Page 49 - The Rough Guide of Sicily

There are ferries (traghetti) and hydrofoils (aliscafi) to the Aeolians, the Egadi and
Pelagie islands, and Pantelleria and Ustica, and there’s also a summer hydrofoil
service from Palermo to the Aeolians. The main operators are Siremar ( siremar.it),
SNAV ( snav.it), NGI ( ngi-spa.it) and Ustica Lines ( usticalines.it), and you’ll
find full details of services, schedules and fares in the relevant sections of the Guide.

Timetables also available online, pinned up at the dockside or available from the ferry
offices and tourist offices.

You can island-hop year-round in the Aeolians and Egadis. Services are busy in
summer, making early booking advisable, though you should always be able to get on a
ferry if you just turn up. Both passenger and car-ferry services operate, though non-
resident vehicles are banned on several islands during the summer. In fact, it’s

debatable how much you’ll need a car on any of the islands – only Lipari, Pantelleria
and Lampedusa are of any size, and in any case you can rent a vehicle there if you
need to.

By plane

If you’re short on time, consider flying to Lampedusa or Pantelleria from Trapani,
Palermo or Catania – otherwise, the alternative is an overnight ferry ride. Flights are
with Darwin Airline ( darwinairline.com), and prices start at around €60 one-way –

check the website for timetables and the latest offers.

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ACCOMMODATION

On the whole, accommodation in Sicily is slightly cheaper than in the rest of Italy,

starting at around €60 a night for a basic double or twin room (though prices can
double in summer in the most popular resorts). The only accommodation cheaper
than this comes in the form of the very few youth hostels and the many campsites
across the island. Hotels run across the entire range, from crumbling townhouses
to five-star palaces, and restored country villas to resort hotels. There’s also a

large number of “bed and breakfast” places and “agriturismo” rural properties,
where the attraction is mixing with your hosts and experiencing something of
Sicilian life.

All hotel accommodation is officially graded and the tariffs fixed by law. In tourist

areas, there’s often a low-season and high-season price, but whatever it costs, the rate
should be posted on the door of the room. In summer (usually in August) some places
– especially in major resorts or on outlying islands – insist on half-board