Sicily - An Enigmatic Island

Itinerary

• Day 1 - Syracuse

  On arrival we go to the 4 star Grand Hotel Ortigia in Syracuse where we stay for the first four nights of our tour; should you join our October departure you will be staying at the 4 star Ortea Palace Hotel instead.

• Day 2 - Magna Graecia

  Syracuse is a charming town and once the most significant city in Magna Graecia. We visit the Greek theatre dedicated to Athena and the important archaeological museum with a superb collection from the Greek, Roman and Early Christian eras. Later we will visit the historic island of Ortigia with its maze of streets.

• Day 3 - Taormina

  Today we drive to Taormina, which enjoys a glorious position between Mount Etna and the sea. We visit the Graeco-Roman theatre and the 13th century cathedral. In the afternoon there will be time for independent exploration. We visit a private palazzo in Catania before making our way back to Syracuse.

• Day 4 - Modica and Noto

  Today we visit the Baroque buildings and churches of two of the island’s most charming and unspoilt towns – Modica and Noto. Modica became a UNESCO Site in 2002 and Noto is a place of great atmosphere with its grand palaces and crumbling façades.

• Day 5 - Agrigento

  We leave Syracuse for Piazza Armerina to visit a villa from the late Roman Empire where the floors are paved with magnificent mosaics. We then drive to Agrigento where we spend one night at the 3 star Jolly della Valle, overlooking one of the most mystical sites of the ancient world – the Valley of the Temples.

• Day 6 - Monreale

  We visit the museum in Agrigento and walk along the Sacred Way overshadowed by the Temples of Zeus and Concord. After an independent lunch we travel on to Monreale to visit the great Norman cathedral dating from 1172, its mosaics surviving intact from the Middle Ages. We continue to Palermo where we stay for four nights in the 4 star Hotel Centrale Palace.

• Day 7 - Palermo

  TThe whole day is spent in Palermo. We start with a visit to the Oratorio di San Domenico and continue to the 13th century church of St. Francis of Assisi and the cathedral before enjoying a guided tour of Palazzo Conte Frederico. Later we go to the opulent Norman Royal Palace where we see the Chapel of the Kings, the Palatine Chapel and the Ermeti Chapel.

• Day 8 - Segesta

  Our first visit today is to Segesta to see the glorious Doric temples and theatre, the best Greek site on the island, where we see thirty six temples which date from 430BC. Later we continue to the huge hillside site of Selinunte, which was founded in 650BC.

• Day 9 - Cefalu

  This morning we travel to Cefalù to see the cathedral. In the afternoon we return to Palermo and visit two impressive Norman buildings, both of which have fine mosaics – the San Cataldo and the Martorana where we see a graceful Norman tower rising above the church, dating from 1153.  

• Day 10 - Flight

  We drive to Palermo airport for the flight back to London.