Mini tour of Sicily

6 days/5 nights

Catania/Palermo

Program

1st day: Arrival in the morning > Catania
In the morning arrival at the airport of Catania. Tour of Catania, especially: the Cathedral, the Duomo Square, the baroque street of Crociferi, the Collegiata Church and the typical fish market (the Pescheria).
The excursion will continue with the visit of the seaside villages of the Ionian coast of Catania, in particular we will enjoy the wonderful view of faraglioni in Acitrezza. They represent a characteristic seaside village and    gave Giovanni Verga the inspiration for his novel “I Malavoglia”. We will go on Acireale, the cradle of the baroque of Catania. Saint Sebastian, Saint Peter and Paul Churches and the Cathedral are the pride of the Ionian town.

2nd day: Etna and Taormina
Breakfast and leaving for the excursion on the mount Etna, the highest volcano in Europe, a real giant dominating and “protecting” the East Sicily. We will arrive at 2000 metres above sea level by travelling over streets that cross lava tongues of ancient eruptions and you will have the possibility to enjoy the breathtaking view of the Ionian coast of Sicily. In the afternoon we will move to Taormina to take a walk in the typical nice little streets. This wonderful town was founded in the IV century B.C. by the Siculi on the Tauro mount. Afterwards it was first a prosperous Greek town and then it fell under the rule of Rome. The most famous monument is the theatre, dating back to the III century B.C.. It belongs to the archaeological heritage of inestimable value and it is a place of incomparable and suggestive scenic beauty.

3rd day:  Syracuse >  Noto
Breakfast and leaving to visit Syracuse, the most beautiful and vast Greek colony in Sicily. We will visit the archaeological park of the Neapolis, the monuments of the island of Ortigia with its famous Aretusa Fountain, the Heaven Latomias and the suggestive Dionysus' Ear (whose acoustics produce extraordinary effects). In the afternoon we will move to Noto, declared property of the humanity by the UNESCO because of its huge artistic heritage and as cradle of Baroque in the southeast Sicily. Not far from Noto is situated the Villa del Tellaro, the remains of a fourteenth-century Roman villa, recently restored  bringing to light the extraordinary mosaic floorings that are interesting for theirs stylistic subtleties.

4th day: Piazza Armerina> Morgantina > Agrigento
Breakfast and leaving to visit  Piazza Armerina where we will visit the wonderful Villa Romana del Casale, famous for its priceless mosaics. On the way to Agrigento, we can stop for a short time at Morgantina, one of the most interesting, even if unknown, archaeological site of the Sicilian hinterland. Before the Greek colonisation, this town has had some prehistoric settlements of the Age of Castelluccio and of the Bronze Age. It extends on a little plain bounded by low hills. After we will continue on Agrigento where, if we arrive in time, we will be able to enjoy the wonderful sunset behind the temples of the ancient Greek town. The Temples Valley, with its Concorde Temple, the Hercules' Temple, the Juno's Temple and the Castor and Pollux's Temple, is the most important archaeological site in Sicily.

5th day:  Selinunte > Marsala > Erice
Breakfast and leaving for Selinunte, the biggest archaeological park in the Mediterranean sea. The town is situated near the mouth of the river where grows the wild parsley (Selinon), that gives the name both to the town and to the river. Selinunte is full of columns and ruins of colossal Greek temples. You may decide the possible tour of Mazzara del Vallo that is an important Sicilian port. The old town centre, once enclosed by Normal walls, includes many monumental churches, some of which  date back to the XI century. The area has an Islamic plant similar to the famous “medina” and that is why it is called Casbah. The Museum of the Dancing Satyr is worth  visiting. It takes the name from the most prestigious work, the Dancing Satyr precisely, that is a bronze statue originally produced during the Greek period at the Classical or Hellenistic age. The tour continues with the visit of the Salt Pans of Marsala where the windmills are mirrored in the basins for the extraction of the salt. In the afternoon, we will go on Erice, a little and charming medieval town situated at the top of Saint Julian mount. The Duomo, with its wonderful bell tower of 1312 and the evocative streets of the characteristic medieval village, is very important.

6th day:  Palermo > Monreale > leaving
Breakfast and tour of the Sicilian capital, one of the richest towns in history and art. We will visit especially: the Cathedral, Saint John of the Hermit Church, the Norman Palace and its Palatine Chapel. In the afternoon, we will visit Monreale, where we will see the Duomo and  its  contiguous Cloister.

>> Ask for an estimate for your group <<