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Home , Monreale Cathedral, Palermo Cathedral, Sicilian Baroque, Valle dei Templi

Full Itinerary and Tour details for

Best of 9-day Small Group Tour

Prices starting from. Trip Duration. Max Passengers. 985 € 9 days 14

Start and Finish. / Palermo

Experience. Tour Code. Small Group Tours Europe #B1/2527 Best of Sicily 9-day Small Group Tour

Tour Details and Description Included in the Sicily Small Group Tour: • Multilingual Tour leader and professional travel guide (English, Italian, Spanish) for the whole tour (from the evening of the 1st day to the evening of the 8th day), local guides or audio-guides where necessary. • High class buses or 25/28 seats Gran Confort minibuses (from the 2nd day to the 8th). • Accommodation in charming 4 stars hotels mostly located in the city centre of the main Sicilian towns. Half board basis (dinner – 3 main courses fixed menu, (beverages not included) to have a taste of Sicilian and Italian cuisine. • Visit of the main suggested Unesco World Heritage Sites: Siracusa, , Etna, city centre, Palermo, Cefalù, , ,

Agrigento, Romana del Casale in Piazza Armerina, Ragusa. • 1 lunch in Taormina on day 7 (set menu, beverages not included) and show-cooking • Tasting of Sicilian typical products: Palermo (day 2): tasting of local street food; Marsala (day 2): visit of a wine cellar and wine tasting;

Ragusa (day 4): tasting of local cheese; Etna (day 7): visit of a beekeeping honey company and honey tasting; Catania (day 8): tasting of Sicilian “granita & brioche”. Not included in the tour: • Transfers in/out • all lunches except 7th day with set menu • beverages • entrance fees for monuments/museums (as below) • city taxes (where compulsory) • tips and extras in general

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• anything not specified under “The rates include”

Optional extra fees for site visits not included: Day 1

• Taormina Greek theatre € 10,00 p.p. PALERMO – independent arrival at the hotel in the • Palermo Cappella Palatina € 8,50 p.p. charming city of Palermo (optional private transfer on • Palermo Martorana Church € 2,00 p.p. request). Meet with your tour-leader: dinner and • Palermo € 3,00 p.p. overnight in hotel in Palermo. • € 4,00 p.p. • Monreale Cloister € 6,00 p.p. Day 2 • Selinunte Archeological Park € 6,00 p.p. MONREALE - PALERMO After breakfast in your • Piazza Armerina Villa Romana € 10,00 p.p. hotel, the morning will be spent visiting Monreale, its • € 10,00 p.p. huge Norman Cathedral, proclaimed the Eighth • Noto Palazzo Nicolaci € 4,00 p.p. Wonder of the World, and its splendid Cloister in • Siracusa Archeological Park € 10,00 p.p. Arab-Norman style: admirable masterpiece of art, • Siracusa Cathedral € 2,00 p.p. , and semi-precious stones marquetry! Later we will discover the stunning Palermo, one of the richest towns in the Island for its history and art. Palermo stands on a bay at the foot of Mt Pellegrino, a headland described by Goethe as the loveliest he had ever seen. While the predominates, there is a profusion of different architectural styles reflecting the city’s multicultural past: Punic walls, Art Nouveau , noble residences, XVIIth century squares, including an elegant opera house. We visit the wonderful Arab-Norman Cathedral, the astonishing Martorana Church and the amazing Cappella Palatina, an admirable example from an historical and an artistic point of view, of how different cultures, religions and ways of thinking apparently incompatible can coexist. Ruggero II in fact employed both Byzantine, Muslim and Latin workers. During the day, we stop for a food surprise in a local bakery. Free time for lunch. Continuing our walk we can admire the Teatro Massimo and the fountain in Pretoria Square, situated in the ancient Kalsa area and adorned with XVI century . Dinner and overnight in hotel in Palermo.

