Travel guide for PALERMO

Information

Climate

Typical Mediterranean climate with wet winters and dry summers.The ideal period to visit Palermo is during May, June, September and October. It’s also very nice during summer; however, it might be too hot and the beaches are usually too crowded.

Location

Palermo is the principal city of Sicily and including the province of Palermo, has around 1,300,000 inhabitants.

Money Issues

The euro is used in all exchanges. If you come from a non-EU country, you’d better exchange money from ATMs (they usually offer very good prices) or banks (which have usually long queues). Try to avoid the Bureaux de Change which are found around the city, because they usually give a low exchange rate. Credit cards are not accepted everywhere. Look for the respective sign on the window shops. Keep in mind that you will spend quite a lot of money in cash.

How to get there

Several airlines have Charter flights to Palermo, especially during summer, when is the high season. You can also fly to Rome or Milan, where there is a connection to Palermo. The airport of the city is called Punta Rais, it is located in the western part of Palermo, and it is about 40 minutes far from the city center. A bus takes you from the airport to the city center every half an hour. Finally, you can travel by railway from Italy to Sicily (trains are loaded on ships in Messina Strait), or by road.

Trasportation

The cheapest way of transportation in Palermo is the bus service, which is quite reliable. Bus tickets can be found in special kiosks near the bus stops, as well as in shops writing “T”. You can also find a taxi at taxi-stands; a taximeter is used.

While there

Accomodation On-line hotel reservations in PALERMO

For high season periods (July and August) book a hotel in time. The price for a 2 or 3-star hotel ranges from 50 to 100 euros. They offer all basic facilities and they’re usually clean. During low-season periods, prices fall up to 40%.

Children

If you have kids you should attend a marionette performance, to which I referred in the Culture section.

Food

The best restaurants are those preferred by the local people, while you’d better avoid the typical dishes (they usually offer Italian specialties such as pasta alla Bolognese, spaghetti alla carbonara). Plain restaurants are called trattorie or pizzerie. A complete Italian meal includes starters, first dish (Primo-usually spaghetti or rice with fish, meat or vegetables), second dish (Secondo- fish or meat), side dishes for the second dish (Contorini-usually salads, vegetables, and potatoes), dessert (fruit, sweets which are perfect in Palermo) and coffee. A cheaper solution is to have dinner at a pub where sandwiches and local specialties are served .Nice local dishes are : involtini ( slices of meat covered with filling ), pasta con le sarde ( pasta with sardines, fennel, pine and anchovies ), Caponata ( includes aubergines, tomatoes, celery, caper, olives and grapes ), Arancini ( fried rice and meat) and Gelato ( Sicilian ice-cream ).

Amusement

In Palermo you can find a wide variety of bars and clubs. Most of them are located at the Olivella Square where many students hang around.

Beaches

In the area around the gulf of Palermo, you may visit the small seaside suburbs of Sferracavallo, Mondello, Vergine Maria, Arenella and Acquasanta. Beaches with facilities (Chairs, Umbrella, rescue service from 9a.m. to 7p.m.) around Palermo are Addaura, barcarello, Vergine Maria,Arenella,Romagnolo. There are frequent buses from Palermo to the above beaches.

Activities

Culture

An important custom in Palermo and in Sicily are the marionette performances (most of them concern battles with crusaders). Performances are in the Italian language, however an English version is often distributed. Performances take place at Vincenzo Argento Opera dei Pupi ( Pietro Novelli 1 ) and at Teatro dell’ Opera dei Pupi ( Benedettini 9 ). For concerts, opera and ballet performances you can be informed for the programme of the Teatro Massimo Bellini, Teatro Politeana Garibaldi, Teatro di Ventura and Teatro Biondo Stabile. The best way to make your choice is through the magazine, called Lapis. Lapis includes information for all culture events in Palermo. Its distribution is free of charge and you can find it in tourist shops, pubs and cafes.

Sport Events

If you’re keen on football, you can watch a football match of the local team Palermo, playing in Serie A.

Shopping

Most of the shops are located on Liberta street where you will find clothes from all the famous Italian designers. It would be nice to combine shopping with a relaxing break for an espresso at one of the cafes in the street.

Monuments

Galleries

The Galleria Regionale (Alorro street) also known as Palazzo Abbatellis (built in 1488). The collection includes several particularly interesting works. The gallery is worth a visit not only for the paintings that includes but also for admiring the entrance and the garden of the Gothic building.

Museums

The archaeological museum of Palermo, located at Olivella Square. It includes artefacts from the Phoenician, Punic, Greek, Roman and Saracen periods found on the island. There is also an interesting section devoted to underwater archaeology (entrance costs 4.5 euros for adults and 2 euros for children, opens Tuesday to Saturday 8:30a.m. to 6:15p.m. and Sunday from 9a.m. to 1p.m).

Modern museums

The Marionette Museum that includes a great collection of marionettes from all over the world (entrance costs 5 euros and is open from 10a.m. to 1p.m. and 3:30p.m. to 6p.m. Monday to Friday). The Museo Pitre that includes folk art objects and furniture (open from 9a.m. to 1p.m. all days except Friday).

Historical monuments

The Palazzo Normandini, one of the most beautiful Italian palaces, and a notable example of Norman architecture. The Monreale Cathedral located at the Vittorio Emmanouelle Square, is one of the most important monuments of Middle Ages. (Free entrance, open daily from 8a.m. to 12p.m. and 3:30p.m. to 6p.m.). The Palazzo Mirto, one of the few aristocratic homes of Palermo, offering visitors a insight into the lifestyle of Sicily's noble 19th-century families. (Merlo Street, entrance costs 2 euros, opens from 9a.m. to 1:30p.m. all days except Sunday and 3p.m. to 6p.m. only at Tuesday and Thursday). The Capuchin Catacombs that contains the mummified remains of about 8,000 ancient inhabitants of Palermo. The spectacle may be macabre but worth a visit.

Other sights

The temples La Martorana and San Cataldo, located at Bellini Square (Free entrance, open from 9:30a.m. to 1p.m. and from 3:30p.m. to 5p.m.). The temple San Domenico, located at San Domenico Square (Free entrance, is open from 9:30 to 11).

Be Cautious

Palermo like most of the cities in Sicily has its crime problems. Do not leave valuable objects such as your wallet and mobile phones on the restaurants or bars tables. Do not carry large amounts of cash on the public and do not wear extravagant or expensive looking clothing. Also take care while shopping in bargains where some locals may try to cheat you.

Best routes

Out

Visit the ancient volcano island Ustica which is located 57 km north west of Palermo, renowned as a “paradise” for scuba divers (there is a ferry from Palermo). Besides visit the Roman ruins at Solunto, located 16km east of Palermo. There is a small archaeological museum but most of the artefacts are in the Palermo Archaeological Museum I mentioned above. Finally go up the hilltop above Solunto, where there is a magnificent view of the gulf of Palermo.

Value 4 money

Try to visit Palermo in June or September. The weather is very good then and several hotels have a discount of about 40% compared to the prices of July and August.