The Mountains of Sicily

Walking through the mountains of the Madonie National Park was a wonderful experience to see nature largely undisturbed by humans. May is a great time to visit when it is green and the flowers are bright and colourful.  We also loved seeing the abundance of butterflies, lizards as well as farm animals and were lucky to sight wild boar and deer.  Staying in the mountain towns is a fabulous way to experience authentic Sicilian life away from mass tourism. Despite many speaking little English; the Sicilians we met were all friendly and welcoming. We also enjoyed discovering the history of Sicily with the mix of Mediterranean with North African influence in the architecture and cuisine. Part of the National Park is also a Geopark and we enjoyed visiting museums to see a wealth of excavations and artefacts.

 We also added a 2 day add-on to Palermo which we would thoroughly recommend. Although dirty and dilapidated in parts, although there is currently a lot of renovations going on, this is more than compensated by the huge variety of architectural styles of the buildings,the multitude of historical sites and churches to visit and the vibrancy of the street markets. The resplendant Cathedral offering rooftop walks with vast views over Palermo and the surrounding mountains and its surrounding grounds should not be missed.  The harbourside and the Botanical Gardens are all well worth visiting and a welcome escape from the bustle of the city.

INNTRAVEL NOTE: This customer did our self-guided walking holiday 'The Mountains of Sicily (7 nights) followed by our city add-on in Palermo

Gorgoeous scenery.  Beautiful old cities with cobblestone streets.  Really felt like I was in history. 

We were here in late April; the wild flowers were stunning and the walk through meadows and through high mountain paths just glorious.  As warned in the notes, the final 10K of the walk to Bergi was very very hard.  It was a relief to wake the next day and still be able to walk - so a stroll into Castlebuono was actually relaxing. The Castle also closes at 1pm for siesta, btw..

Sicily was as beautiful as we expected, it was a lovely time to visit, with wild flowers out, warm and very quiet. A week later may have been ideal with the weather forecast saying it's usually a little warmer. Though we were lucky as didn't need waterproofs, apart from getting to the restaurant one night. 

The walking was relaxing, a few ups , but not as challenging as other mountain holidays. We were regularly rewarded with stunning scenery, and hardly anyone around. Connecting paths were a bit roady but roads quiet, though be aware that did mean fast driving when a vehicle appeared!

It is certainly worth doing the extra route on Day 5 from Rifugio Crispi to ascend Cozzo Luminario, even though no views due to rolling mist, the walk through the woods was atmospheric up to it and down through the meadow to get back in route was beautiful. The path made the climb not too steep. 

The hilltop towns were great places to explore and the Inntravel notes, of the history, things to see, were up to their usual interesting high standard. As was the background notes in the history of Sicily. I love pre reading these , one of the reason we keep using Inntravel! 

Accomodation and food was very Sicilian, we loved trying different dishes, and food was of a high standard throughout. 

Villa Raino was a pleasure, stunning views, welcoming, but be warned food kept on coming, so delicious (especially the gush, we fo not eat meat) it was hard to stop eating! 

The vegetarian tasting menu at Yerax in Geraci Siculo was amazing, so fresh from their own gardens, and Antonio , the owner, very attentive and informative. 

The Agriturismo Bergi, organic farm, for the last two nights was a wonderful way to end the walk/ our time in Sicily. Worth the extra walk from Castelbuonoat the end of the day. We ditched the offered inntravel walk as it meant retracing some of the previous day route  so up the steep cobbled roads we had come down. Lovely just to potter locally round the farm and surroundings, and have a bottle of rose and huge salad for lunch . 

All organisation was up to our expected high standard from Inntravel. Only delay was caused by a smoking Mount Etna , so the planes had to delay landing for a few hours on  our return journey! 

The mountains and hill villages of the Madonie National Park where absolutely wonderful in everyway. The walks were all lovely, through very different landscapes (farmland, mountain wilderness, forests, villages) and we saw/ heard an abundance of wildlife including deer, wild ponies, wild pigs, eagles and a nightingale, and walked through carpets of wildflowers everywhere. The villages were a revelation. They felt both historic and fascinating, spotlessly clean, welcoming and a pleasure/privilege to potter around in. In Petralia we met the young mayor who asked us why more British tourists didn't come to his town. We had no answer (but were very glad that they didn't as one of the highlights of this holiday for us was the lack of tourists and tourist menus and the fact that no English was spoken anywhere - this was so refreshing). If it's open, don't miss the small cafe/bar in the main square in Petralia at sunset when the swifts are swooping. The circular walk from Petralia was amazing. On this day we came upon herds of wild deer, wild ponies, eagles, a snake, a nightingale and an entire meadow of bee orchids (just up from the Roman bridge). The meal at Verax in Geraci was very special indeed... similar to a Michelin-star experience. Our only disappointment were the options for the last day, which didn't seem very well thought through or organised by Inn Travel. 

