Sicily Escapade

Sicily Escapade 7-Nights/8-Days land only 

Itinerary

• Day 1 - Palermo - After your morning arrival into Palermo airport, you will be met and transferred to your hotel. Balance of the day is at leisure. Tonight enjoy dinner at a local restaurant.
• Day 2 - Palermo A morning tour of Palermo features Theatro Massimo, Quattro Canti - a splendid example of Spanish Baroque architecture, the Palace of the Normans and Cathedral housing the shrine of Santa Rosalia. Our tour continues to the Benedictine Abbey of Monreale to admire the Bizantine mosaics and view overlooking to bay of Palermo. Balance of the day is at leisure to relax or to take an optional tour of Cefalu’, a picturesque fishing village outside of Palermo.
• Day 3 Palermo/Marsala/Agrigento - This morning we travel to Marsala, a town rediscovered in the 18th century by English merchant John Woodhouse and known for its sweet wines. As we travel between Trapani and Marsala we take a scenic drive up to the medieval village of Erice founded by the Phoenicians, the coastline is mostly made up of salt pans, built back in roman times. Today enjoy an olive oil tasting session & Marsala wine during lunch at a local farmhouse. In the afternoon we depart for Agrigento, a hillside town famous for Valley of the Temples, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. En route we stop in Sciacca before overnighting in Agrigento.
• Day 4 - Agrigento/Ragusa - Enjoy this morning a guided tour of “the Valley of the Temples”. One of the main archaeological treasures of the Mediterranean, this site is immersed in a rural landscape of rare beauty characterized by the presence of century-old olive and almond trees. Your guided walking tour will cover about one mile in a mostly downhill direction, with stops along the “Via Sacra” (holy pathway) to admire the Temple of Concordia, the Temple of Herakles and ruins of the Temple of Zeus. In the afternoon we continue to Ragusa. Dinner and overnight at hotel.
• Day 5 - Agrigento/Modica/Noto/Ortigia (Syracuse)/Taormina - Today’s first stop will be in Modica, a quaint historic town and UNESCO World Heritage Site. Boasting some very fine Baroque architecture, picturesque views and historic sites, Modica is also known for its chocolate. Rich, dark and crumbly, it is produced in a traditional method imported from the New World by Sicily’s Spanish overlords. After a chocolate tasting session in one of the most prestigious chocolate-maker, we resume our journey to Noto. Part of the “Late Baroque Towns of the Val di Noto”, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Continue to the enchanting island of Ortigia, the oldtown center of Syracuse. Highlights of Ortigia are the cathedral square with its church built over an ancient Greek temple and the beautiful promenade with its panorama over the sea and the natural bay of the town. Dinner and overnight in Taormina.
• Day 6 - Taormina - Morning at leisure to relax, or to take an optional excursion to the slopes of Mt. Etna, the largest active volcano in Europe. This afternoon, enjoy a walking tour of Taormina’s charming city center including the Greek/Roman amphitheater with breathtaking views looking over the bay of Naxos.
• Day 7 - Taormina/Savoca/D’Agro’ Valley/Taormina - Today enjoy a once in a lifetime experience: the “Godfather” tour. See the real Sicily while exploring Savoca and D’Agro valley, the towns and area that served as location when filming the “The Godfather” trilogy. Afternoon at leisure. In the evening, bid arrivederci to your travel companions during a festive farewell dinner with delectable cuisine and sparkling wine in a fashionable restaurant.
• Day 8 - Taormina/Catania to USA (or extend your stay) - Morning transfer to Catania airport for your return flight home. 
  

• 7 Nights accomodation at first class hotels
• 7 buffet breakfasts
• 1 lunch at a local farmhouse
• 2 dinners at hotel
• 2 gourmet dinners with mini à la carte menu at local restaurants
• Wine, mineral water and coffee or cappuccino served with meals at hotels and restaurants
• Touring by private deluxe air-conditioned motor-coach
• Assistance of a professional Tour Director for the entire length of the tour
• Sightseeing, including local guide and all entrance fees, as follows:
• Tour of Palermo featuring Quattro Canti, Cathedral & Monreale Visit of Erice Olive oil tasting in Marsala Tour of the Valley of the Temples in Agrigento Chocolate tasting in Modica Tour of Noto Visit of Ortigia (Syracuse) Walking tour of Taormina and visit of the Greek/Roman Amphitheater “Godfather” tour Arrival and departure airport transfers (restrictions apply)
• Baggage handling
• Document holder and luggage tags
• Personalized audio system to hear every word your guide says, even from a distance Hotel taxes and service charges City tax