicli which is pretty rather than visiting Modica. The local trains are not reliable so it’s definitely worth considering using the bus instead. In hindsight if we’d had longer we would have added Taormina to the start of the trip. 

Our second holiday with Inntravel this year. Both trips really well organised. Baroque Sicily did not disappoint; the architecture, ancient sites and streetscape were magnificent. We loved using the trains with no need to drive in tiny streets and find parking spaces for a hire car! We also used local buses and found that it was a really good way to get to the centre of Noto from Siracusa and thus avoid the walk to and from the train station. There is much to see and do in this area but it was very hot when we were there end of June - thank goodness for the wonderful ice creams and sorbets and granitas! We ate really well, beautiful fresh fish was plentiful and lots of new wines to try! We had good experiences in Catania at Calarittu, La Pentolaccia and la Quatera; in Ortigia the Ortigia Fish Bar and Palazzo Bonnano; in Ragusa Terrazzo Orologio and La Bettola. 

Great way to get a taste of Sicily

Western Sicily's Temples & Coast:

The upgrade to the Patruni room at Relais Antiche Saline was definitely worth it. The boat trip and stroll round Mozia island are very relaxing. The Salt Museum attached to the Relais Antiche Saline is very good value especially with the expanation of the salt journey by staff. Segesta and Selinunte are both spectacular sites. Segesta can easily be visited en-route to Menfi. Getting to the Valley of the Temples early is well worthwhile, both to avoid the crowds and the worst heat of the day. Also the Roman sector was virtually empty and just as fascinating as the rest of the site, but a bit of a walk and easy to miss (there's a slightly overgrown underpass on the way to it).

Baroque Riches of Sicily:

Siracusa was our favourite stop, and we could easily have spent two extra days there. The puppet theatre show in Siracusa is great fun, even if you quickly lose the plot. The guided tour of Chiesa di San Filippo Apostolo in Siracusa is fascinating. Catania is an interesting city to explore, but Etna is a "must visit" destination, so extra time here is worthwhile.

Best restaurants:

Catania - Deliziosa; exquisite food at a very reasonable price; highly recommended.

Siracusa - Moon; quality dining but expect to pay accordingly!

Ragusa - That's A Moro - Varied menu with interesting specials, in particular the fish dishes. Attentive, friendly staff. Reasonably priced. 

Would also reccommend the tour in English of the Benedictine Monestary in Catania; best to prebook tickets online before departing.  

Glad we had an additional night in Ragusa; the city is simply 'Wow'!

Highly recommend the trip round Etna on the Circumetna railway. Buy your arancini for lunch at the wonderful Savia on Via Etna on the way to the station. Tip - when changing to the main line at Giarre on the return journey get your ticket from the tabac next door to avoid the long queue at the ticket machine.

The Benedictine Monastery in Catania is worth a visit but do book online beforehand as the English tours get booked up. You see more on a Sunday when the University is closed.

Also recommend L'Osteria da Seby restaurant in Ortigia.

We thought that Siracusa was very good and would certainly consider returning there.

An exciting holiday but requiring some initiative on our part to travel well. Decent maps would help particularly of that part of Sicily which is covered by the holiday. One intriguing area which surprised us was around Augusta. We passed enormous petro-chemical works and oil depots all along that part of the coast. Oil tankers were to be seen lying off the coast waiting to unload.  Is it not spoken of for reasons of security/diplomacy  

We really enjoyed our trip to this corner of Sicily. Train travel between the three towns - and an extra trip to Noto - was very straightforward and interesting. There was a lot to see in all the towns each of which had their own character - though our appetite for churches was waning a little by the end of the week! Due to a flight cancellation by Easyjet we ended up in Ragusa on Palm Sunday and the processions were fun to watch. In Siracusa we really liked the Puppet theatre and museum. Well worth a visit even though the show was in Italian so we had little idea what was going on! The walk along the seafront to the fort was also very enjoyable. Ragusa is very hilly so a ride on the little green train was a good way of seeing the town without too much effort! No shortage of good restarants, often on back streets away from the busy squares. For an interesting meal, we can recommend I Banchi in Ragusa. 

A good holiday: interesting places, excellent food and wine.  All three hotels were nice, the hotels in Syracusa and Ragusa were excellent.

We had 4 nights in Syracusa and 3 nights in Ragusa, it is definitely worth extending the holiday in this way if you can.

Restaurants:  All the hotels are good at making recommendations. In Syracusa Trattoria Spizzuliamu was good.  In Ragusa the hotel's own restaurant was excellent.

We had a great holiday. So many good things happened, difficult to choose. In October there was a surprising lot of butterflies (European Swallowtail, Humming bird hawk moth included) and Mediterranean plants in flower. The sea was clean and warm everywhere, lots of swimming. Palermo is a little bit difficult to get your head around, the red hop on hop off bus was a big help. Your ticket lasts 24 hours so start one afternoon, and do it again or use a different loop next morning. Don't miss a stop off at the Orta Botanica gardens, and its lovely quiet shaded cafe. In Catania the streets beside the fish market are full of great fish restaurants. There is a law in Italy that menus must be on view outside. At 1930 the deserted restaurants suddenly fill up. The same thing happens in the restaurant district at Palermo, about four blocks south west of hotel Tonic. All the street markets were great, fish, vegetables, street food. All the hilltop towns were highlights. Strong recommendation: buy a local SIM card.

INNTRAVEL NOTE: These customers combined our rail journey Baroque Riches of Sicily with our walk Wonders of Western Sicily and our Palermo City add-on

Information package was excellent. 

Lovely trip, beautiful cities. Would recommend a trip to Agrigento, it was incredible as was Roman Villa at Piazza Armerina. A trip up Etna is a must as well. Lovely food and wine, great restaurants. A really enjoyable interesting trip. Sicily was a real revelation, a beautiful Island full of fascinating history.

HIGHLIGHTS: For a treat, restaurant of Locanda Don Serafino - memorable meal. In Siracusa, very small local fishrestaurant Cod - good fish, nice staff. Day trip Etna, Isola Bella and Taormina from Catania enjoyable and well designed.

This was a wonderful break after two years of not travelling abroad - so nice to have Inntravel sort everything out and advise on the changing Italian Covid rules. Sad to come home - we wished we had booked extra days in Ragusa and Siracusa. It wasn't hot but we still managed to have several lunches sat in the sun - the plus side of being in January is that there are so few other tourists around. Walking around the sea wall in Siracusa was a treat every day. Sadly the train trip around Etna was cancelled because of a strike - instead we took a day trip to Taormina which was absolutely wonderful.

Restaurants: Ragusa - Cucina e Vino as recommneded is very good, as is pizza place A Rusticana; Siracusa - suffered here a little to start with as so many shut in January, but 2 exceptional meals in Montecarlo and Antica Locanda (where the Italians go for seafood); Catania - Deliziosa as recommended. Having the Inntravel restaurant recommendations is always reliable.

The itinerary was superb and we have certainly learnt a lot. The day trips suggested were excellent and the recommendations to visit some of the 'smaller' churches were very much appreciated. There were many hidden gems in the walking routes. The hotels were very well-chosen, with different characters and the locations were really good. All in all, we had a wonderful time, and would certainly want to go back to Sicily again.