Sightseeing in Sicily

Sightseeing in Sicily, as sold here, starts from Palermo and fans out. Palermo carries the Arab-Norman circuit that UNESCO listed in 2015: nine buildings raised between 1130 and 1194. In the capital they include the Palatine Chapel, La Martorana and the cathedral; outside it stand the cathedrals of Monreale, with about 6,500 square metres of gold mosaic, and of Cefalù. West, Erice stands 751 metres up over Trapani and its salt pans, and the Zingaro, Sicily's first nature reserve, has 7 km of coast and no road. Inland, the Corleone day starts at Portella della Ginestra, where 11 people were killed on May Day 1947. East, Castelbuono's Ventimiglia castle sits in the Madonie hills above Cefalù.

Sicily sightseeing tours are mostly day trips by minivan with a driver, booked on demand for small parties. Monreale and Cefalù take six hours, ten with Palermo added. Eight hours buy Cefalù with Castelbuono, Erice with Trapani, the Zingaro with Scopello and San Vito lo Capo, or the Corleone loop through Piana degli Albanesi and the Ficuzza forest. A coach day runs the other way, from Cefalù through Monreale to Palermo. In the capital there are a two-hour private walk, a phone-led hunt through the Norman Palace and the cathedral, and a three-hour No Mafia walk in English or French; Corleone has its own three-hour walk with a local activist. A four-day programme and a market-and-cooking morning complete the list.

Practical. Palermo afternoons average 31C in July and 15C in January. Monreale Cathedral closes around midday and keeps shorter hours on Sundays, so plan it for a weekday morning. The Zingaro has trails but no road, and sections close after fires or wind. Lunch and entrance tickets are extras on several days. Cancellation is free up to 24 hours before on most; the on-demand private days list no terms, so ask at booking, and the No Mafia and Corleone walks are non-refundable inside 24 hours.