Discovering South Eastern Sicily
where to stay, where to eat, what to do
I half-expected to leave Sicily having bought a house there - this is, after all, where all the cool young things are snapping up €1 homes to renovate and winter in now, right? Never mind that we’d never been before; we’d been to other parts of Italy and loved the culture, the food, the history, the chaotic driving and the theatrical arm waving. Sicily, I thought, would be more of the same - only warmer.
Sicily met all of my expectations and more and yet, spoiler alert, we’re probably not going to buy a house there. This is the story of our 10-day family road trip through southern and eastern Sicily: part travelogue, part reality check and part love letter to pastries and volcanoes.
We arrived in Catania in the early evening, following two cheap flights (transferring in Munich) and in the middle of a thunderstorm - lightning flashing and the rain hurling down sideways. Mark had booked the hire car from a super cheap Sicilian company with terrible reviews and it took us an age to find their office, where they proceeded to try to scare us into believing that our car insurance wasn’t going to be enough cover. Needless to say, by the time we were pulling out onto the chaotic Catania streets for the one hour drive to our apartment, we were somewhat frazzled and hungry, falling into Catania McDonalds as our first Italian meal of the trip.
When we did finally arrive at our apartment in Trecastagni, up on the slopes of Mount Etna, it was smaller than we had expected and we couldn’t find the third bedroom - resulting in another half an hour spent moving beds around so that everyone had a little privacy for the next three nights. Landing on the bed that evening, I was wondering how we were going to survive the next ten night’s trip without the car getting stolen and the four of us falling out with each other.
I needn’t have worried. After the best night sleep I had had in weeks, the next morning I opened our bedroom shutters to be greeted by warm Sicilian sunshine and Etna in all her glory. It was love at first sight.
Our ten days in Sicily were going to be split three ways; three nights in Trecastagni the ‘balcony of Etna’, a drive across the centre, two nights near Agrigento to visit the Valley of the Temples and then the remainder of the trip on the south eastern point of Sicily near the beach and Syracuse. Because of prior commitments and a GCSE history tuition session that had already been planned for the Friday, we found ourselves on our first full day in Sicily driving up the slopes of Mount Etna to Rifugio Sapienza. This is the main tourist gate for Etna and the best spot to park and pick up the cable car that wends its way up to 2100m up the volcano. Only three of us took the €52 euro cable car tickets - we left one teenager at home sleeping off the travel day - and we skipped the €80 cable car + four wheel drive bus tickets for another time when we’re on a bigger budget.
Our second day was spent mooching around the lovely town of Trecastagni, drinking coffee and looking for wifi for our various work and home education calls (again finding ourselves in McDonalds, hoping this wasn’t going to become a theme of the trip). That evening, we walked into town for gelato and to watch the Good Friday procession, only to be greeted by the stunning orange glow of an eruption on Mount Etna - an unexpected and equally unforgettable treat. Unable to top that, we moved on, driving through the centre of Sicily and stopping off at the beautiful hilltop town of Enna, before moving on to Porto Empedocle. This was where our apartment would be for the next two nights so that we could visit the fascinating and incredibly well preserved Valley of the Temples in Agrigento.
Our final stop was at Pozzallo on Sicily’s south-eastern tip, 45-minutes from Syracuse in the car and about an hour and a half from Catania, from where we were flying home five days later.
Despite it’s shaky beginnings, Sicily will go down as one of my favourite family trips in recent years. The April sunshine was just what we needed, the ‘Italy-with-an-edge’ vibes felt familiar with a southern Mediterranean twist and frankly the Sicilian baked goods were some of the best we’ve tasted anywhere (sorry Seville).
So, in case you're tempted to follow in our footsteps - or just want the highlights - here’s where we stayed, what we ate and the places that made the biggest impression.
sleep
We chose to stay in Trecastagni because it was relatively close to the airport in Catania and would allow us to visit Mount Etna without driving too far. It was a great decision, a beautiful little town that wasn’t too frequented by tourists despite its proximity to Etna and turned out to be a fantastic view point for the eruption that we were to witness. We stayed in The Mayor’s, a block of three or four apartments right in the centre of town. Despite our early reservations when we arrived that first night, it turned out to be a perfect little apartment for four, with beautiful views, easy parking and almost everything we needed. One word of warning, we were on the top floor of the beautiful old Italian building and the wifi was good enough but not fantastic, hence why we found ourselves in McDonalds using the wifi for a couple of video calls.
Our second stay was in Porto Empedocle, a port town about 15-minutes drive outside of Agrigento and chosen specifically because it was cheaper than touristy Agrigento itself and still close enough to easily be able to visit the Valley of the Temples. This large, clean apartment was a real treat, sleeping up to eight people with good strong wifi, a lovely sunny balcony, plenty of parking and several coffee shops and pasticceria close by. An excellent, well looked after apartment which we’d stay in again.
Our final stay in Sicily was in the town of Pozzallo on the south coast, and this lovely apartment was only a short walk from the town beach and all of its coffee shops, restaurants and little shops. Sleeping eight again, we had more than enough space for four, with my teenage stepson getting the full benefits of the first floor bathroom and balcony all to himself. We were on a tighter budget than usual for this trip and ten night’s accommodation came all in at under £700 which we thought was a real bargain for the cleanliness, size and quality of the accommodation.
eat
There’s so much I could say about Sicilian food and our food tour in Syracuse with Maria, that there’s enough for it’s own post next week and so I won’t go into it too much here. Suffice to say, we ate some of the best pastries, pizza and fresh street food as anywhere we’ve travelled to so far. It helps of course that we love Italian food anywhere, and Sicily did not disappoint.
