Your Northwest Sicily Itinerary
Welcome back to another travel blog my friends! This one is going to be an easy peasy, straight to the point itinerary style travel blog because our trip was so full. We stayed in four different cities to be sure to make the most of our week there. We found super cheap flights right into Palermo which made this trip an easy decision.
I want to be honest with you guys. We did not love Sicily. Every other trip we have done we have thoroughly enjoyed. We would truly redo every single one we’ve had (and I’ve shared with you) thus far. Except for this one. But, I think if we’d done a few things differently we would have enjoyed it so much more. So I’m going to show you a few things that you could do differently in order to make this a really special and enjoyable trip.
Secondly, I would highly recommend looking into Catania as well. The two most visited areas of Sicily are the Northwest (where we went) and the Southeast. We have heard great things about Catania so I’d definitely check out adding a few cities on that side of the island to your trip as well if you’re okay with a road trip.
Alrighty, let’s get to the good stuff!
Our Itinerary:
Day 1 - Palermo
Our first day was an evening flight into the Northwest port city of Palermo. We rented a car, and headed straight to our hotel when we landed. We stayed at Hotel Garibaldi. The location and reception service were great. We may have gotten a little lost at 11pm at night trying to find their parking lot! The receptionist was so kind and came out to the street to meet us and guide us in. We didn’t love this hotel, but the location and service were memorable!
Day 2 - Palermo
Day two was devoted to exploring the city of Palermo. We spent the morning checking off a couple of the sites we’d researched in the city. We went to:
After a few hours walking around these sites we headed to lunch at FUD bottega sicula. If you’re in the mood for a panini or wrap this is a great option! Definitely not a classic Italian lunch but we were craving a good wrap! After a little lunch time refuel we headed out to check off a few more sites from our list. We went to:
Regional Archeaological - when we arrived the receptionist spoke so highly of the Botanical Gardens we skipped heading in and went to the gardens instead. I’ll be honest, nearly everything was dead. Try to peak in and see if things are vibrant, and if so it would be stunning! Unfortunately, I think they hadn’t had enough time post spring Covid lockdown to ramp up the gardens yet. Definitely not worth the $! We then headed to a beautiful public park, Villa Giulia and we liked this so much better! Next up, head toward the water. We went to:
Porto di Palermo & the marina
Stop for a water/beer with a beautiful view at A’Cala. After this little pit stop we’d finished up the sites we decided we wanted to see for the day. So we headed to a couple cocktail bars before dinner! We went to Bocum and Mak Mixology and had such a great time at both.
We then headed down the same street as as Mak Mixology for a classic italian pasta restaurant for dinner on the most fun and lively street! I’m the absolute worst and didn’t save the restaurant that night and now I can’t find it! This street is full of fun options though so there are plenty to choose from.
Day 3 - Cefalù
Day three we hopped in the car early in the morning and headed straight to the town of Cefalu. If we could redo this trip I would definitely stay here much longer. Three or four days would be perfect. I’d add in a sailboat ride one of those days if this were the case.
We stayed here in this Airbnb and it was a great option, such a pretty view and perfect location. After checking in we headed up to the top of the city to hike to the Temple of Diana and Castello Di Cefalù. We almost decided not to do this hike because it was HOT this day, but I am so glad we did. The afternoon was spent tanning and swimming on the beach before getting ready for dinner.
Before dinner we wandered the alleyways and streets lined with beautiful boutiques before finding ourselves at Jureka, a wine and cocktail bar. If you’re in Cefalu you HAVE to head to Jureka. Their drinks from the menu are so creative and yum. But our favorite part was having them come up with something based on your taste preference! They were so delicious friends, definitely make a reservation and head here for a pre or post dinner drink! Tonight we had dinner at Bastione & Costanza. This was one of our favorite dinners of the trip, I highly recommend the white pizza.
If we came back to Cefalu to stay a few days I would stay at Le Calette Hotel, just on the other side of where the shops and restaurants are.
Welcome to my temple!! haha
Jureka Wine Bar
Day 4 - San Vito Lo Capo
Next stop, San Vito Lo Capo. SVLC is a Sicilian summer travel destination. It has been deemed “the Caribbean of Italy” due to it’s beautiful blue waters. After checking in at Hotel Alaba we headed to the beach to spend the rest of the day in the sun. The blue waters really are stunning. But, the actual beach area itself reminded me of Daytona Beach, FL, not exactly what I was expecting! I think part of that was due to the fact that we were there on a weekend so it was very busy. The next day was much more calm and beautiful, though we headed to a different beach which I’ll share below.
After soaking up the sun we headed to the main shopping and restaurant area to stroll into a few shops. We found ourselves at Bik Bak, a cocktail bar, with the most fun vibe, not to mention the drinks were so yum! Definitely head here if you find yourself in San Vito Lo Capo. For dinner we went to L’Amuri with our hotel’s recommendation and the food was delicious. The vibe wasn’t exactly what we were hoping for but the food sure was. I originally wanted to go to Profumi di Cous Cous but unfortunately they were closed!
