$1,449: 8-Day Small Group Sicily Tour Package

Day 1: Saturday – Palermo – Arrival 
Welcome to the warm, beautiful and pleasant island of Sicily! Upon arrival at Palermo airport please proceed through the Passport Control and collect your luggage inside the customs area. Then independent transfer to your hotel. Tonight we meet our staff at hotel for a short briefing. Then together we gather for dinner at a local restaurant.
Dinner

Day 2: Sunday – Monreale, Palermo & Cefalù
Breakfast at hotel. Our first stop is Monreale to see where the Arab-Norman art and architecture reached the pinnacle of its glory with the Duomo, launched in 1174 by William II. It represents scenes from the Old and New Testaments all in golden mosaics. Then onto Palermo to explore the lively Capo Market, a large open air street market that captures the flavor of Palermo’s Saracen Arab past. Capo is a blend of general confusion and a jumble of vendors’ stalls, winding toward the old gate –Porta Carini– of what used to be the city wall. This afternoon we continue by seeing Piazza Pretoria and Via Maqueda, whose “four corners” converge Palermo at a quartet of baroque palaces left over from the heyday of Spanish rule dating from 1560. This afternoon depart for Cefalù, a charming coastal town home to a massive Norman Cathedral with outstanding mosaics. Here we visit the city center and stroll down main street to reach the Cathedral. Later back to Palermo.
Breakfast

Day 3: Monday – Erice, Salt Flats, Olive Oil, Segesta & Winery
Early departure to tour western Sicily where we reach Erice uptown. The Elymians settled the medieval town of Erice, which was an important religious site associated with the goddess Venus. Wander through its ancient streets and visit some of the famous homemade pastry shops—world-famous for marzipan candies and other delicacies like almond and pistachio pastries. Later we travel to Trapani on the Salt Way Road. We tour the historic salt flats works, where the ancient tradition of harvesting salt from the sea is still practiced. Then, to an olive oil factory-farmhouse to enjoy a light lunch. This afternoon we continue onto Segesta, one of the major cities of the ancient indigenous Elymian people, to visit the unfinished Doric temple (Admission Fee: not included), late 5th century BC, built on a hilltop just outside of the ancient city and has a commanding view of the surrounding area. Then to a local winery to taste Sicilian wine. We then return to Palermo..
Breakfast, Lunch

Day 4: Tuesday – Piazza Armerina & Agrigento
Following breakfast, we drive through the interior of Sicily to reach Agrigento where we visit the finest of all ancient Greek sites—the complete Doric Temples (Admission Fee: not included). Later we continue to Piazza Armerina. On arrival light-lunch at country restaurant. This afternoon we view the ruins of the Roman Villa of Casale (Admission Fee: not included). The mosaics discovered here are celebrated among scholars of antiquity. Then continue to Taormina, the resort town of Sicily.
Breakfast, Lunch

Day 5: Wednesday – Syracuse
Today we depart for Syracuse, founded by colonists from Cornith in 735 B.C. and once the most important competitor to Athens. On arrival stroll through the streets of Ortygia Island, the heart of the city center. Light lunch at local restaurant. This afternoon visit through the Archaeological Park (Admission Fee: not included) highlights the Greek Theater, the Roman Amphitheater and the Paradise Quarry. Later back to Taormina.
Breakfast, Lunch

Day 6: Thursday – Taormina
Day at leisure to rest, shop or take an Optional Excursion.
Breakfast) 

Day 7: Friday – Taormina/Catania – Departure
Time to say goodbye to Sicily. Independent transfer to Catania airport. 
Breakfast

 

This small group Sicily tour package visits Palermo, Monreale, Cefalu, Segasta, Trapani, Erice, Syracuse, Taormina, and Agrigento.