On travel options (rather than the expensive pre-booked taxis to and from airports), we took the public bus from Catania to Nicosia (9 Euros) and then a taxi. The bus goes from the bus stops in front of the arrivals terminal. They go about every 3 hours but can leave late and ours was very full (we got the last 2 seats on it and you can't prebook). On our return we got a taxi from Castelbueno to Cefalu (70 euros) and then the train from Cephalu to Messina, and then Messina to Catania. This was very easy and cheap and we booked it in advance online (and even upgraded to first class for about 10 euros extra). It was a lovely way to see a lot of Sicily in a short time and a huge contrast to the remote hill villages. We were very glad we only had 1.5 hours to look around Cephalu. This was more than enough!   

We loved the remoteness of the hill top villages with their narrow streets as well as the equally remote and generally well structured walks with far reaching views. We experienced interesting wildlife from eagles to butterflies and dung beetles pushing enormous balls uphill! Walking through hundreds of deer in the rutting season was our highlight which was during the first half of the walk from Petralia to Castelbuono. The second half of this walk could be challenging or uncomfortable for those with knee or other joint problems, being continuously downhill for almost 1,400m.  Walking during late September/early October was comfortably warm with clear visibility. 

My wife and I thoroughly enjoyed our week walking through the Madonie mountains of Central Sicily.  There were many positives.  Our walk started on 17th September and yet we found the weather to be mainly benign (there was some quite welcome rain).  The remote countryside, especially beyond Pomieri, was beautiful with interesting flora and fauna.  The guide notes were mostly very helpful and accurate.  All of the hotels were good -  and the food excellent - with just a slight drop in standard at Petralia.  We were taken aback by how friendly the locals were :  and we had several fellow Inn Travellers with whom we could share notes at the end of the day.  All in all, highly recommended.

This is a beautiful walk. Full of big skies and magnificent views, wonderful flora and fauna and such friendly people. The Madonie Park is totally unspoilt and deviod of people, so if you want to get away from it all, this is your place!  At the end of each day, you could enjoy the wonderful Sicilian hospitality in simple but charming accomodation, and timeless ancient villages. I would certainly recommend this holiday. 

The cacophony of birdsong, the abundance of beautiful and plentiful wild flowers, the isolation and peacefulness of just being in nature was blissful. The weather in late May was warm and sunny, but not too hot. Only one morning of rain, but we walked out of that. We recommend doing Option A: Circular via Pizzo di Saint'Otieri from Petralia Sottana. Fabulous views back to the town perched on the side of the hill. And no-one about other than deer. All of the travel arrangements worked very well. You can buy tickets to and from the airport to Centrale Station on the bus itself, and you can buy tickets for the bus to Gangi at the bus station before getting on the bus. The hotels were each wonderful and those with a view out of the window via a balcony or terrace all the more so. The food was fabulous at all hotels, and the hospitality was warm and genuine. The only slight disappointment was with the walking notes which we think need to be checked. We would recommend the gpx files in terrain as untouristic as this. But the untouristic nature of this holiday was its main joy. 

The walking was great, but be prepared for varied weather conditions. We had a morning of very strong wind, hazy days so that visibility wasn't great (we never saw Mount Etna!) and a foggy walk from Petralia Sottana to Castelbuono. The food was great and the meal at Yerax was particularly good. What a beautiful location and Antonio is fantasic. That was a particularly enjoyable evening. We also really enjoyed Bergi. We could have spent another day there. Maybe allow for building in some rest days without walking?

Day 5 walk including ancient holly glade and sighting wild black pigs was the main non culinary highlight but we enjoyed the whole holiday very much. The food at Albergo Castello was exceptional.

This was our first Inntravel holiday and it didn't dissapoint. The walks each day were supremely enjoyable with stunning scenery, beautiful wild flowers and incredible birdsong. To see the hilltop villages looming into view every day was a real thrill, with a real sense of accomplishment. The only problem we now face is ensuring our next Inntravel holiday is as good.

Our favourite walk was probably Geraci Siculo to Petralia Sottana - a good length and varied. We enjoyed the warm hospitality of the Conte family at Villa Raino and the evening meal at Yerax. Agriturismo Bergi has lovely grounds to stroll round, and the pool was much appreciated after a hot walk.

