Highlights of Sicily — Self-Launched

Land at Palermo Falcone-Borsellino (PMO) and take the Prestia & Comandè bus (~€6.60, 50 mins) or the Trinacria Express train (~€6) into the centre. Check into a hostel or budget guesthouse in the Kalsa or Vucciria quarter. Spend the afternoon wandering the tangled lanes of the old town, then catch sunset over the sea near Foro Italico. Evening: street food crawl — panelle, sfincione and a couple of arancine from a friggitoria (roughly £8-10 for a full feed).

🚌Airport bus PMO to Palermo centre ~£6

🛏Hostel/budget guesthouse, Palermo old town (£25-30 dorm or small double)

• →Self-guided wander of Kalsa & Vucciria quarters
• →Palermo street food crawl (panelle, sfincione, arancine)

Do your own orientation walk: the Teatro Massimo, Quattro Canti, the Cathedral, then into Ballarò or Capo market for lunch (cheap and loud and brilliant). In the afternoon take local bus 389 or the AMAT line up to Monte Pellegrino for the view, or visit the Palazzo dei Normanni and Cappella Palatina (€19 combined — book ahead online). Join a free walking tour (tip-based) if you want the history without the tour markup.

🚌Local city buses, day ticket ~£3

🛏Hostel/budget guesthouse, Palermo old town (£25-30)

• →Ballarò or Capo market visit
• →Cappella Palatina & Palazzo dei Normanni (€19)
• →Monte Pellegrino viewpoint

Regional train from Palermo Centrale to Cefalù takes about 45-60 mins and costs £5-6 — one of the great cheap coastal rail runs. Drop bags at a guesthouse in the old town, then hit the beach (the town beach is free and right under the Rocca). Climb the Salita Saraceni for views, pop into the Norman Duomo (free), and finish with an aperitivo in Piazza Duomo.

🚌Regional train Palermo–Cefalù ~£5.50

🛏Guesthouse near Cefalù old town (£28-35)

• →Cefalù beach afternoon
• →Duomo di Cefalù
• →Rocca/Salita Saraceni viewpoint

Take a morning train or SAIS bus to Milazzo (train ~£9, roughly 2hrs via Messina), then the Liberty Lines hydrofoil from Milazzo to Lipari (~£15-18, 45-60 mins). Book the ferry online in advance in summer — it fills up. Afternoon on Lipari: swim at Canneto or Spiaggia Bianca, or take the little local ferry over to Vulcano for its black-sand beach and mud baths (~£11 return).

🚌Train to Milazzo ~£9 + hydrofoil ~£16

🛏Guesthouse/B&B in Lipari Marina Corta or Canneto (£30-40)

• →Optional Vulcano island hop & mud baths (~£11 ferry)
• →Swim at Canneto beach

Book a shared Panarea + Stromboli day excursion independently — the local operators in Marina Corta and the Liberty Lines/dawn-trip boats all sell seats without a tour guide (£45-60, morning to sunset). You stop at Panarea for a swim, then sail to Stromboli to see the Sciara del Fuoco lava glow at dusk. Bring layers — it's cold on the water after dark.

🚌Shared boat excursion from Lipari

🛏Guesthouse/B&B in Lipari (£30-40)

• →Panarea & Stromboli boat trip (~£50)
• →Stromboli sunset & Sciara del Fuoco viewing

Hydrofoil back to Milazzo, then train down to Taormina-Giardini (~£9, ~2hrs). Take the local bus up to Taormina for the afternoon — the Teatro Greco is €14 (book on the CoopCulture site), and the view from Via Pirandello over Etna is free. Late afternoon continue by regional train to Catania (~£4, 45 mins) and settle into a hostel near Piazza del Duomo.

🚌Hydrofoil ~£16 + trains ~£13 + Taormina bus ~£2

🛏Hostel near Catania centre (£22-28 dorm/small double)

• →Taormina orientation wander
• →Teatro Greco di Taormina (€14)

Morning at La Pescheria fish market and a walk down Via Etnea, then decide on Etna: you can book a half-day Etna + wine tasting tour yourself on GetYourGuide for £55-75, or do it DIY — AST bus from Catania to Rifugio Sapienza (~£5) then the Etna cable car/4x4 combo up to the crater zone (~£55-60). Eat cheap arancini and granita for lunch, then an evening bar-hop in the lively Piazza Teatro Massimo area.

