Things to do in Sicily
Day Trips from Palermo Sicily10 optionsBoat Trips Taormina Sicily42 optionsSicily Wine Tour10 optionsSicily Hiking Tour26 optionsSicily Sailing Tour8 optionsSicily Snorkeling Tour12 optionsNoto Walking Tour7 optionsFood Tour Sicily30 optionsMount Etna Hiking Tour5 optionsMuseums6 optionsSicily Walking Tour47 optionsSicily Airport Transfer10 options
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Syracuse Ortigia: Sicilian Street Food Tour & Market TastingYou walk through Ortigia's markets and squares with a local guide, stopping at four food points: arancini and fried fish near the Temple of Apollo, impanata in Piazza Archimede, local cheeses and cured meats at the market, and granita and cannoli in the historic center. By the end, you've eaten a full meal's worth across separate stops, with one drink included and water throughout. Groups stay small, and the guide explains the history and stories behind each dish as you go.Is it for me?Right for travelers who want to eat like locals rather than as tourists, and who have time to walk through markets and squares instead of sitting at one table. Plan for a full itinerary on foot through Ortigia's streets—that's what lets you taste the food where it's actually made and sold.
Palermo Walking Tour and Street Food: Markets and CathedralA three-hour walking tour of Palermo combines the old markets, street food tastings, and a visit to the Cathedral, with a local guide leading the route and all food and drink included. The tour runs in English or Italian, departs at 10 a.m. (with port pickup available for cruise passengers), and covers the Capo Market, a traditional friggitoria, Teatro Massimo, Opera dei Pupi, and Quattro Canti. Vegetarian and gluten-free options are available with advance notice.Is it for me?Book the English-language option if you want a guide who narrates the history and stories of each stop; choose Italian if you speak the language and want to connect more directly with the local guide. Vegetarian and gluten-free travelers should request those options when you reserve, giving 24 hours' notice so the guide can arrange the right tastings for your needs.
Market Tour & Cooking Class Taormina: Fresh pasta & local wineYou start at the local market learning which seasonal products to buy, then cook three courses at Chef Massimo's house with other participants. Lunch includes the dishes you prepared, two glasses of homemade wine, and you leave with printed recipes and an apron. The whole experience takes a morning and early afternoon, and everything — entry, ingredients, wine, meals — is included.Is it for me?Book this if you want to learn Sicilian cooking from someone who knows the market and the recipes, and you're willing to spend a morning doing the actual work instead of watching a demo — the hands-on part is what makes the food taste like it belongs there.
Mt Etna 4x4 Tour: Lava Flows, Valle del Bove & Sicilian TastingYou’ll ride up Mt Etna in a 4x4 with a local guide, feel ancient lava under your boots, explore volcanic caves by helmet light, and finish with Sicilian specialties at a farmhouse. Expect laughter, unexpected flavors, and views that linger long after you leave.
Taormina: Isola Bella & Blue Grotto Boat Tour with Swim StopsYou board a small boat in Giardini Naxos and spend four to five hours along Taormina's coast, swimming at Isola Bella nature reserve and hidden coves accessible only by sea. The tour includes Prosecco and almond paste between swims, with optional snorkel rental. You return to the same dock by early afternoon.Is it for me?A good fit if you want to see Taormina's coastline from the water and swim in clear coves without arranging your own boat — the fixed stops and timing mean you're not deciding where to go or how long to stay. The tour runs four to five hours, which is what fits two proper swim stops and the ride back into one morning or afternoon.
Palermo Night Street Food Tour & Vucciria MarketYou walk through Palermo's backstreets for three hours with a local guide, stopping at vendors he actually knows to taste 7-8 traditional street foods—arancini, sfincione, panelle, croquettes, and a seasonal dessert—plus beer and wine. The food amounts to a full meal, and nothing is touristy. You end up fed, tired, and knowing the city a little like a local does. Book if you want real food over restaurant meals and don't mind standing while you eat.Is it for me?Book this if you want to eat real Palermo food in the places locals actually go, and you're comfortable walking for three hours on backstreets and standing while you eat. The small-group format and local guide take the guesswork out of finding authentic vendors and navigating neighborhoods on your own.
