At the start of spring, I decided to leave the dreariness of Paris to spend ten days or so in Sicily, a region I’ve visited briefly before but never had the time to linger.

The choice of the destination

Sicily was the obvious choice for several reasons.

The first is the climate, which is perfect for this time of year: hot, but much less so than in summer, when it quickly becomes unbearable. What’s more, it’s off-season, so the sites won’t be as overcrowded as they can be at other times of the year.

The second is a real desire to return.I spent several weekends there at the instigation of Olivier, who introduced me to the region by going to visit his family there, but in two days my discovery of the local heritage could only be superficial, and I promised myself I’d come back and take my time.

The third, and by no means least, is the budgetary dimension.At this time of year, I’ve been to Portugal and Spain several times, but since COVID, hotel prices in these countries have become prohibitive, not to say scandalous. More than 500 euros out of season for an Autograph Collection in Lisbon, when you consider the cost of living there, is indecent. I’m not even talking about Barcelona, where finding a decent hotel for less than 300 euros a night has become mission impossible. Mind you, some parts of Italy are no better, but Sicily is still a very affordable destination for both hotels and restaurants, especially outside the city centre.

So while waiting for this bubble to burst, because it will, we might as well go to more affordable places.

I decided to have two base camps: Catania, from where I could also visit Taormina, and Syracuse. I’ll be returning to Catania at the end of my stay, but only to spend the night there because of an early flight the next day.

Les transports

As far as flights are concerned, for once I’ve made an infidelity to Star Alliance by choosing ITA, which I’ve never flown before since the end of Alitalia. I’ll be flying via Milan Linate on the outward leg and Rome on the return.

Once again, a totally rational choice: unbeatable prices in business class, half the price of the competition, the desire to test this “new” airline and then I managed to make one of my flights on one of their brand new A321Neo with, as you’ll see, certainly the most beautiful business class seat in Europe for a medium-haul aircraft.

Even Turkish Airlines is beaten (but not on the service).

On site I used Uber to get around Catania because of the Four Points’ very off-center location and took Trenitalia regional trains to Taormina and Syracuse.

Hotels

At the time, Marriott was doubling the nights credited for renewing my status, so I stuck with my favorite loyalty program.

In recent years, Marriott has opened a number of new hotels in Sicily, but as I arrive first in Catania, I’ll be returning to the Four Points Catania, which we’ve already introduced to you, with its charm that, to put it politely, can only be described as old-fashioned.

In Syracuse, on the other hand, I’ll have the pleasure of discovering the brand-new Ortea Palace, finally open after years of internal renovation.

Restaurants

In Catania, once again because of the hotel’s location, I’ll make do with the hotel’s very good and affordable restaurant. This will free up my budget to try two gourmet restaurants in Syracuse, namely Cortile Spirito Santo and Regina Lucia.

All this announces the articles to come about this trip.

Articles similaires

Four Points Catania : a simple pleasure in Sicily Air France Business Class post-COVID, Paris CDG – Catania Fontanarossa, Airbus A319: Finally a real service! Express – Four Points by Sheraton Catania: You can’t ignore a Presidential Suite! Air France Business post-COVID, Catania Fontanarossa – Paris CDG, Airbus A320 : Bordello all’Italiana