Sightseeing in Palermo

Palermo's sightseeing catalogue is built around one subject the city long preferred not to discuss aloud. The three-hour Palermo No Mafia programme costs 38 dollars and shows the city through the history of resistance: the route follows places tied to the anti-mafia movement. The three-hour trip to Corleone at 88 dollars works the same subject beyond the city.

The cheapest entry is self-guided. A scavenger-hunt walk through the centre with tasks takes two hours at 13 dollars, with no guide: the route and the clues arrive on your phone and you set the pace. For a first day in the city that is usually enough to make sense of how the historic centre is laid out.

Four full-day programmes cost the same, 611 dollars for eight hours with a car and driver. They differ only in direction: Erice and Trapani, Cefalù with Castelbuono, Corleone with the origins of the mafia, San Vito lo Capo with Scopello and the Zingaro reserve. The price is uniform because what is counted is the driver's day, not the mileage. GetExperience lists 7 sightseeing programmes in Palermo, from 13 to 611 dollars. The eight hours include the drive both ways, so less time remains on site than the name suggests; the pages state what the price covers and how many people the car takes.