10 Things to Know Before You Go to Sicily
When planning our honeymoon in October 2023, my husband and I went through a litany of questions and criteria. What did we want to eat? What kind of activities did we want to do? How far away were we willing to travel? Hotel or AirBNB? Beach or adventure?
Eventually, we landed on Sicily, Italy as the perfect place to go on our honeymoon. We opted out of the all-inclusive experience, instead prioritizing beautiful scenery, amazing food, and the option to tailor our activities based on energy levels. Turns out, Sicily was the perfect place for a flexible, fun honeymoon (with tons of delicious food). Here are the 10 things you need to know - before you go to Sicily.
PS if you are here for the restaurant recs, you can jump straight there, I won’t be offended.
Where is Sicily?
Only 3 kilometers (that’s just under 2 miles) off the coast of Italy, Sicily is a sunny Mediterranean island. At almost 10,000 square miles, Sicily is over twice the size of all Hawaiian islands combined, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean. Much like Hawaii, Sicily has beautiful shore lines that transition steeply into volcanic mountains. The highest point of Sicily is Mount Etna, a volcano that stands at 11,014 feet above sea level.
The interior of a church in Palermo
Because of its location, Sicily has a long and colorful history, much like other Mediterranean islands. First settled by Phoenicians in around 14,000 BC, Sicily was under the rule of the Greeks, Romans, Normans, Neapolitans, and various others before being officially incorporated into Italy in 1860. This long and complex past has given Sicily it’s own unique character - meaning that while some things in this list will apply to mainland Italy, quite a bit of it is specific to Sicily!
Its long cultural past, temperate island climate, and fertile volcanic soil means that Sicily has some of the best food in the world. The island is studded with a wide variety of plant life including palm trees, prickly pear cacti, olive groves, stone pine, and flowering shrubs all year long. In particular, pistachios, seafood, pasta, and wine are hallmarks of Sicilian cuisine.
What to Know Before You Go to Sicily
Learn the Basics of (Sicilian) Italian Pronunciation
A sandwich shop in Palermo with a famous lung sandwich
My husband and I both have advanced degrees in music, and as a classical singer, you find a favorite language to sing in VERY quickly. Italian is by far the easiest language of the big 4 (English, German, Italian, French) that classical singers are expected to pronounce.
Even though we spoke very little Italian, we were able to get around even with a fairly small vocabulary. Knowing how to pronounce the name of a restaurant can take you pretty far! Coastal cities get a large amount of German and British tourists (we met very few Americans in October), but in the interior, speaking English is much more rare.
Quick note: Sicilians have a slightly different pronunciation and spelling for some words than mainland Italians do! Arancini, a delicious fried rice ball, is pronounced different in Palermo, on Sicily’s northwest coast, (arancine) and Catania, on Sicily’s east coast (arancino). If you say “arancini,” they’ll know what you want, but it likely won’t be listed on a menu that way. Crucially: cannoli are called cannolo on Sicily. You’re welcome.
A (Very) Basic Italian Pronunciation Guide
The seaside town of Cefalù
For many words in Italian, the pronunciation is similar to how a native English speaker would pronounce it, with these exceptions:
r = a flipped “r”, similar to a soft “d”
rr = a rolled “r”, similar to Spanish
ch, cch, ca, co, cu = a hard “k” sound
ci, ce, cci, or cce = a “ch” sound
gn = a “nyuh” sound
gi followed by a consonant = a hard “j” sound like in “journey”
any i followed by another consonant = glide/y sound (ex. chiusa = KYOO-sa)
e = almost always “eh”, and is pronounced if it is at the end of the word
Any double consonant (ll, bb, dd, etc) is emphasized with a slight “stop” in the middle
For most words with multiple syllables (including proper nouns), the emphasis is on the next to last syllable. There are exceptions to this rule, but most people will understand you anyway.
Unlike Rome (Roma), Florence (Firenze), Venice (Venizia), and Milan (Milano), few of the cities in Sicily have been Anglicized. Ironically, many of the cities in Sicily were bastardized from Greek into Italian (such as Syracuse into Siracusa).
2. Know the Magic Words
A view of the beach and marina in Cefalù through an ancient stone arch
After you know the pronunciation, you’ll need a few key words to get you through. Again - you don’t need to be able to speak perfect Italian to navigate around! However, knowing a few key words can really help you out.