The accommodation was stunning, the transfers and transportation was seamless, and the walks were relatively easy to navigate.

My parents and I thoroughly enjoyed this holiday.

Highlights: Walking in the actual park was a delight. Finding local trattoria. Meeting others enroute.

The Mountains of Sicily Self Guided Hiking Holiday was outstanding!!! ... our first experience with Inntravel. We plan to book one or two more trips throigh Inntravel for next year.  

We had fantastic weather during our October week in Sicily. Sun every day but a gentle breeze to keep us cool. We loved the contrast between the open countryside (even though it was all a bit parched) and the hill towns. We managed to find a few wonderful Sicilian icecreams but many places had already closed at the end of September.

We thoroughly enjoyed our third Inntravel holiday. The walks and towns were beautiful, the trails uncrowded, the food and accommodations were wonderful. We look forward to our next trip!

We were very impressed with the transfer arrangements, and the standard of all but one of the accommodations. Everyone we dealt with was friendly and helpful and any extras we had at the locations were clearly marked and charged accordingly. The instructions on the walks were good, we did have a compass and some experience of mountain trails so we managed the few tricky bits we were warned about. The walks themselves were very good, with amazing landscape views and plenty of local wildlife. We thoroughly enjoyed them. Whilst it may not be possible, a couple of the walks involved hard walking steeply up or down at the start and end of the walk, on roads, and we did wonder if drop off or pick up points could be altered. eg. leaving Villa Raino to walk to Geraci Siculo was a vey steep climb up a road, and the descent at the end of the walk from Petralia to Castelbuono was a very steep decline, descending the road winding up to the refuge. I was unable to take part in the second walk, from Geraci to Petralia and the hotel manager was very helpful, arranging for me to go in the large car that collected the luggage. Three of the hotels we stayed in were comfortable and had good wifi coverage, and the food was tasty. Villa Raino was more rustic in nature but welcoming and friendly, and the same menu was served to all the visitors and was fine. Unfortunately, our group of six and a couple who were on the same trip, were very disappointed with the food at Agriturismo Bergi. We were served a menu that was very poor in comparison to other diners in the restaurant and we did feel very second rate. The staff were friendly and helpful but we did feel that the food was not of the quality we had at the other places and was far below the standard on offer. Also, the wifi there was poor. Apart from that, we had a great holiday, which was challenging and exhausting and exhilarating and also, thank goodness, restful at times.

Tip:  Be aware no lifts in the hotels so don't overpack. However a travel kettle is useful if you like to make tea!

We were very impressed by the slick logistics and the attention to detail by Inntravel. Thanks for a great holiday!

A wonderful insight into the wild, remote interior of Sicily. Not suitable for beginners and challenging in places, but very enjoyable (in warm, dry conditions!). Memorable sunsets in hilltop villages and delicious local cuisine, highly recommended.

We had a great holiday in splendid weather - upper 20's in October! The meal in Geraci was a standout. We would highly recommend the optional walk to Pizzo di Corvo above Petralia for getting right away into a remote area.

We enjoyed the trip very much. Especially, seeing dozens of deer in the Parco delle Madonie. Meeting the Sicilians was always a pleasure. They love their island and are happy to share it with their guests. The walks and the scenery - flora and fauna - were very nice. Don't miss the pizza at the restaurant in the Albergo il Castello. You can share it with your partner as it is quite big and filling. Cefalu was lovely. Make sure to visit it and even take a swim there. 

This was a holiday of ups and downs, and I don't just mean the hills! The evening meals were the ups, all good or excellent, although sometimes a written English menu would have been nice. More ups: the scenery was fabulous, still quite green for the time of year; even two misty mornings in the towns added an atmosphere; I was lucky to be there during the deer rutting season, so antler clashing stags added to the numbers of deer dashing between the trees. I even saw some wild boar in the flesh and not just their digging evidence. The downs: the lack of way marking in places where there was no evident track, the 'gates', worse than I have ever come across before, the cows in one place, blocking a narrow area and advancing towards me, all the other cows were fine. BUT huge thanks to Inntravel who rang the previous hotel who came and rescued my by taking me to the next hotel by car. I think it is essential to have the GPX files that Inntravel recommends  for the non way marked and non pathed sections. I would also emphasise that very little English in spoken, even in the hotels and that some of the electrical sockets do not take the standard Continental adaptor. For the first time I met several other Inntravellers, it was good to share the ups and downs of the days. All in all I am glad I went, but I don't think I would go again, not something I have felt about most of my Inntravel holidays (and there have been many).

