Treasures of Sicily

First, the trip leader, Enrico Nucci, did an outstanding job throughout the trip. He provided very clear information about logistics, was very knowledgable about the history of the sites we visited and adeptly handled several unexpected events. I came away from the trip with a deep understanding of Sicily. The trip lived up to the "Scholar" part of your name! It was more of a 2 week seminar than a vacation trip. Also, we made several new friends which is always a treasure. The only change I would recommend is to build in a little more free time for individual exploration. This was our 13th trip to Italy (but first Road Scholar trip) and missed some of the spontaneous encounters that wandering around often provides. I would highly recommend this trip to anyone interested in gaining a deep understanding of Sicily. I read four of the books on the reading list prior to the start of the trip. This gave me a good base to better understand what we were seeing and hearing. I'll remember to take the reading list seriously if we ever take another Road Scholar trip.

If you would like a tour that goes beyond "the touristy," that delves deeply into a place in all its myriad forms (art, daily life, societal relationships, place in history, cuisine, natural/geographical context, etc.) and that challenges you to learn deeply and go beyond the superficial, then I would recommend you look into into a Road Scholar tour.

This trip was nothing short of magical from beginning to the end, which came all too soon. The itinerary was well planned for two weeks, giving an overview of the complex history which formed Sicily's culture ... and still leaving us with enough time to experience and explore on our own. The speakers and guides at each location were top notch as they shared their passion and expertise. Most of all, our two facilitators for the week could not have been better. They quickly put together a diverse group to have a memorable time enjoying Sicily and each other. Transportation, accommodations, meals, unexpected experiences... all done seamlessly. Kudos to them on a job well done!

Enrico was an excellent guide. His knowledge of Sicily along with the presentations by local experts helped to enhance our trip & experiences.

Sicily is a fascinating island with a unique and varied culture and history, and let's not forget the food. The RS tour included many of the most important sites in Sicily and our days were full. Our group leader, Enrico, was excellent. He was kind, patient, and knowledgeable. I was more than happy with the amount of free time available. As a solo traveler, I enjoy exploring. The restaurants served wonderful and varied food (though I don't understand why anyone eats anchovies :)) There were a number of meals on our on early in the tour which worked well for me. I recommend this tour. Keep up the pace describes the activity level. There is a lot of walking and Sicily is not flat. For some reason there is no place to indicate a star level on this feedback form but I give it 5 stars. It is even hard to complain about some rainy weather considering Sicily is in a significant drought and any rain is welcome. The two weeks prior to the start of the tour I took an independent Italian course at Solemar Academy in Cefalu', about 30 minutes from Palermo. Also at the school while I was there was the five week Road Scholar Sicilian Live and Learn Program. I recommend the school and the city for those interested in an Italian class.

Excellent and entertaiing tour organizer. We learned a lot from the local guides, all of whom were outstanding.

If you’re considering a trip to Sicily and want to really get an understanding of culturally who the Sicilian people are, this is the best way to visit. One of my closest friends is married to a Sicilian born American and didn’t know all the details I included in my emails to her on each day of my adventure with Road Scholar.

After a while, I could not look at another church. The Jews had a tremendous impact on Italy, and I went to the Mikva on my own. Well, church is a beautiful and have tremendous impacts after a while it was too much.

Great experience. Our Guide Leader, Dominico was exceptional. I loved the all inclusive nature of the trip. There was no waiting on line or waiting to get meals. We will do another trip with Road Scholar

This was a fun trip. Sicily is beautiful. Our tour leader Domenico Nucci spoke English better than many Americans! Our expert guides were extremely interesting. I would do the trip again!

Excellent program for those who want an in-depth, active exploration of Sicily.

Stop what you're doing! Drop everything! Go to Sicily. This was the trip of a lifetime I never knew I needed. If you love Greek temples, mosaics, museums, catacombs, great art and delicious farm to table food, this is the trip for you! The mosaics at Monreale rival those of Hagia Sophia, Sant' Apollinare and San Vitale. The accompanying lectures were wonderful. Wandering through and around the temples in Sicily was even more impressive than my tour of Paestum. The humble medium of stucco became marble-like works of great art when the "stucco master" Serpotta decorated the must see Guild Hall. A boat ride around Ortygia Island sipping sweet Italian wine and munching on almond cookies was the ending to a perfect day, as was a beautiful concert in the Guild Hall. La dolce vita! Be brave. Get your walking sticks and knee braces and climb Mt Etna. We did it in the pouring rain. It was exhilarating! This trip is more of a Let's Go than a Keep the Pace activity level. Domenico, our group leader, was terrific and full of surprises, information and enthusiasm. You will enjoy your stay at the Grand Hotel Piazza Borsa, a step back in time with an indoor courtyard and an endless maze of hallways for losing your way. (Suggest an air tag.) This trip was definitely one of the best I've ever taken. I would do it again and recommend it without reservation!