Helpful Italian Words to Know in Sicily
Aperto - Open; this is how you’ll know a business is open!
Arancine - A deep-friend rice ball; this is the Palermo Sicilian spelling to indicate that it’s stuffed with ragout!
Biglietto - Ticket counter; if you are driving, this is the lane you want to be in on a toll road.
Cannolo - The Sicilian spelling of cannoli, a delicious hard-shelled pastry filled with sweet ricotta.
Lavaggio - Garage; Look for this if you’re trying to find a parking garage.
Parcheggio - Parking lot; this became our favorite word in Italian. Put “parcheggio” in Google Maps if you’re looking for public parking.
Prego - Please; servers and others in customer service will often say “prego” to indicate you should go ahead and order, make your request, etc. It can also be used as “you’re welcome".”
Riposo - The period in the afternoon where people rest before dinner; most restaurants and some businesses are closed (especially in the heat of the summer).
Things Not to Say in Sicily
Olive groves near Lascari
As tempting as it is to show off your skills, there are actually a few things you should avoid saying - unless you know what you mean!
Latte - Milk; do not order a “latte” in Italy, they will give you a glass of milk! Italian coffee is very strong and comes in small quantities, so if you want something with milk order a cappuccino.
Mi scusi - while it might pain an American soul (particularly if you’re from the midwest), do not say “excuse me” while you go through a crowd. Sicily is quite crowded and people are used to a bit o’ jostling when they’re out and about. In fact, it could make you a target for pickpockets. Say “mi scusi” only if you knock into someone pretty hard.
3. Make a Reservation…but Only for Dinner
Chocolate Gelato in front of a Renaissance fountain near Palermo's city center
Eating out is a way of life in most areas of Europe, and Sicily is no exception. And just like other parts of Europe, people tend to eat at precisely 8:00 p.m. With small restaurants, that means the good places fill up quickly. Sure, you can eat much earlier than that if you’re ready for people to instantly know you’re a tourist, but if you’d like to eat between 7 and 8:30, you’ll need a reservation for dinner.
Be advised: many restaurants in Europe, even if they have a presence on Google, use a phone reservation system instead of an online one. Even if Google says that restaurant doesn’t take reservations, they almost certainly do, just not online. Calling another country can be pretty daunting, so if you’d prefer not to, you have two options:
Stop by the restaurant earlier in the day or the day before to make a reservation. This is the best option with a more flexible itinerary, as you may have to push them back a day.
Email the restaurant to request a reservation. This is highly hit-or-miss as many restaurant managers rarely check their email.
It’s important to note that this rule doesn’t really apply to lunch. With the exception of Palazzaccio, a Michelin bib gourmand restaurant in Castelbuono where I made reservation because I just really wanted to go there, we were seated within 5 minutes at every lunch spot, even very busy ones.
4. Drink Like the Locals
A fresh pomegranate on a tree at our Airbnb
Knowing how a culture drinks is to know how to fit in. Like I mentioned above, Italian coffee is very strong, and ordering a latte will get you a fat glass of milk at a café. But Italian alcohol culture is something else!
Similar to France, daily moderate drinking is very much the norm. Drinking to excess is pretty rare outside of a young age group. While there are more cocktail bars than France or the UK (and some pretty fantastic ones) it still isn’t to the level of the over-the-top cocktail culture of the US. If you’re at a nice restaurant, stick with wine.
Apertif: Have a Spritz
Since it crashed onto the scene in the US in 2020, the Aperol spritz has only continued to see a rise in popularity. And it’s easy to see why! It’s sweet without being cloying, refreshing, and most of all, cute!
Aperol spritzes (and spritzes in general) are a product of Italy! Though not specifically Sicilian, this drink genre (liqueur + club soda) is very popular across Sicily. There is very little in the way of beer, but with lovely, bubbly spritzes, there’s really no need. My personal favorite is the Limoncello spritz, with sweet lemon liqueur.
With Dinner: Drink Some Wine
The patio at our Airbnb in Lascari
With the exception of Le Petite Tonneau, a wine bar in Cefalù, everywhere else we ate served primarily wines from Sicily. Thanks to the volcanic soil, high altitudes in the interior, and mild climate, Sicily is ripe for growing wine practically all year long.