Mt. Etna from Catania: Lava Cave, Craters & Sicilian TastingYou’ll feel volcanic heat under your boots as you trek Etna’s craters with a local guide, descend into a real lava cave (helmet included), and sample honey and olive oil made right on these slopes. There’s laughter and silence both — plus hotel pickup from Catania so you can just show up ready for adventure.
Catania: Sicilian Street Food Tour with Market TastingYou’ll wander through Catania’s bustling markets with a local guide, tasting fresh caponata, hot fried fish cones straight from the stalls, flaky pastries like cipollina and cartocciata, and finish with classic Sicilian sweets — cannoli or icy granita if it’s hot out. You’ll hear stories between bites and leave feeling more like a neighbor than a visitor.
Mt. Etna Sunset Trek from Catania: Lava Caves & Local TastingYou're picked up from your Catania hotel, driven to Mt. Etna, and guided through a lava cave with helmet and lamp before trekking the volcano's natural paths. You taste local honey and olive oil at a farm, watch the sunset from the slopes, and return to your hotel. The whole day is five hours, the guide speaks your language, and you don't arrange transport or timing yourself.Is it for me?Pick this if you want to see Mt. Etna without renting a car or navigating the volcano on your own — the guide, the transport, and the timed sunset all happen without you arranging them, which is what makes a full volcano experience fit into one afternoon from Catania.
Mount Etna hiking tour from Taormina: Lava cave and wine tastingA full-day hiking tour from Taormina that takes you onto Mount Etna's slopes, into a lava cave, and to the Alcantara Gorges, with an expert naturalistic guide, lunch with wine pairing, and all hiking equipment provided. The tour runs about nine hours and includes hotel pickup; tours in French or Spanish can be arranged with advance notice.Is it for me?Book this tour if you want to hike an active volcano and see its geology from inside a lava cave in the same day—the guide's expertise and the provided equipment mean you're not managing the mountain alone or figuring out the route yourself. The nine-hour structure packs three distinct landscapes (Etna's slopes, the cave, the gorges) into one outing, so you're not splitting the day between separate trips.
Taormina: Italian Opera Evening with Prosecco & Terrace ViewYou arrive at the Nazarena Theatre by 9:15pm, settle onto the panoramic terrace with prosecco and snacks, then watch professional opera singers perform famous arias from Mozart, Verdi, and Puccini with piano accompaniment. The evening runs five nights a week, and the ticket covers your drink and entry — no dress code required.Is it for me?Right for anyone in Taormina who wants live opera without the commitment of a full evening at a major house — ninety minutes of the arias people actually know, on a terrace with a view, and no formal dress required.
Egadi Islands Boat Tour Favignana & Levanzo with Lunch from TrapaniYou board a 24-seat boat at Trapani and spend eight hours moving between five coves on Favignana and Levanzo, swimming and snorkeling at each stop. Lunch—two pastas, bread, fruit and wine—is served on board while moored at Favignana. An aperitif break happens mid-morning, and a final drink and fruit plate comes around before the return journey. Snorkeling gear is provided, and you get an hour to walk around Favignana's village. The boat returns to Trapani in the late afternoon.Is it for me?Book this if you want to see two islands and swim at multiple coves without renting a car or planning stops yourself—the fixed itinerary and included lunch mean you show up at the port and the day is already structured.
Mount Etna: Small Group Volcano Hike & Valle del Bove ViewsYou’ll hike Mount Etna’s wild side with a volcanologist guide, starting with coffee in a Sicilian village before climbing through lava fields to Valle del Bove. Feel gritty volcanic sand under your boots, share laughs over local snacks, and catch smoky views of Etna’s craters—an experience that lingers long after you’re back down.