Domenico Nucci was a wonderful tour leader. His enthusiasm and love of Italian culture and history made the trip very special. He assisted at every point and helped when I had a sudden medical issue. Two of the local guides were particularly good. Michele Gallo at Agrigento and Laura Lanza in Palermo added greatly to my understanding of the sites and history.

I enjoyed this trip very much but I don’t agree with the level of activity advertised. Sicily is mountainous and there were a lot of walking excursions that were difficult. I think a “Let’s Go” level is more appropriate. All that said, the trip was excellent with regard to the understanding of history and influences of both past and current life in Sicily. The hotels were very nice, the meals typical of each region which I appreciated. By far the most essential element of the trip is the tour leader. I cannot say enough good things about Katarina P. She is a dynamic personality who brought enthusiasm and positivity to all aspects of the tour along with vast knowledge of her subject. She went out of her way to accommodate individual needs as well as the entire group. I asked her if she got bored going back to the same sights with each tour and her eyes lit up and she said “No! I love it!” That kind of enthusiasm is invaluable and is a reason why I love traveling with RS. Another reason is the quality of people who are attracted to educational travel. Our group was highly intelligent, inquisitive, enthusiastic and friendly and I enjoyed the smaller size of participants (21). If I can make a suggestion, I would have enjoyed less time in Palermo with the addition of Cefalu. Perhaps access to an airport may be a factor in that decision however. In conclusion, I am very satisfied with my RS trip to Sicily because it was comprehensive and truly educational. My highest marks go to Katarina, who made every aspect of the tour come alive. Kudos!

Treasures of Sicily is a truly outstanding Road Scholar Program. Our Program Leader, Domimico Cuomo, was wonderfully knowledgeable and helpful. The four sites--Taormina, Siracusa, Agrigento, and Palermo--featured a fabulously curated sets of sites, experences, and delights.

A superb trip in every respect! Our group leader was excellent, wonderfully organized, warm and gracious, and had a great sense of humor. The program instructors were the best, as a whole, that we've ever had on Road Scholar trips. They were hugely knowledgeable and presented information (and answered questions) in ways that were captivating, bringing to life the history and culture, the artistic and architectural detail of the sites in front of us. Great hotels, fine locations, wonderful meals, ample free time to explore on our own, and historic and geological sites that we'll never forget. We loved this trip!

I want to particularly thank our guides Domenico and Katerina for all their work in guiding us through Sicily. Their enthusiasm for Sicily and the knowledge they shared made this trip so memorable. They took care of so much of all that had to happen behind the scenes as the trip progressed to ensure the trip went off without a hitch. Kudos to Road Scholar for having them as our guides. Let them know I just finished Episode 27 of Il Commissario Montalbano. Ah, Sicilia!

This trip exceeded our expectations. The experiences were beautifully curated, and we saw things we never would have known about. Our tour guide, Mimmo Cuomo, was outstanding. His knowledge and love for Sicily was evident every day. The specialty guides were so well-informed and great presenters. The history of Sicily was covered from so many perspectives, adding so much richness to the experiences. Our fellow travelers were a fun, congenial group, and made the trip even more enjoyable. Highly recommended.

This was a wonderful trip for me, my husband and my two daughters. Sicily is such a diverse and unusal place - impressive for its landscape, its history and culture....Mt. Etna, Greek temples, Baroque churches and fascinating cities. The tour was very well organized and Mimmo, our guide, was simply the best! I admire his patience, his sense of humor, his experience and his willingness to help out as needed. We had lovely accommodations and great food. Our group got along beautifully - many are friends I would like to keep for the long-term. I especially appreciate the knowledge shared by Mimmo and our other guides, both on site and in the lectures. I could never have appreciated the country this much had I gone on my own. Thank you Road Scholar!

If you can take this trip, do it!