Best of all, many of the varietals we drank are difficult to find in the US! At many restaurants, you simply sat down, asked for red or white down, and drank whatever they had on offer. If you’re an oenophile, you may have fun interrogating your server with the particulars of the wine, but even if you’re just a casual wine lover, you’ll enjoy the wine in Sicily.
Digestif: Amaro? Hardly Know Her!
If you want a little something after dinner, the Italians have many choices. While grappa will certainly cleanse your palate (by practically stripping your taste buds off), a classic option that’s growing more popular in the US is amaro. Amaro is a medium brown liqueur that’s sweet, herbaceous, and bitter. The precise combination depends on the exact amaro and how it’s made, but it has those three flavors in combination reliably.
Amaro isn’t for everyone, as the herbaceous quality and bitter quality can be a bit much for some. But it’s a lovely slow sipper at the end of a long meal, and has the added benefit of not making you totally sloshed.
5. All Beaches are NOT Created Equal
The path to Gorgo Lungo beach
As an island, Sicily is, naturally, ringed by beaches. However, due to its location less than 2 miles from mainland Italy, the currents around the island are unique, leaving a wide variety of beaches. The beaches near Cefalù, in the eastern tip, have classic yellowish sand and dark blue water. The beaches near Catania and Taormina, on the central east coast, have slightly coarser sand. Palermo has coarser sand than that, like large pebbles, and some parts of the coast are pure pebbles.
Except for the narrowest, rockiest coastlines, locals and tourists alike flock to the ocean, especially during the summer. Just don’t be surprised when it’s not a perfect azure beach with powder-white sand.
6. Do NOT Mention the Mafia
Until the mid-1990s, Sicily was a notoriously unsafe place to travel. Why? Because of the mafia.
The Cattedrale di Palermo (Palermo Cathedral), built in the Norman style
Founded on Sicily, mafia comes from the Sicilian word mafiusu which loosely means “bravado” or “swagger.” Likely born out of a desire for self-governance, as Sicily was run for centuries by a series of foreign despotic rulers, scholars agree that the Sicilian mafia as we know it rose to prominence in the 19th century in Sicily.
The mafia is more than a fun Italian trend that inspired some movies in the 70s. In practice, while Americans were drooling over The Godfather, the mafia was a cartel, shipping huge quantities of heroin through Sicily and running Palermo with corruption, violence, and intimidation.
After two prominent judges were car bombed, and a beloved priest ministering to the poor was murdered in an impoverished neighborhood, the people of Palermo essentially said, “enough is enough” and stopped openly paying protection money.
Out from under the thumb of the mafia, although there is definitely still activity, the city of Palermo has rebuilt and is much safer and nicer than it used to be, although it still has a ways to go. Because of the decades of terror inflicted on its residents, the people of Palermo do not see the mafia as a source of pride. If you’re ever tempted to bring it up, imagine the reaction from a Mexican if you brought up the Sinaloa Cartel.
7. Dig a Little Deeper into the Weather
The mountains east of Palermo as seen through the sandy haze of the scirocco
One natural phenomenon we didn’t expect in Sicily? The wind. Every fall and spring, as new pressure systems move over the Sahara desert, the previous desert air is pushed north and swirls over the Mediterranean. These create strong winds called sirocco or scirocco (shih-ROH-co). Scirocco can be up to 60 miles an hour, and often carry fine particles of sand through the air, resulting in a mild haze of sand hanging over everything. Sciroccos usually last about 12 hours, though they can last up to 36 hours.
In the spring, the scirocco bring hot winds that can raise the temperature to well over 105F/40C degrees. Sicily has more temperature variation than other islands, so if you’re going in the summer, know that you’ll be very, very hot, and air conditioning is not very common.
Luckily, the sciroccos we experienced weren’t quite so extreme, but they were VERY loud. They happened mostly at night, so we had lovely times during the day, but some ear plugs would’ve come in handy for the 8-10 hours of continuous howling wind. We didn’t notice a difference in our respiration with the sand in the air, but it’s not a bad idea to keep a mask handy, just in case.
8. Map Out Transportation Options
Riding bikes on a tour of Palermo
As with any travel, doing a little bit of research into the transportation options available to you goes a LONG way towards a successful trip. Like most of Europe, Sicily has a fairly robust train system between towns, but given that Sicily’s coast is dotted with lots of tiny towns, I personally would not rely on train travel unless you’re going from a walkable area to a walkable area.