Day 5 - Scopello
After waking up and having the BEST fresh pastries from a local bakery (which Hotel Alaba runs to get whichever flavor you request every morning and brings then fresh) it was time to head to Scopello beach! P.S. the classic italian breakfast of a pastry isn’t usually my favorite, but these were SO good!
Scopello is the most beautiful beach. We arrived around 9:30am and got two of the last few chairs left. This beach is very quaint with a limited number of seats, so definitely arrive early! We spent the entire day here and absolutely loved it. If I were to do this trip again I would definitely stay at the Bed and Breakfast on this beach and stay for a few days. This was probably my favorite day of the entire trip.
After driving back to our hotel we decided to go to Il Ficodinida. This was such a fun experience. The chef of the restaurant actually drove to our hotel to pick us up and also take us back. It is a classic family run restaurant with the most beautiful view, and such amazing food. The service is wonderful. It was the perfect end to a beautiful day. After this it was time for us to head to the city of Trapani. But, there are a few more beaches I found that you may want to visit when you are here:
Il Ficodindia
Day 6 - Trapani
We woke up bright and early on day 6 to drive to Trapani in time to head out on a sailboat to the Egadi Islands. We even got to swim up to an old mining cave! You just can’t go wrong with 8 hours on the water. After a long day in the sun you could say we were hangry. After a small argument about where we’re going for dinner (if you can’t relate, quit lying!!), we headed to Pizzeria La Lampara. It’s right on the edge of the “nightlife” scene in the center of town.
You can click the image above to shop my outfit!
Day 7 - Erice
I’ll be honest, I was the most disappointed in Trapani. I’d read so many blogs saying that it's so beautiful, so I had high hopes for it. I won’t lie to you guys. It was SO dirty, smelled bad, and just not kept up. I don’t think it’s worth the trip. BUT, what IS worth the trip is the medieval city built atop of the mountain right outside of Trapani called Erice.
Erice was our adventure of choice for day 7. Unfortunately it was a bit rainy when we were there, but we had such a fun time wandering around the cobblestone streets, in and out of shops, and popping into all of the cute bakeries and restaurants. My husband saw all over a few travel blogs to go to Pasticceria Maria Grammatico for their famous pastries and it did not disappoint. I also loved this ceramic shop full of vases, and classic Sicilian ceramic keepsakes.
The day before, our sailboat driver had told us about the Flamingos that live on the salt flats in Trapani. How cool is that?! I had no idea there were flamingos in Sicily! We made our way there to see if we could see any, but unfortunately the “flamingo season” is usually September and October, so we missed them! But still a cool idea!
For the late afternoon we headed to Jabir for our usually pre-dinner vacation cocktail routine and decided on Osteria I Vitelloni for our last dinner in Sicily. We actually tried to go here the night before but they were already booked. Definitely make a reservation! We really enjoyed this restaurant, the food was so delicious!
Day 8 - Brunch in Palermo and a flight back home
On our last day we had a flight back to Venice in the late afternoon. When we first arrived in Palermo we were looking for a place with a good international breakfast (if you’re a regular of my blog, you know how we feel about breakfast!). That is when we found NonnAnge Bakery. We decided to head here for a late morning brunch after driving back to Palermo to return the car and head to the airport. Guys. Oh my lanta. It was AMAZING! It’s outside of the main city area, but if you’re in Palermo you HAVE to make a visit! They have bagels made from scratch, matcha lattes, homemade french toast, savory egg dishes, and so much more. We stayed here for nearly 4 hours and ate way too much, but it was so worth it!
And then it was another trip gone too quick.
Before I leave you to plan your trip I have a few things to note!
First off, Sicilians drive INSANE. Okay? Insane. Italians in general are a little aggressive on the road, but Sicily is a whole new ballgame my friends. We’re taking no lane lines, no stop signs, absolute madness. So be warned!! Hehe.
Secondly, I think if we’d made the adjustments to this trip like I mentioned above we would have loved it, unfortunately we made a few wrong decisions! I think the perfect Northwest Sicily trip would be this:
Fly into Palermo, stay here for a day or day and a half. Head to Cefalu for three or so days and stay at the hotel I mentioned above. Then head to Scopello and spend a few days at the bed and breakfast right on the beach. Then drive to Erice for a day (or stay right in this medieval town for a night). I’d add a sailboat ride from Cefalu as well. Then close out your perfect Northwest Italy trip! Some people choose to do the entire island in one trip, but in my opinion it’s too big for that. You’d be spending half of every day in the car. We have talked about going back to do the Southeast side of the island so hang tight for a blog post on that my friends!
And that’s it folks. I can’t wait to hear how you enjoy your trip to the beautiful island of Sicily! You can see plenty more photos of every single place we went in my Instagram highlight here. As always, I actually have a“travel hacks” highlight where I explain how to use google maps to save places that you want to visit in the future, whether you have a trip planned or not! Click here to view that, go through these places and be sure to save your favorites! I’d love to hear which ones you end up going to! Never hesitate to DM me on Instagram or shoot me an email here, I love hearing from you!