Sicily and Its Isles

We loved the entire tour, partly because my family immigrated to the US from Sicily in 1910, so it had deeper meaning than just a vacation. Our tour guide (Davide Iosia) was absolutely phenomenal and added a lot of extra value to our group. He made special accommodations for us to spend more time in Cefalu, where my family came from, and we climbed the Rocca di Cefalu for a bird's eye view of the town. It is a memory of a lifetime for me and Davide made it happen. We will never forget this trip.

The tour was amazing! I most enjoyed all the visits to the local farms, learning about the work they do and just listening to them; being immersed into the cultures and everyday life.

Went smoothly, treated like royalty, tours excellent.

Entire tour was super. Great tour manager. The many sights we visited were amazing. Some of the best food I’ve ever eaten.

I just loved seeing the open air opera theatre in Taromina.. Knowing that it is still being used today for performances is so wonderful. Seating in the seats that are now provided I could just imagine seeing performers on the stage. I would have loved to just stand on the stage. I didn’t get to see it at night but can just imagine it under the stars with a view of Mount Etna. I must also mention the food. It was truly wonderful. Every bite!! Our tour manager Laura was just the best. This was my second tour with Collette and I hope to add at least one or two or who knows how many more. I truly prefer the small group tours. You really get to know your fellow travelers and the experiences are truly remarkable. I like that even if you are traveling alone you have a travel family with you. I do hope that in the future you might add a few more level 2 tours to the small group tours. Right now the level 3 are fine but hoping to be able to travel as long as possible. It took me a while to finally get to Sicily to see where my grandparents were born, but it was worth the wait and I’m so glad I chose Collette for the journey.

We loved our trip. Our tour manger Dario made Sicily come alive for us. It was a wonderful mixture of historical and cultural moments. We got to see a real slice of life. I enjoyed olive grove, caper farm, salt pans, winery. My husband and I loved winding through towns and always finding an amazing dinner, we were never disappointed. Swimming in the Mediterranean Sea and traveling to mount etna were wonderful.

Fabulous guide, itinerary and group size. One of my favorite tours ever. Collette comes through on all of their tours.

to me it was a once in a life time experience. Everthing about Sicily was a wonder from people to food to history. All of this was shared expertly and enjoyably thru travel excursions, unique experiences with peoples and their food and expert sharing of history and information with our guide. I cant say enough about our guide. He quickly became the head of our family of travelers. He anticipated our needs and sought to fill them, he showed compassion to the travelers who needed more attention. His pride and knowledge of his country was shared with enthusiasm, and a bit of wimsy. He treated us to little surprises along the way to remind us of the culture and customs of his country. Truly memories to last a lifetime.

Too Many to mention. All were great. Favorites were Salina and Taormina. Could have had another day there Lest favorite was city of Palermo. Glad we were in the old city

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Collette included so many things to see and do. Visiting Palermo was a great experience so much to see. Visiting Mount Etna and the side trip we had to savor the taste of freshly made ricotta cheese. Tasting Marsala wine. Especially Marsala gelato! The seafood is out of this world. I would go back to Sicily to visit the many other sites as wells as revisit the areas Collette included in their itinerary.

We had a great time. We experienced so many different things about Sicily from gathering sea salt, visiting Greek temples, sampling ex-virgin olive oil, staying on the Island of Saline and visiting a caper farm. And many other interesting sites and activities. I wanted to stay longer and see even more.

I loved the tour but wish there was at least two optional excursion's to the beach.

Personal help from tour director Rosario. He was exceptional.

The tour manager Rosario was very knowledgeable professional and very personal always available to help us make the trip enjoyable. I enjoyed Palermo,Monreale Cathedral,the salt pans,olive and caper farm tours,valley of the temples,Salina island,Stromboli volcano,Taormina,Mount Etna. I would suggest staying at Baja Di Ulisse for more than one day,we did not have enough time to enjoy the beautiful beach and amenities.

Shown almost nothing of the important sights in Palermo. Hotels were usually outside of city so unless taxi taken no way to explore. Old bus was cramped, no WiFi but driver excellent. Island visit mostly for caper farm. Bigger city on the island was skipped. Hotel was more like 2 stars when better were available. Food generally disappointing although good at agritourismos. Syracuse, Catania, and Noto were skipped. Aetna and Taormina were highlighted and worthwhile. Tour leader was good. Overall could have been much better at the luxury price paid.