How do you know something is walkable? Look it up on Google Maps or something similar to see how close together the streets appear to be. If they look close, open up the street view of an area, as that can be a pretty good indication of how residential versus commercial versus industrial an area is.
Regardless of how you choose to travel, these helpful hints will go a long way towards having success in Sicily.
Pedestrians Rule (Then Bikes)
The quiet streets of Castelbuono
Cities in Sicily function a lot like coral reefs, with busses sailing through traffic like manta rays and people and bikes darting around like schools of fish. There is a clear hierarchy in transportation, and it goes like this:
Pedestrians
Bikes
Mopeds
Cars
Busses/Trucks
If you are walking in Sicily, the rule is that if someone can see you and has reasonable time to stop, you can go ahead and go. Lighted crosswalks aren’t really a thing. Even if you’re jaywalking, people will immediately know you’re a tourist if you wait a long time to cross the street instead of just finding an opening and walking confidently.
If you’re not comfortable with that, it’s okay to stick to crosswalks and err on the side of caution. But if you’re in a small town with no sidewalks, I promise it’s just fine to walk in the middle of the street and simply move to the side if a car comes along. Drivers in Sicily are used to it; they won’t come roaring down the street.
People do not drive very quickly, and even people darting through traffic on mopeds and bikes will cede to pedestrians. Biking in Sicily is not nearly as scary as I imagined, mostly because if you follow the hierarchy, cars and busses are generally very good about giving you the right of way. Do not, I repeat, DO NOT bike on sidewalks.
Helpful Tips for Driving in Sicily
A snap of the layers of architectural types in Palermo
I found driving in Sicily to be a lot like walking in a crowded city like New York. Go around people when you have an opening, keep to the right if you’re walking slowly to let others around you, and don’t stop in the middle of the street too long. Most of all, be aware of your surroundings!
If you find yourself driving in Sicily (which is what we did), here are some general tips to help make the process smoother. This is by no means comprehensive, but it will go a long way.
Most road signs are suggestions… - “Stop” signs are more like “yield” signs, and except for very congested areas, red lights are more like “stop” signs. Err on the side of caution until you can feel out the “flow” of traffic (it makes a lot of social sense, I promise).
…But there’s no need to drive aggressively - Despite the chaos of driving in Sicily, very few people drive like meanies. Occasionally on highways people will drive extremely fast, but they don’t crowd your bumper as badly as where I live (Colorado) and people rarely honk. Shockingly, there were very few accidents.
Gas stations have attendants - Some gas stations will have an unattended side and an attended side, but most will only have an attendant. You may get fleeced, but I honestly have no tips to prevent that other than speaking fluent Italian.
Know the road signs - Sicily (and Italy) use the standard road signs in the EU. Even though they don’t follow road signs strictly, it’s good to know what the symbols mean. The hotel Borgo Grondaie has a great image of road signs specific to Italy that I saved as an image to my phone.
A Note About Tolls
Boats at the main marina in Palermo
Tolls are very common in Italy, and often unavoidable! There are no tolls on the highway from the Palermo airport to Cefalù, but they are very common on interior highways. You can always put “avoid tolls” into your navigation app, but honestly the extra time isn’t worth it (and the tolls are sometimes necessary).
There are 2 main types of toll lanes - “telepass” and “biglietto.” Do NOT go into the “telepass” lane unless you have a commuter card! “Telepass” drivers have special cards for regular commuting, and if you don’t have it, you will be stuck. Go into the lane labeled “biglietto;” it will often have a symbol that looks like a person in a booth. Most lanes take cards, but to save time, keep a wide variety of cash in your car, from coins to small bills depending on how far you’re traveling,
9. Find a Local Expert
A colorful fruit cart near the city center of Catania
After one frustrating European trip with many obnoxious adults as a teen, I vowed to never again join a group tour. However…
When I went to France and Belgium on my own for my 30th birthday, one of the best decisions I made was booking a walking tour of Bruges. I only had a day in the city, and I wanted to make the most of it!
While you still will never catch me on a long bus tour of my own free will, day tours and experiences hosted by locals will make it onto my itineraries forever. They take hours of surface-level research and pack it into an informative, relatively short experience, plus you get great recommendations and extras you can’t get anywhere else.
