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The long sandy beach of Cefalù with the old town and the great rock of La Rocca rising behind it
The Temple of Concordia in Agrigento, a Doric temple with its six-column front and pediment still standing
Roman floor mosaic of young women in two-piece costumes playing sport, one holding a palm and a crown
The tall, ear-shaped mouth of the Ear of Dionysius, cut into the limestone of an ancient quarry in Syracuse

Things to do in Sicily: Palermo, Taormina and Etna

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Photo: Kondephy, CC BY-SA 3.0

Valle dei Templi, Agrigento

Walk the ridge of Greek temples in Agrigento's Valley

Check dates and prices

Photo: Badadaba, CC BY-SA 4.0

Villa Romana del Casale, Piazza Armerina

Find the ten girls in bikinis at the Villa Romana del Casale

Check dates and prices

Photo: Clemensfranz, CC BY 2.5

Parco Archeologico della Neapolis, Syracuse

Hear the echo in the Ear of Dionysius and see Syracuse's theatre

Check dates and prices

Photo: Isiwal, CC BY-SA 4.0

Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean, with Palermo on the north coast, Etna above Catania on the east, and Greek temples, Roman villas and Norman churches spread between them. Since 2015, nine buildings from the Norman kingdom of Sicily, seven in Palermo plus the cathedrals of Cefalù and Monreale, have been a UNESCO World Heritage Site together.

Palermo and the Taormina and Etna area have their own pages. This one covers three ancient sites that each take a day from a base elsewhere on the island: the Valley of the Temples at Agrigento, the floor mosaics of the Villa Romana del Casale near Piazza Armerina, and the Neapolis park of Syracuse, with its Greek theatre and the Ear of Dionysius.

Places in this region

3 things to do in Sicily

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The Temple of Concordia in Agrigento, a Doric temple with its six-column front and pediment still standing

Walk the ridge of Greek temples in Agrigento's Valley

Valle dei Templi, Agrigento

About 2 to 3 hoursGo alone or with a tour

Not a valley but a ridge of seven Doric temples, one preserved because it became a church.

Check dates and pricesTwo-hour guided walk of the temples, ticket included
Roman floor mosaic of young women in two-piece costumes playing sport, one holding a palm and a crown

Find the ten girls in bikinis at the Villa Romana del Casale

Villa Romana del Casale, Piazza Armerina

About 2 hoursGo alone or with a tour

Some 3,500 square metres of Roman floor mosaics, saved by a landslide, with women athletes in two-piece costumes lifting weights.

Check dates and prices90-minute guided tour of the villa's mosaics
The tall, ear-shaped mouth of the Ear of Dionysius, cut into the limestone of an ancient quarry in Syracuse

Hear the echo in the Ear of Dionysius and see Syracuse's theatre

Parco Archeologico della Neapolis, Syracuse

About 2 hoursGo alone or with a tour

A Greek theatre cut into the rock where Aeschylus staged The Persians, and a cave 23 metres high curved like an ear.

Check dates and pricesGuided Neapolis tour with park entry included

Plan your trip

  • Where to base yourself

    Palermo is the base for the north and west, with Monreale and Cefalù as half days out. Taormina, or Giardini Naxos at sea level below it, is the base for Etna and the east coast, and Catania is the other option there. Agrigento and Piazza Armerina lie in the south and the interior, so most people see them on the way from one coast to the other, with a night in Agrigento.

  • Getting around

    The two main airports are Palermo and Catania. Regional trains run from Palermo to Cefalù and to Agrigento, and along the east coast from Messina to Taormina and Catania. The interior, including Piazza Armerina, is far easier by car, and a car is also the simplest way to link Agrigento, the Villa Romana del Casale and Syracuse in one trip.

  • When to go

    April to June and September to October suit the open archaeological sites best. In July and August they are hottest at midday, which is why the Valley of the Temples stays open into the evening from 20 June to 20 September. Every spring and early summer, the INDA foundation stages Greek plays in the theatre of Syracuse; the 2026 season ran from 8 May to 28 June.

Questions travellers ask

Do you need to book the Villa Romana del Casale?

No. The official site says no booking is needed. Tickets cost €14 for adults over 25 and €7 from 18 to 24, under-18s go free, and entry is free on the first Sunday of the month. The villa opens every day from 9:00 to 19:00, with last entry at 18:00.

When does the Valley of the Temples open in the evening?

From 20 June to 20 September. In that period the park opens at 8:30 and stays open until 22:00 from Monday to Friday, with visitors out by 23:00, and until 23:00 on the eve of holidays and on holidays. The rest of the year it still opens every day.

What is Arab-Norman Palermo?

It is the UNESCO World Heritage Site listed in 2015: nine buildings from the Norman kingdom of Sicily, between 1130 and 1194, that mix Arab, Byzantine and Norman building. Seven are in Palermo, among them the Palatine Chapel, the cathedral, the Martorana and the Zisa, and the other two are the cathedrals of Cefalù and Monreale.

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