This was a fabulous journey! I'm an experienced and highly independent world traveller, but I'd never been on a group tour. I was hesitant about joining a tour but many friends recommended Road Scholars, so I thought I'd give it a try. It was a great choice! The group leader, Enrico, was brilliant -- funny, charming, open, smart and totally knowledgable. All the other lecturers and guides were equally brilliant, each in a different way. Several of our destinations were very unusual for any tour, and I never would have found them on my own. Food was excellent (well, it IS Sicily, after all!), hotels ranged from good to fabulous. And probably best of all, all of the travelers in our group were fascinating, smart, really enjoyable people that I am so happy to have met -- several of them have become my friends! I can't wait for my next Road Scholar trip.

You will learn and discover so many of the ways that Sicily is not just a part of Italy. Many cultures and conflicts have changed the face and character of this island over the course of time leaving a unique and vibrant peoples and way of living still as relevant to explore and understand as ever.

This itinerary was a strong winner, providing me with exactly what I wanted to see in Sicily - primarily the historical artifacts of the last 3000 years, in churches, in ruins and in museums. Absolutely exhilarating! Other positive aspects of the trip: 1) a great group of interesting travelers, engaging and engaged; 2) the craters of Mt. Etna; 3) great guides and lecturers in each location who knew their stuff; 4) a fine tour director who kept everything moving and was always available to help with details. Possible changes to consider: 1) the food was repetitive, not very tasty, and not broadly representative of Sicilian cuisine. Ubiquitous eggplant became a tour joke, though not really funny. Given that Sicilian cuisine is celebrated worldwide, this was disappointing. At the end, we skipped the tour meals in favor of a Sicilian grill (MEAT!) and a sushi restaurant, and I attended but refused to eat at the Farewell dinner; 2) There was no lesson on Sicilian cooking; we booked a lesson on making arancini on our own in Syracuse to make up for this. It was our tastiest meal on the tour. The mini-arancini among the appetizers served at the agriturismos were a very poor substitute for the real thing; 3) The agritourismo stops seemed touristy with low end and repetitive food. We learned nothing about farming ("agri") at any of them. Any of the travelers interested in wine making would already have been to numerous other wineries in other parts of the world, so the Murgo winery agritourismo was not enlightening. Given that Sicily cultivates over 65 mative wine grape varieties, it would have been interesting to hear a lecture on that subject and a proper wine tasting; 4) Erice and Trapani were interesting, but IMO not worth a whole day; 5) For me, the visit to the almost-abandoned village of Buscemi was somewhat depressing. A day exploring current real agricultural methods on the various crops - olives, almonds, pistachios, citrus, grains, etc. - might be a better choice.

I highly recommend this program! The food, the guides, the organization, the sites all were incredible. I had some hesitation about a group trip as a pretty seasoned traveler but having Road Scholar so beautifully handle the logistics allowed me to soak in the cultural experiences even more thoroughly. There were spots included that I wouldn’t have discovered on my own, and in the more touristed sites the guides provided such great depth and perspective. I will be looking for more programs for future travel based on this experience. And Sicily is so gorgeous, it is not a spot to be missed!

Sicily was fantastic! Great itinerary and wonderful tour guide Enrico made for a magnificent 2 week trip! Tour description was perfect! Perfect 80 degree weather didn’t hurt either!

Road Scholar supports learning quests. I am fortunate to have this opportunity. I encourage others to imagine what they want to find out about and explore program opportunities. I will tell others.

This was a magnificent trip, and the leader, Enrico, was more than up to the task of presenting the country to us in a cogent, coherent and aesthetically mind blowing manner. It would have been nice to have more time at some of our classical destinations, just to get a "feel" for them.

This an outstanding destination with an excellent leader, informative site lecturers, delicious food, and landscape that does not disappoint!

Treasures of Sicily This is an excellent tour that provided incredible insight into the history and culture of Sicily. We were taken by the beauty of Taormina and Ortigia, the interesting history surrounding the various Greek and Roman historic sites, and the gritty energy and the cultural works of Palermo. The hotels were all very well located and comfortable with the hotels in Ortigia and Palermo being standouts. The food was beyond expectation for what you might expect on a tour, with 3 agritourismos, a winery and generally well-selected restaurants providing a taste of the excellent local cuisine. In fact, one of our fellow travelers remarked that this could also be touted as a food tour of Sicily. Although the sites, food and hotels were top notch, the professionalism, kindness and humor of our our guide Enrico Nucci helped make this a trip beyond compare. Enrico flawlessly adjusted schedules as needed, led an unscheduled walk to the Ballaro Market and arranged an outstanding chamber music recital all while playfully commenting on the local customs and lifestyle. He and the other guides also proved to be informative lecturers and their guidance at the various sites greatly enhanced our appreciation of the works. This is a trip that we will remember for a lifetime.