While local European hotels can be hit-or-miss, in the age of Google it’s relatively easy to suss out where to stay! I always love to stay in a small, convenient hotel near the city center, and it’s often easier to navigate travel changes with a single owner than a giant multi-national conglomerate.
Here are the local things we booked:
A cooking class in Campofelice di Roccella
A bike tour of Palermo (with lunch!)
B & B Palazzo Cerami in Catania (note: not accessible)
Wisteria House in Cefalù
10. Don’t Just Stick to the Coast
A fountain in the city center of Castelbuono
One reason we chose to drive (and why I’d encourage it if you can afford it)? The ability to explore small towns you never would’ve seen otherwise. Sicily’s topography consists of mountains that start only a few miles from the coast, and those mountains are dotted with tons of tiny towns. My favorite was Castelbuono.
This village directly outside of Cefalù was the quaintest, least-touristy place we visited in Sicily. It exemplified il dolce far niente, the sweetness of doing nothing.
The road to Castelbuono meandered through hills dotted with ancient stucco homes, vineyards, and olive groves. The town itself felt pristinely Italian - unadulterated by plastic trinkets or tourist traps. The shop attendants we encountered did not speak English - which did not stop them from enthusiastically giving us their opinion (did we buy more because of that? maybe…)
Blue flowers at our Airbnb in Lascari in October
Our server at one of our favorite meals of the trip. Palazzaccio, let us know that Castelbuono is the birthplace of the popular Christmas cake, Panettone. The brainchild of the Fiasconaro bakery, they still make and ship Panettone all over the world from Castelbuono. The town also hosts a huge music festival, and while we were there, they were preparing for a festival of locally-grown mushrooms, too.
We became endeared to this beautiful little town, so fiercely proud of their history and place in the world. Had we only gone off of what was available on the surface of the Internet, we may never have gone. Instead, a chance restaurant recommendation turned into one of our favorite experiences.
Must-See Restaurants in Sicily
While amazing food abounds (we had some truly next-level bread at a very cheesy seaside restaurant in Lascari called That’s Amore) some of the things we ate were truly above and beyond. Here are my favorite spots for food in Sicily!
Braised rabbit in potato foam with charred mushroom and pumpkin powders from Limu
Michelin-Recommended Restaurants
Limu, Bagheria - This Michelin-starred restaurant in Bagheria (a suburb of Palermo) served one of the most creative-yet-elegant meals I’ve ever had. From the playful plating to its tucked-away atmosphere, it was worth every penny of the admittedly high price.
Palazzaccio, Castelbuono - Tucked away in a tiny, pristine village in the mountains above Cefalù, Palazzaccio made probably the best lunch we ate. We made the grave error of not leaving time to savor this rustic restaurant with passionate staff, and that is not a mistake we’ll make twice.
Me Cumpari Turiddu, Catania - Also recommended by our hosts at the Palazzo, Dean said, “I would plan a wedding and honeymoon all over again just to fly here and eat this goat cheese.”
Local Recommendations
An Art Noveau gazebo at Villa Bellini in Catania
La Brace, Cefalù - Every Cefalù restaurant rec came directly from our Airbnb host, Dario! La Brace had the feeling of a cozy wine cellar; cool, dark, and cozy. We both had classic Sicilian dishes - braised rabbit and pasta alla Norma - and both were perfect.
Le Petit Tonneau, Cefalù - While it doesn’t have much in the way of food, this adorable wine bar was one of the few places we found where you could get non-Sicilian wine. Tiny and cool, there are three coveted two tops on a balcony directly over the ocean. Play your cards right, and you’ll sip an excellent red with a boisterous antipasti spread with the best view in town.
Taverna Tinchité, Cefalù - Lively and boisterous, this restaurant veered a little bit towards touristy, but not so much that it wasn’t crowded with locals, too! With a fun colorful atmosphere and incredible pistachio ravioli, I could’ve eaten there every day.
Pasticceria Savia, Catania - Right next to probably the prettiest park I can remember (Villa Bellini in Catania) this bustling cafe gives some credence to tourists, but is clearly covered up with locals. Featuring tons of sweet and savory pastries, gelato, and a wide variety of drinks, it’s a delicious and relaxing place for lunch.
Casa Stagnitta, Palermo - It fills the most important role of an Italian vacation restaurant, with gelato, coffee, and light drinks. Our tour guide on our bike tour, Chiara, recommended it to us for gelato, specifically, and she was right.
