Welcome to Sicily Tour 2020 Starting in Palermo

Arrival in Palermo airport. Transfer to your hotel ON YOUR OWN. Meeting with the participants. Dinner and overnight at your hotel.

Buffet breakfast at your hotel and enjoy this special day dedicated to one of the most famous social phenomena in Sicily. We will depart in the morning to the inland of Sicily and specifically to the area of Corleone, known for being the place where Mafia phenomena was born but also know nowadays for being the place where Mafia is firmly fought. We will firstly participate to an interesting and accurate cooking lesson: we will be able to prepare some of the most genuine and traditional Sicilian dishes (only for who desires to participate to the cooking lesson). After the cooking lesson, enjoy this special lunch. After lunch, we will experience an interesting LECTURE on Mafia. One of the inhabitants of Corleone, born in the UK, will present a fascinating discussion on the topic of the Sicilian Mafia but also explaining the origins and the way how Corleone inhabitants has taken to eliminate organized crime. Back to Palermo. Accommodation.

Buffet breakfast at your hotel and journey to the sea town of Marsala, re-discovered in the 18th century by English merchant John Woodhouse and known for its sweet wines. Visit a wine cellar and sample some Marsala during a special wine tasting session. Drive along Trapani’s coastline and stop for a special Sicilian lunch in a restaurant and return to Palermo. Driving along the coast from Marsala towards Trapani you’ll come to a place, where shimmering heaps of white crystals, red roofed windmills and contained ponds grow in the horizon. It starts out as a mirage and gradually becomes more and more tangible, until you find yourself surrounded by the oldest chemical industry in the world. Back to Palermo. Dinner at a local restaurant and overnight at hotel

Marsala, re-discovered in the 18th century by English merchant John Woodhouse and known for its sweet wines. Visit a wine cellar and sample some Marsala during a special wine tasting session. Drive along Trapani’s coastline and stop for a special Sicilian lunch in a restaurant and return to Palermo. Driving along the coast from Marsala towards Trapani you’ll come to a place, where shimmering heaps of white crystals, red roofed windmills and contained ponds grow in the horizon. It starts out as a mirage and gradually becomes more and more tangible, until you find yourself surrounded by the oldest chemical industry in the world. Back to Palermo. Dinner at a local restaurant and overnight at hotel.

Buffet breakfast at your hotel and depart for Agrigento, a hillside town famous for its magnificent Valley of the Temples, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Enjoy a guided tour of the valley, dating back to the 5th century B.C. The poet Pindar described the site “as the most beautiful city built by mortal men”, The Doric style temples, all constructed within a century, face east, a standard criteria for both Greek and Roman temples so the statue of the god housed in each temple faced the rising sun. The best temple is that of Concordia (similar in design to the Parthenon in Athens) which is an almost perfectly preserved condition. Your local guide will highlight the history and architecture of Concordia and of the other temples that are part of this archaeological treasure-trove. After visiting the Valley of the Temples, resume travel to Taormina, where you arrive in the evening in time for an enjoyable and relaxing dinner at your hotel.

Buffet breakfast at hotel and morning walking tour of Taormina’s charming city center includes the Greek/Roman amphitheater, with its spectacular view of Giardini Naxos and Mount Etna, the largest active volcano in Europe. Enjoy the excursion to Mount Etna, till 1800 meters (5900 ft) and visit the Sylvester Craters where you can enjoy the best views, as you drive through the fertile slopes and villages that sit on ancient volcanic eruptions. On the way back to Taormina, we offer a once in a lifetime experience. You may take an optional “Godfather” tour featuring the authentic villages chosen by Francis Coppola for most of the scenes in the Godfather movies. This is a good way to explore the real untouched Sicilian countryside, local lifestyle and culture. Tonight you may experience dinner on your own in one of the many colorful restaurants of Taormina

Buffet breakfast at your hotel and experience an included excursion to Siracusa. A guided tour of this venerable city highlights the Archaeological Park, Greek Theater, Latomia del Paradiso and Cave of Dyonisius’ Ear. This evening savor a special Sicilian dinner with wine in a restaurant characteristic of this region.

Buffet breakfast at your hotel. Transfer to Catania airport for your return flight home ON YOUR OWN. End of tour.

Package Includes:
– First class hotels for 7 nights
– City taxes (updated as on 5/2019 – in case of increase in charge, this will be an added supplement)
– 14 included meals (7 buffet breakfasts + 2 dinners at hotel + 3 dinners at local restaurant (Taormina & Palermo) + 2 lunches at local restaurants (Marsala area & Corleone area) at popular local restaurants featuring regional cuisine
– ¼ wine + ½ mineral water + coffee or cappuccino served with lunch and dinner at hotels & restaurants
– 1 wine tasting at a local cellar in Marsala
– 1 cooking lesson in Corleone
– 1 Mafia lecture in Corleone
– Touring by air-conditioned motor-coach or minivan accordingly to the number of participants
– Professional English speaking tour director (under 7 participants, the trip could be done with English speaking driver/guide)
– Excursion to Mount Etna till 1800 meters (5900 ft)
– Headsets during the whole tour from 8 participants
– Porterage in/out in hotels
– Tax

Package DOES NOT Include:
– Flights
– Transfers in & out
– Beverages during meals
– Entrance fees
– Tips and personal extras
– Any other concept which is not indicated under “rate includes”

For operational reasons the itinerary may change or be inverted without notice. Dinners during the tour could be at hotel or at local restaurant.