Itinerary Day 3

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MARSALA SALT ROAD – SELINUNTE – baroque, with its Cathedral, situated in the beautiful AGRIGENTO (hotel in Agrigento) This morning the square of the Dome and the “giardino Ibleo”. Used as tour will continue along the charming and well-known a location of the extremely popular Police Inspector Salt Road: the west coast of Sicily with many salt Montalbano TV series, it is today stated among the marshes, which have given rise to one of the oldest 44 Italian World Heritage Sites. This precious ancient salt-extracting industries in the world. Between city, well known thanks to the Commissario and Marsala they are now protected, in part Montalbano television series, hosts more than 50 because of the interesting birdlife, also as important churches and many baroque architectural treasures. sites of industrial archaelogy. On the way you will see We conclude the day with a tasting of local products. the Island of Mothia (situated at the centre of a large Travel to Catania for dinner and overnight in hotel. lagoon in Marsala, known today as ‘Stagnone’), and the famous Salt Pans and windmills. Departure to Day 5 Selinunte to visit the largest Archaeological Park in the Mediterranean and a World Heritage Site. CATANIA Breakfast at the hotel and day at leisure to Surrounded by a splendid landscape near the African enjoy Catania city centre and shopping. Meet our Sea, we walk between the ruins of the ancient Greek tour-leader in the afternoon. Dinner and overnight in city. Free time for lunch. Transfer to Agrigento and hotel in Catania visit of the Valley of the Temples World Heritage Site, where among hundreds of almond trees, the ruins of Day 6 the ancient Akragas rise. It was defined by Pyndar “the most beautiful city of mortals”. Once one of the SIRACUSA – NOTO After breakfast at the hotel we most prosperous of the ancient Greek cities on the visit Siracusa, the most beautiful and greatest Greek island, Agrigento presents a remarkable series of colony in Sicily and World Heritage Site! The visit Doric Temples of the 5th century. You will see the starts with the Archaeological Park of Neapolis, with “Temple of Hera”, the “Temple of Concordia” and the its Greek Theatre, the Roman Amphitheatre, the “Temple of Heracles”. Accommodation in hotel, Latomie of Paradise and the . We will dinner and overnight in Agrigento. continue visiting the splendid Ortigia, a small island which is the historical centre of Siracusa. In Ortigia Day 4 you can admire the beautiful Cathedral which dominates the square with its authoritative presence. PIAZZA ARMERINA – RAGUSA (hotel in Catania) The present façade is a powerful Sicilian-Baroque Today we reach Piazza Armerina where we can composition but it gives no hint that this building was admire the splendid polychrome of the once a Doric temple! From Piazza Duomo you reach famous , World Heritage a wide terrace on the waterfront surrounding the Site. The complex, which has some of the most famous Arethusa’s Fountain, one of the most famous extensive and beautiful Roman mosaics known, is a fresh-water sources of the Greek world. Free time for World Heritage Site. This majestic villa, belonging to lunch. Departure to Noto, the of Sicilian a member of the Roman Senatorial aristocracy, hosts baroque, famous for its fine buildings of the early prestigious mosaics representing mythological and eighteenth century and declared Unesco World historical episodes and scenes of hunting and Heritage Site. Inspired by Baroque ideals of “open entertainment. After free time for lunch, departure to city”, Noto is a rare masterpiece and the clearest Ragusa Ibla and visit of its historical centre of Sicilian example of theatrical tastes of 18th century

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architecture where local limestone has been burnt Day 8 gold by the sun. Noto’s Baroque is in fact a series of elegant curves, floral weaves, perspective views of Tuesday: CATANIA – CEFALU’ Today we visit the and gardens, capitals and ornaments that historical centre of Catania, Unesco World Heritage adorn the facades of churches and . We Site, with its original baroque style and its unique visit Palazzo Nicolaci Villadorata, a beautiful noble streets built with black stone. The colour scheme residence in Baroque style and once the residence of of the city-centre building in fact is black and dark Don Giacomo Nicolaci, patron of the arts. Back to grey, relieved with white limestone details around the Catania for dinner and overnight in hotel. doors and windows. The result is extremely elegant! The city still preserves ruins of the Imperial Roman Day 7 period despite having been rebuilt after the earthquake of 1693. Catania was the capital of the ETNA – TAORMINA (hotel in Catania) This morning under the Aragonese dynasty. The we leave to visit Etna the highest (c. 3350m) volcano walking tour starts across the “pescheria” (the ancient in Europe and one of the largest and most active in fish market) to reach the scenic Duomo square with the world, nowadays Unesco World Heritage Site. Its its magnificent Cathedral and the famous “Liotru” regional park protects 59.000 hectares of unique statue, antique lava-stone elephant, symbol of the geology, flora and fauna, villages and farms, and city. Not far from here we reach the University Square traditional methods of forestry, bee-keeping, wine and walk along the splendid baroque Via dei manufacture, stonework and carpentry. We will reach Crociferi, the most representative 18th century street the “Crateri Silvestri”, small volcanic cones now in Catania, where we can admire the famous S. inactive, surrounded by ancient lava flows. The view Benedict , Unesco World Heritage Site. beyond the mountain’s hundreds of subsidiary cones Before going on to the city center, we stop in a and craters, can extend across the whole of Sicily , historic bar of the city to taste the typical “granita & the and Calabria. The spectacle is brioche”. Free time for lunch. Transfer to Cefalù, unique! Later we will visit a company of beekeeping: charming medieval town situated on the northern visit of the honey extraction lab, tasting of homemade coast of Sicily. We visit its stunning Norman Dome honey and typical products of the area. We go on to then you will have free time to stroll through the town Taormina, charming town renowned for its or to visit the famous and well-known Mandralisca magnificent position above the sea commanding a Museum. Travel to Palermo for overnight. Dinner at celebrated view of Etna. Lunch in a typical restaurant the hotel or in a restaurant nearby. where you will assist with a show-cooking lesson of typical dishes. In the afternoon we Day 9 visit Taormina’s fascinating Greek theatre, and then you will have free time for a nice walk among the PALERMO Breakfast in hotel and end of your tour picturesque medieval typical narrow streets, go For organizational reasons or due to force majeure, shopping, or look around the local handycrafts (coral the itinerary may be modified. jewels, precious laces, ceramics, sweets and much more). The day ends with an overview of the beautiful Riviera dei Ciclopi. Back to our hotel in Catania for dinner and overnight.

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