INNTRAVEL NOTE: The organisation who maintain one of the long-distance paths in the area are refreshing waymarks and adding more waymarks every year.

The hotel and its location at Nubia was a lovely place to start the holiday. The local salt flats pans and museum were very interesting, as was Erice. All the temples were worth visiting.  My favourite was Selinunte. For the walking week I definitely recommend using the GPX files over the notes. We stayed in seven different hotels and each had its own interesting attractions. All the hotels were excellent and full of character.

INNTRAVEL NOTE: This customer combined our self-guided journey 'Western Sicily's Temples & Coast' with our walking holiday 'The Mountains of Sicily'.

Mountains of Sicily - Despite the very high temperatures in mid September, we really enjoyed the variety of the hikes, the small inns (especially Raino and Notti O'Tunn), their wonderful hospitality, and the generally good meals provided at every place. It was wonderful to be able to eat dinner at each place and not have to seasrch for restaurants. We also met many other Inntravel walkers doing the trip around the same time and then often met them on the trails. The swimming pools at two of the inns were most welcome after a long day in the hot sun. I would suggest that trips in Sicily should be in the spring or later in the fall.

Wonders of Western Sicily - The highlights of this trip were the remote and quiet hike on the small island of Levanzo and the beautiful hike in the Zingaro Nature Reserve. Favignana was very busy with bicycles and scooters which made it difficult to really enjoy the walks on this island. 

This was my first Inntravel holiday and visit to Italy since the pandemic, so it was good to find the trip as well-organised as ever, and the country thriving. I was initially nervous about being able to make the bus connection in Palermo, but in the event I had time to spare - though I'd recommend booking a taxi from the airport in advance, as the timing is quite tight. The hotels were located in or just outside quintessentially Italian small towns; they all had lots of character and the multi-course meals were delicious, with very reasonably-priced drinks. A couple of the walks felt quite long, but the routes were well worked-out and took in some spectacular views. I was travelling alone, but there were several other Inntravellers on the same holiday, which made the days when we walked together, and our shared evening meals, a very convivial experience.

We very much enjoyed the holiday in an area that was well off the beaten track giving us a flavour of rural Sicily and the mountains. We had perfect walking weather, and the length and difficulty of the walks were as we expected. We finished each within time scheduled. The last day of walking to Castelbuono was a highlight with mountain views, and wildlife activity, with particularly close encounters with wild boar and deer.

The walks were wonderful. On the way to Castelbuono, we saw several groups of deer and families of wild boar. The rifuigo was open was we passed through on a Friday. If you can you could call ahead to find if it is a place you could snack on the day of your walk.  Mind you the woodfired bread used by Albergo Castello for their picnic for this walk is not to be missed either. We walked to Castelbuono on our second day at Bergi having seen Cefalu on our way to Gangi.  Definitely worth exploring and seeing the stuccoed Chapel atop the castle. At Petralia Soprana on our walk from Petralia Sottana we loved lunch at Trattoria Salvatore. All was lovely but the desserts of Cassata Al forno and something called a sfoglie of the region were both delicious and novel to us.  Mind you we now love sampling cassata whenever possible. The welcome at Casa Raina was especially wonderful.  Bergi too had a warmth of welcome from all that was special.  

Well organised holiday with fairly challenging walking if you're not a regular hill walker. Interesting towns to visit away from the usual tourist areas. Watching the Champions League final in the Saxum pub in Petralia was fun. We opted to visit Cefalu as the other option on day 6 wasn't viable with the buses & we hadn't chosen the 10 day holiday. It's well worth a visit though the taxi is pricey. 

Fantastic scenery. Very interesting and welcoming places to stay with authentic local food and drink. Walks of the right length. Choice on some days.

We very much enjoyed our first self-guided walking holiday. The terrain was varied, with challenging sections and rewarding views. We had the added benefit of spring flowers. We were the only walkers on each day with the occasional farm animals interrupting the peace with their bells. The accommodation, meals and logistics were all very good making the whole experience very excellent value.

Sicily was a new experience for us and it was a real step back into a more remote, simpler lifestyle. The villages were very quiet with little in the way of nightlife. If you found one bar/cafe open that was a bonus. That said the standard of food provided in the various locations was of a fairly high standard (if you avoid the meat courses!)

Excellent route notes. Very well organised and thought through. Would definitely recommend walking boots (not walking shoes) as in bad weather the underfoot conditions were wet and very muddy.