🚌Local buses, ~£6

🛏Hostel near Catania centre (£22-28)

• →La Pescheria market
• →Mt Etna excursion + wine tasting (£60-75)
• →Piazza del Duomo & Via Etnea

Regional train Catania–Siracusa (~£6, 1h10), then walk or bus to Ortigia island. Book a 2-3hr Sicilian arancini cooking class directly with a local cookery school in Ortigia (£40-55) — the DIY replacement for the G Adventures included class. Afternoon wander Ortigia's lanes, the Temple of Apollo and the sea wall at sunset.

🚌Regional train ~£6

🛏Guesthouse/B&B on Ortigia (£30-38)

• →Arancini cooking class in Ortigia (~£45)
• →Orientation walk of Ortigia

Morning at the Parco Archeologico della Neapolis (€10, plus €8 for the Greek theatre add-on if you want it) and the Paolo Orsi museum (~£6). Afternoon: take the Interbus/SAIS bus to Noto (~£3, 40 mins) for the baroque town and a granita at Caffè Sicilia, back to Syracuse by evening.

🚌Local buses to Noto ~£6 return

🛏Guesthouse/B&B on Ortigia (£30-38)

• →Parco Archeologico della Neapolis (€10)
• →Day trip to Noto

This is the awkward day — no direct train, so build it yourself: bus to Ragusa (~£6, 2hrs), a couple of hours in the baroque old town (Ibla), then bus towards Piazza Armerina for the Villa Romana del Casale mosaics (€12 entry, allow 1.5-2hrs), then bus on to Agrigento by evening (~£8). Alternatively, split it and overnight in Ragusa or Piazza Armerina if you'd rather not rush. Check SAIS/Etna Trasporti timetables the day before — Sunday services are sparse.

🚌Local buses Ragusa–Piazza Armerina–Agrigento ~£18

🛏Budget B&B in Agrigento (£25-32)

• →Ragusa Ibla walk
• →Villa Romana del Casale mosaics (€12)

Early start at the Valley of the Temples (€12 entry; book an audioguide ~£5 or the official guided tour ~£12 via GetYourGuide). Spend the morning among the Greek temples, then take the afternoon bus or train up the coast to Trapani (~£10, 2.5-3hrs). Evening in Trapani's old town and a sunset walk out on the salt-pan causeway towards the windmills.

🚌Bus/train Agrigento–Trapani ~£10

🛏Guesthouse in Trapani old town (£28-35)

• →Valley of the Temples (€12)
• →Marsala salt marshes / Trapani salt pans sunset

Pick your own day: a hydrofoil to Favignana on the Egadi Islands (~£15 return, bike hire ~£8) for turquoise water and swimming; or the cable car/bus up to hilltop Erice (~£9 return) for medieval streets and almond pastries; or a shuttle to the Zingaro nature reserve for a coastal walk (~£10 return, plus €5 reserve entry). All bookable on the day at the port or bus station — no group needed.

🚌Ferry/cable car/local bus ~£10-18

🛏Guesthouse in Trapani old town (£28-35)

• →Egadi Islands ferry & bike hire (~£23)
• →or Erice hilltown (~£9)
• →or Riserva dello Zingaro coastal walk (~£15)

Bus to Segesta for the Greek temple and theatre (€12 incl. shuttle), then on to Palermo (~£9 total). In the afternoon take city bus 389 to Monreale for the cathedral and cloister mosaics (church free, cloister ~£8) and the rooftop view over the Conca d'Oro. Back in Palermo for your last night — a proper dinner in the Kalsa, maybe pasta con le sarde.

🚌Buses Trapani–Segesta–Palermo ~£9 + Monreale bus ~£3

🛏Hostel/budget guesthouse, Palermo (£25-30)

• →Segesta temple & theatre (€12)
• →Monreale Cathedral & cloister

Coffee and a cassata for breakfast, a final wander through the Capo or Vucciria market, and pick up a bus or the Trinacria Express train to the airport for your flight home. If you've got time, the Palermo street food tour (~£35 on GetYourGuide) runs on some mornings and is a good last hit of the city.

🚌Airport bus/train ~£6

🛏—

• →Morning market wander
• →Optional Palermo street food tour (~£35)