This Sicily custom tour I designed with my in-country associates for Marie and Frank wishing to visit her ancestor’s home town. Tour started and ended in Palermo.

Sicily custom tour package inclusions:

• 2 nights in Agrigento
• 2 nights in Ragusa
• 1 night in Siracusa
• 1 night in Taormina
• 1 night in Palermo
• Private transfer to and from the airport in Palermo
• Private english speaking drivers throughout the itinerary in Luxury Mercedes vehicles
• Private guided tours including entrance fees to: Valley of the Temples, Castello di Donnafugata, Montalbano police station in Scicli, Neapolis archelogical park in Siracusa,  Noto, Roman theater in Taormina
• Foodie experiences: chocolate producer in Modica, olive oil and cheese producers

Itinerary

DAY 1: PALERMO – AGRIGENTO

Upon arrival at the airport in Palermo, meet your driver and transfer to Agrigento.

DAY 2: AGRIGENTO & CANICATTI

Meet your guide at 09:30 for a private guided tour of the Valley of Temples – entrance fees included

During the golden age of Ancient Greece, it was known as Akragas. One of the leading cities of Magna Graecia, it was the hometown of philosopher Empedocles. Later on, it became Agrigentum in Latin, and Kirkent or Jirjent in Arabic. Agrigento is primarily famous for the Valley of Temples, impressive remains of Greek Doric temples. Agrigento is also the birthplace of the novelist, poet and playwright Luigi Pirandello who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1934. Since 1997 the Valley of Temples and the other ancient sites in the area have been included in the UNESCO’s World Heritage List. The actual core of the archaeological site of Agrigento lies in the magnificent temples. The oldest in Agrigento is the temple of Heracles or Hercules, while the best-preserved one is Temple of the Concordia, probably the most impressive Greek Doric temple still extant in our day, after Athens’s Parthenon.

Your guide and your driver will then take you to visit a natural highlight on the west side of the island: the Scala dei Turchi which is a cliff which rises above the sea along the coast of Realmonte. Also known as the Stair of the Turks or the Turkish Steps, Scala dei Turchi is a terraced white rock staircase that stretches over the coast below. Scala dei Turchi is a very popular destination for visitors who want to see the terraced white stone steps that have naturally formed on the cliff side. The steps are the second most popular tourist site in Agrigento, after the Valley of the Temples. Your driver and guide will then take you to Canicattì to visit your family’s home town.

DAY 3: MODICA & RAGUSA

After breakfast, your driver will take you for your first visit of the day at Castello di Donnafugata in Ragusa for a visit (entrance fees included). Following your visit of the Castello, enjoy a Chocolate factory tour in Modica, the oldest in Sicily, since 1880. In the laboratory, pastries are produced every day and garnished one by one. From biscuits to waffles for cannoli, from “cassatine” to ice cream, every day, the daily ritual of creation is performed. The end ends in Ragusa where you will spend the next 2 nights in a charming Bed and Breakfast.

Ragusa located in the heart of the Val di Noto in the southeast of Sicily. Immersed in an area very rich in natural and architectural beauties, the city rises on the Iblei Mountains. Baroque architecture constitutes the most widespread artistic style in the Ragusa area. For its historical and artistic importance, Ragusa became part of the UNESCO heritage sites. You will then continue the tour visiting one of the best sights in the Ragusa area, the”Castello di Donnafugata”, a pseudo-Venetian-Gothic country villa in the countryside.

DAY 4: PUNTA SECCA, SCICLI & MARZAMEMI

Today you have a full day with your driver of discovering the best sites of the extreme south-east of Sicily. A visit to the lovely seaside town Punta Secca, with its placid landscape of the sea and location of Montalbano house, the famous TV series followed by a visit of Scicli: the city that looks like a crib is a UNESCO World Heritage Site along with other seven Val di Noto‘s villages; its historical centre is an expression of the creative genius of the late Baroque age. Visit at Montalbano Police station (entrance fee included). Continue the visit to discover the coloured sea village of Marzamemi.

DAY 5: NOTO & SIRACUSA

This morning your private driver picks you up to meet your local expert guide for a guided tour in Noto including the entrance fees to the Neapolis Archeological Park

Noto is a small town in the south-east, and the heart of Sicilian Baroque. Its cathedral, perfectly raised and rebuilt again after 10 years of difficult work, was included in the UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Your driver and your guide, will then continue towards Syracuse, the city on the east cost of Sicily, with a millenary history, included in the extended metropolis of the Classical age. Visit the “Neapolis Archaeological Park” where the most famous monuments of the city were built, like the Greek theatre, the Roman amphitheatre, the Altar of Heron II (a grand altar for public sacrifices) and the Street of Tombs.

DAY 6: TAORMINA

After breakfast at the hotel, your private driver picks you up at hotel in Siracusa to drive you to your hotel in Taormina.

Along the way from Siracusa to Taromina, you will stop for a quick visit to Aci Trezza to see the waterfront and cyclops rock formations. The town of Aci Trezza is a short distance north-east of Catania on the east coast of Sicily. It is a seaside resort whose rocky beaches with their dramatic rock formations in the sea are the main attraction, and the village itself has pastel colored houses. Mythology claimed that these were the giant stones thrown by the Cyclops as Jason and the Argonauts were escaping the island on their ships.

After check-in to your hotel and lunch, meet your guide in the lobby for your private tour of Taormina with entrance fees included for the Greek and Roman Theatre.

DAY 7: PALERMO

Today, your driver will take you to Palermo with 2 stops along the way. The first stop is to visit a typical cheese factory, where it is possible to attend the daily production of cheeses and dairy products followed by a visit and a tasting at an Olive oil mill.

DAY 8: DEPARTURE DAY

Private transfer to the airport in Palermo for your flight home.

Marie and Frank’s Testimonial

Thank you Audrey for planning an amazing, life-changing trip to Sicily for us. It truly was a dream come true, and you and your in-country associates made it so memorable for us. We packed a lot into a one-week itinerary, and it was the perfect balance of seeing ancient ruins, countryside, food tours, baroque architecture, the Mediterranean Sea and strolling town centers and main streets. And of course shopping and food!

The company hired to drive us around all week was incredible, and our guides at the ruins were very, very knowledgeable. Your pamphlets and vouchers helped us to feel more informed and organized before leaving home too. I discovered my ancestral neighborhood on this trip, and it is something that I will carry with me for the rest of my life. My only regret is that I can’t get on a plane tomorrow and go right back! This trip was a long time in the making, and I thank you for your flexibility, for answering so many questions, and for staying in touch with us while we were in Sicily. Many thanks, Grazie mille!

Planning a trip to Italy with family or friends? Audrey helps you make your vacation truly memorable by offering custom tours that promise a personalized experience you will not find anywhere else.