Walks are stunning, beautiful scenery flowers and butterflies.  Be aware that the mountain villages are very remote and there are very few (if any) coffee shops/bars apart from your hotel. If visiting Catania, make time to visit Orto Botanica a beautiful Botanical Garden, very little advertised (free to enter and walk around).

INNTRAVEL NOTE: This customer did our self-guided walking holiday 'The Mountains of Sicily' followed by our city add-on in Catania.

The highlight was meeting up with the two pairs of walkers who saved us at San Cosimano and we walked as a group on the final long walk to Castelbuono. The evening meals especially at Bergi became very social with all the Inntravellers seated at a long table. I appreciate that this may be a one off as our friends who did the same walks were on their own.

Excellent variety of places to stay & different meals. Great recommendation from Inntravel re Trattoria in Pettrana Soprana for lunch and for lunch in Gangi. Yerax restaurant in Geraci Siculo was superb with amazing food & a very friendly interested host. Stunning wild flowers particularly in Gangi. 

Although we came home early from the holiday at our own request, we did enjoy most of it, and we thank Inntravel for expediting this for us. Our perceptions were clouded by the fact that we only had two warm days and at times, it rained, the clouds were right down and there was thunder and lightning. Everything is better in the sun and warmth! We did have highlights: we met lovely Sicilians, eg Aldo & Piera, the girl at Il Castello, Antonio and the meal at Yerax, the wonderful wild flowers outside the towns, the blue butterflies on the Via dei Frati, seeing a Dung Beetle rolling his ball of dung, the perfume of the Gorse flowers, meeting some really lovely fellow Inntravellers. 

Wonderful wild flowers

In May the flowers in the mountains are like foaming herbaceous borders, scented  and full of colour, tidied up by little families of wild black boar and piglets.

Thoroughly enjoyed this holiday! Loved Sicily. You do need your Italian phrase book and a compass. All the hotels were spotless and welcoming.

 Madonie National Park was a pleasure to enjoy. We took the opportunity to take in the village walk and seaside town and were very pleased to have done so particularly as we had a great view of Mount Etna. 

An amazing well organised holiday surpassing all our expectations. The scenery and wildlife was stunning and the mountain walking so remote we didn't see another walker for 4 1/2 days. The wonderful hospitality we received from all our hosts and the Sicilian people has left us wanting more.

Another fantastic trip with Inntravel. We loved the variety of the walking through stunning Sicilian landscape and villages. Some of the accomodation was more basic than with other Inntravel trips, which we expected given Sicily is a relative newcomer when it comes to hiking holidays. This was made up for by the excellent paths which were off the beaten track and especially the food at the end of the day (Yerax in particular was incredible with its very modern take on Sicilian food). Dont miss out on eating panettone (and buying some for at home!) and granita in Castelbuono.

The planning for this hike was really impressive. The terrain really varied, as did the style of accommodation and meals provided. The detailed track notes, combined with the GPS maps made navigation achievable, but still challenging at times. This area of Sicily sees few tourists, and we had a warm reception from locals for the entire hike. We loved it!

Our personal highlight is that we completed the walking successfully!! I think you should review the distance on the last day of walking as already referred to earlier & lay greater emphasis on the right turn after the gate at the shepherds hut on Piano Pumo, suggest turn right down 2 steps, not SA on the wide track.

Variety of accommodation and food included was great. Walking routes also varied and interesting. A fantastic holiday, would strongly recommend. 

This was our most enjoyable Inntravel holiday. The food was beyond our expectation. Choice of accommodation was wonderful, each location offering something different from the beautiful relaxing pool and gardens of Bergi to Aldo's smile and welcome at Raino. The people we met were warm and friendly. What made the holiday was meeting up with numerous Inntravel guests over the week and enjoying their company over dinner and beers.

This was our first holiday with Inntravel - hopefully the first of many.  The seamless attention by Inntravel to all of the necessary detail attached to a holiday meant that we were free to enjoy the walking, good food and phenomenal views. It was fun to meet other walkers and swap notes. We can't recommend Inntravel highly enough. Thank you. 

This was our first holiday since Covid lockdown and one of our best. Sicily is a beautiful, historic island and the walks and overnight locations were designed to ensure we saw and experienced much of that beauty as well as the local culture. Our enjoyment was made all the greater by our decision to travel to and from Sicily by train via Paris, Turin (where we stayed overnight) and the night sleeper from Rome to Sicily. A great adventure and grand tour helped by the ticketing skills of the Inntravel team.

INNTRAVEL NOTE: Customers booked their stays in Turin with Inntravel, staying at Grand Hoel Sitea.