Etna Wine Tour: 3 Wineries with Food Tasting from TaorminaA private 6-hour wine tour of Mount Etna's slopes visits three working wineries where sommeliers guide tastings of white, rosé and red DOC wines paired with fresh local food. Hotel or port pickup is included from Taormina, Catania or Messina, and the tour runs with a minimum of two adults; groups up to eight can book the semi-private option. All wine, food and entrance fees are covered in the price.Is it for me?Book from Taormina if that's where you're staying or arriving by ship; choose Catania or Messina if your hotel is closer to those cities. The fixed 6-hour window and included transport mean you don't arrange the logistics—the driver handles the route and timing so the three tastings and food pairings fit into one afternoon without gaps.
Ortigia Island & Sea Caves Boat Tour SyracuseYou board a guided boat at Ortigia's bridges and spend roughly 70 minutes circling the island, viewing the Cathedral and market from the water, heading north to see the sea caves with historical explanation from your guide, and returning through the channels back to the starting point. A swimming stop is possible if conditions allow.Is it for me?Right for travelers in Syracuse with an hour to spare who want to see the Cathedral and the island's shape from the water rather than walking the streets. The boat moves steadily—you're not lingering anywhere—which is what fits the whole route and the caves into a single morning or afternoon.
Gorges of Tiberius Boat Tour Sicily: Paddle through UNESCO GeoparkYou’ll float by rubber dinghy through Sicily’s UNESCO-listed Tiberius Gorges with a local guide who knows every nest and fossil. Touch ancient stones, spot wild birds overhead, and walk along the Pollina river—sometimes stopping for a swim if weather allows. Includes all safety gear and plenty of stories you won’t find in any brochure.
San Vito lo Capo Boat Tour: Gypsy Reserve & SwimmingA 4-hour boat tour from San Vito lo Capo along Sicily's western coast, with stops at the Gypsy Reserve and the Tonnara di Scopello. You swim and snorkel at two separate coves — one with a sea cave accessible only by water — and finish with an aperitif of local bread and wine at the Scopello stacks before returning to the starting point. Groups stay under 13 people, which is what keeps the caves uncrowded and the boat's shaded sofas available.Is it for me?The tour is led in Italian or English, so choose the language that matches your comfort level. Groups stay under 13 people, which means the two sea caves stay uncrowded and the boat's shaded sofas are actually available — if you've booked other boat tours in Sicily and spent the day standing in the sun with forty others, this one changes that equation.
Mount Etna & Gambino Winery: Volcano Craters, Lava Tunnel & LunchYou’ll walk along Mount Etna’s ancient side craters, explore a real lava tunnel with a local guide, then unwind at Gambino Winery over Sicilian lunch and volcanic wines. With hotel pickup included from Taormina or nearby towns, this day trip lets you taste, touch, and hear Sicily’s wild heart — it might stick with you longer than you expect.
Palermo: UNESCO Walking Tour, Cathedral Entry & CannoloYou’ll walk Palermo’s tangled streets with a local guide who brings history alive—touching mosaics in old galleries, tasting fresh cannolo at Vucciria Market, standing quietly inside Palermo Cathedral as sunlight hits ancient stone. You’ll laugh at stories in busy piazzas and end up feeling connected to more than just monuments—maybe even to yourself.
Palermo: Walking Tour & Vucciria Market Street Food TastingYou walk the old town's main monuments—Four Corners, Pretoria Fountain, Chiesa del Gesù—with a local licensed guide, then spend time in Vucciria Market tasting arancini, cannoli, focaccia and fresh juice. Church entries and all food tastings are included. The tour takes one morning and covers the layout of central Palermo without you having to navigate it yourself or figure out where to eat.Is it for me?Book this if you want to see Palermo's old town layout and eat its actual street food without navigating the market alone or deciding where to stop—the guide handles both, and the food is included so there are no surprise costs at each stall.