What did surprise me was the number of times we saw the ‘golden arches’ of McDonalds while we were on the island, and yet no sign of the other big fast food commercial entities of Starbucks or KFC. Mind you, with delicious coffee at €1.50 a time, perhaps the likes of Starbucks just can’t get a foothold - no bad thing in my view. Cheap, good coffee is one of things we love most about Europe and one of the reasons I can see us settling there at some point in the future.
Aside from coffee, we ate delicious pizza and enjoyed a brilliant street food tour in Syracuse, taking in local delicacies like fried fish, Arancina, cannoli and more. But more on that next week, let’s move on for now.
visit
It’s rare we take a trip without working while we’re there - we run multiple businesses and side projects back home - and our holiday in Sicily was no different; a mixture of sightseeing, touristy things and days chilling in coffee shops and our apartment getting things done. Our big three for this trip to Sicily were; visiting Mount Etna, exploring the Valley of the Temples, and taking a street food tour in Syracuse. We also managed to add to that stops along the way like Enna in the rural centre. I definitely feel like we’ve seen the south-eastern part of the island, but would go back and visit the north coast (Cefalu, Tindari, Palermo).
Mount Etna
We visited Etna on our first full day, driving up through old lava flows before hopping on the cable car to reach the 2100m mark. It felt otherworldly up there - black rock underfoot, cold air and a quiet sense of power just below the surface. The next evening, that power revealed itself to us when Etna erupted. We watched from Trecastagni as the sky turned bright orange and showers of lava spilled down the side, some of it spraying high into the air. You could smell it and hear the explosions - it was beautiful and completely absorbing, like watching fire. No ash, just a feeling that we were witnessing something ancient and alive.
Trecastagni
We based ourselves in Trecastagni for the first part of the trip - a small town on the slopes of Mount Etna with a quiet, local feel. It’s one of the oldest settlements on Etna’s southern side, with roots going back to Roman times, though most of what you see now is baroque architecture rebuilt after earthquakes and eruptions. We liked it straight away. Mornings started with coffee in the square, where everything seemed to move at half-speed, and evenings ended with walks past shuttered shops and views of the volcano in the distance. It was a great base - close enough to Catania and Etna, but without the chaos.
Enna
We only stopped in Enna for a few hours, but it was well worth the detour. Right in the centre of Sicily and perched high on a hill, it has one of the best views on the island - especially from the old castle at the edge of town. We wandered the quiet streets, explored the impressive cathedral and walked the perimeter of the castle grounds, taking in the sweeping views in every direction. It felt calm and lived-in, with just enough to explore in an afternoon before heading onwards.
Valley of the Temples
The Valley of the Temples was one of those places that really lives up to the hype. Rows of ancient ruins stretching out against the sky, with wildflowers growing between the stones and the sea just visible in the distance. We went early in the morning to beat the heat and the crowds, and it was worth the early start. It’s one of those places that helps you zoom out a bit - standing next to a temple that’s been there for over two-and-a-half thousand years puts a lot into perspective. Entrance was €17 each, free for under 16s plus €5 for the English audio guide.
Syracuse
We visited Syracuse twice and both times we found ourselves drawn to Ortigia - the historic island heart of the city. It was beautiful and full of atmosphere, with crumbling baroque buildings, sun-bleached piazzas and little balconies spilling over with washing and flowers. It also had a totally different feel to the rest of our trip - livelier, more polished and much busier with tourists. Still, we loved it. There was always something happening: kids playing football, locals chatting outside cafes and visitors weaving through the lanes with gelato in hand. We did a brilliant street food walking tour while we were there (more on that next week), but even just wandering around was a treat. Ortigia felt like a city with deep roots and a strong sense of self.
in short - the highs and lows
Exploring on foot: Sicily is definitely a hiker’s paradise. The slopes of Mount Etna have many trails (check out AllTrails for some of the best) although you can’t go above a certain height without an approved guide (it’s an active volcano so this does make sense!). For our Camino de Santiago friends, Sicily has a section of the Via Francigena, also known as the Magna Via Francigena or il Cammino di Sicilia. This 160km pilgrimage route traverses the island from Palermo on the north coast to Agrigento on the south and it’s certainly one that we’d go back for. The Sicilian countryside this walk wends its way through is stunning.
Keeping it real: Italy ‘with a bit of an edge’ feels like an accurate way to sum up Sicily. Definitely more Mediterranean than north European, the island has slightly rougher edges with some parts of Catania and Palermo worth avoiding. Litter and fly-tipping is definitely an issue here, please don’t get scammed by the car rental desks (we strongly believe this is an industry ready for disruption!) and ladies, carry a little stash of toilet paper for restaurant, cafe and public toilets just in case.
Memorable encounters: Our most memorable encounter was with a volcano! As we ate our gelato watching the solemn Good Friday procession, we looked up to see the sky glowing orange. I couldn’t believe my eyes and I won’t forget that moment quickly.
Sweet treats: As I’ve already said, we ate pastries like no other in Sicily, beating the delicious sweets in Vienna and Seville hands down. My personal favourite? A sweet bread roll with lemon ricotta filling known as bomba. More on those next week.
ready for more?
Watch our brand new Sicily vlog covering Mount Etna, central Sicily and the Valley of the Temples over on our YouTube channel. Make sure you follow us there as well so you’re notified when we publish a new one!
questions about Sicily?
Have you been and can you add to our recommendations? Or are you inspired now to visit? Let us know!