Sicily Guide

My parents arrived from Sicily two days ago and brought to me lots of goodies. Among them is a CD loaded with pictures of Sicily that I am going to share with you throughout this week. All the images were taken by professional photographer Franca Calderone, a childhood’s friend back home. THANK YOU, Franca!

Mount Etna Pictures © […]

A question that I am always asked by people traveling or planning their trip to Sicily is if it gets too hot in the summer. The answer is yes, Sicily gets hot! So, is it a bad idea to go there during this time of the year? It depends…I actually love going back in August. I truly […]

Among my favorite art places in Sicily is Palazzo Abatellis, the regional art gallery. This old building, in serious need of restoration, was designed by Carnalivari at the end of the 15th century as the residence of Francesco Abatellis, harbormaster of the Kingdom of the two Sicilies. The palace is one of the most significant Gothic-Catalan architectonic samples […]

Sicily has been improving its hospitality offer in the past few years. More deluxe and luxury hotels have been built and/or upgraded (Kempinski Giardino di Costanza Grand Hotel & Spa, Hilton Portorosa, Hilton Villa Igiea) and new ones are to come (Verdura Golf and Spa Resort). This is a good sign that the island is finally taking the […]

It is hard to believe, but I just found out that there is an extreme free running trail of the volcanoes in Sicily and is at its 4th edition! It is called the Sicilian Volcano Trail. I just heard about this race from a friend. I was totally intrigued and watched a short video of last year […]

Travel journals are fun and they have become even more fun with web 2.0. Everybody, even without HTML knowledge, can post itineraries, photos, videos, podcasts and maps online and share them with the entire world or only with family and friends.
The web 2.0 travel journals are consumers’ generated content: they are passionate, realistic, fresh and, […]

I have to admit that I am not a big fan of dialects. My parents speak Sicilian dialect at home in Sicily and I understand it, but I cannot carry on a full conversation in it. I was brought up speaking Sicilian and Italian, but I must have given up speaking Sicilian when I started […]

Last January, a friend convinced me to watch Mafioso by Alberto Lattuada, a 1962 Italian movie that has been shown in some US theaters since the beginning of the year (it is still playing in select theaters throughout the country until July 14). I am always skeptical of movies that have the mafia as their […]

The weekend of April 13-15, about 1300 tour operators, travel agents, wholesalers, and hoteliers will be gathering at the Hotel & Resort Città for the 9th edition of TravelExpo in Terrasini, a resort town west of Palermo close to the Airport Falcone-Borsellino. Through the years, this tradeshow has grown to become an excellent indicator on […]

Pace del Mela is a small village of about 6,000 inhabitants in the Messina province, East of Sicily. Founded in 1388 by the Benedictine monks, it boasts great cultural heritage and a beautiful view of Cape Milazzo. On clear days, you can see the Aeolian Islands from this hilly town. Its highest point is Mount […]