Sicily: A Cultural Mosaic
DAY 1: Fly overnight to Palermo.
Day 2 (Palermo): Arrive in Palermo, the regional capital of Sicily. Meet your travel director and transfer to your hotel. Enjoy a free afternoon to discover the thriving neighborhood streets of this city, followed by a welcome dinner.
Day 3 (Palermo): Today, explore the beautiful and bustling Sicilian capital during a guided tour of Palermo. Learn about its important history as a cultural melting pot of Greek, Roman, Arab, Norman, Vandal, Byzantine, German and Italian people. Also visit Monreale, famous for its orange, olive and almond trees and its stunning Norman-Byzantine cathedral. After a free afternoon, dinner will be served in a traditional fish trattoria in a village near Palermo.
Day 4 (Trapani): Travel today to the Western coast of Sicily to visit the beautiful Doric temple of Segesta, then climb the mythic mountain of Erice to visit the well-preserved medieval town at its top, which was believed by the Romans to be the home of the goddess Venus. Continue to Trapani for dinner.
Day 5 (Trapani): Start the day by visiting the salt pans of Trapani, where sea salt was harvested for Sicilian cuisine for centuries. In the afternoon, take a tour of the Phoenician island of Motya, once one of the wealthiest and most powerful commercial centers in the region.
Day 6 (Enna): Dive deep into history today, beginning with a visit to the archaeological site of Selinunte, an ancient Greek colony and home of five temples. Then travel to Agrigento, one of the most important cities in the Mediterranean, to visit the Valley of the Temples, a UNESCO Heritage Site. Continue to Enna for dinner.
Day 7 (Syracuse): Admire beautiful Roman mosaics in the Villa Romana del Casale on your first stop today at the Piazza Armerina. Continue to Caltagirone, the vibrant ceramics capital of Sicily, where the ceramics tradition extends back to prehistoric times. Continue to the storied city of Syracuse for dinner.
Day 8 (Syracuse): Immerse yourself in the centuries-old history and culture of Syracuse, an important locale in ancient times and now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, today. Explore the island’s ancient Greek ruins with a local guide. In the afternoon, take a cruise around the charmingly romantic island of Ortyigia.
Day 9 (Taormina Area): This morning, travel to the gorgeous city of Noto to admire the one of the best examples of Sicilian Baroque architecture. After a guided tour, journey to a local winery for a wine tasting and lunch. In the afternoon, drive to your hotel near Taormina for dinner and an overnight.
Day 10 (Taormina Area): Begin your day with a visit to the beautiful Sicilian ‘pearl of the Mediterranean,’ Taormina! Enjoy a guided tour of this popular city, characterized by lively streets and breathtaking views. After free time in the afternoon, enjoy dinner on the slopes of Mt Etna at the famous winery Barone di Villagrande.
Day 11 (Taormina Area): Cap off your Sicilian adventure with a day excursion to Messina, the third largest city on the island, to admire works by Caravaggio at the Galleria d'Arte Contemporanea di Messina. Continue by ferry to Reggio di Calabria on the Italian mainland to see the famous statues the Riace Bronzes, also known as the Riace Warriors. Spend a final evening near Taormina.
Day 12: Fly to the United States.