Sicily is an amazing island. The trip was well planned and took us to interesting places. The hotels were located in perfect locations. The food was wonderful 90% of the time. The wine was always great!

A well-balanced experience: insightful lectures, many sites from antiquity but also good attention to the history of Sicily and today's realities; wonderful food and an excellent tour guide.

The Road Scholar "Treasures of Sicily" tour was a truly great travel experience. The guides were persoanlable, informed and organized and the sites were amazing - especially the Greek ruins and Norman churches. I would highly recommend this trip to anyone interested in history and culture. Sicily is a great travel destination!

Our overall guide, Enrico Nucci, was a pleasure to work with. He was incredibly knowledgeable, kind, and had a great sense of humor. Enrico was concerned about all our travelers and was great at repeating directions, times, giving overviews of our day or the day ahead. We really liked having a "Daily Schedule" and "Meal Schedule" as well. He was a true pleasure to have as a guide. The extras he did added to the overall fun of our trip: He organized a trip to hear a concert at the beautiful Baroque Oratory Santa Cita that was a surprise before our group dinner, we sampled wine and liquors, and stopped on one day-trip to Erice and Trapani to have some really great cannoli! He was experienced, but still highly engaged, as if the sites were new to him. We enjoyed all the knowledgeable guides at each site, as well as the guest lecturers who were engaged and excited to share their expertise. The sites, history, and culture were amazing. We had a great time in Sicily and look forward to taking other Road Scholar tours in the future.

If you want a thoughtful approach to the place you are visiting, Road Scholar is for you! Not too academic but great for the curious mind. Moreover, I could not have seen all the places we visited in Sicily by myself or even with another person. The driving and other logistics would have been impossible. I highly recommend Road Scholar and hope to take more tours in the future. It was worth every penny.

Treasures of Sicily Tour was fun, informative and well presented. Our leader Enrico Nucci was extremely kind, organized and kept us on time and on task. In addition to seeing for myself the treasure of Sicily I learned so much about the people who through its history have made Sicily the marvel it is today. I highly recommend this trip

I thoroughly enjoyed the program but felt pushed beyond the advertised 3-4 miles per day.

Treasures of Sicily, is a wonderful insight to the history and cultures of Sicily , and it's relationship with the rest of Italy and the countries of the Mediterranean. The itinerary is all encompassing, and really entices you into wanting to return to this beautiful island.Our guide Enrico, is maybe the best you could have, he guided us effortlessly across Sicily, his knowledges was boundless, and he was flexible to the needs of a very diverse group, his sense of humor really welcomed by the group.This trip is a must!!

I have missed a survey sent after we came to the States. I am sorry about that because it was really great trip. It was not easy time because of covid situation and the unusual hurricane and flooding coming to Catania what affected our program but Enrico's invention and humor allowed us to enjoy the whole trip, thank you very much. His lectures and selected lectors were excellent as well. We were able to explore Taormina besides rain and exploration of Greek temples in Sicily was even more interesting of what we had in our previous trip to Greece while being in Athens.

From the beauty of the landscape seen from Taormina to the museums and churches among the streets of Palermo, the Treasures of Sicily tour was a fun, interesting and educational adventure. It was exciting to walk around craters on Mount Etna, to see the many Greek temples and to experience a Roman villa built in the fourth century up close. We visited many beautiful churches, and I especially liked the glass mosaics in the Byzantine-styled Cathedral in Monreale, built by the Normans. The guides were excellent and our group leader Enrico filled in the gaps with humorous and interesting stories. I highly recommend this tour.

From standing at the foot of Mt. Etna to climbing the Medieval streets of Erice, this "slice" of Sicily was a great adventure and I am already encouraging friends to sign up!

It was a wonderful experience.

I recently went on the 'Treasurers of Sicily' tour and found it well organized and educational. The participants were well traveled and highly educated. The Tour Guide's relationship with local people enhanced out site experiences.

Road Scholar offers superb programs: they are aimed at intelligent people who want to learn and want to be a participant in a cohesive group. The food experiences were excellent: in our case, we went to agritourismos, which was a new experience for me.. The food was consistently nutritious, and the breakfasts were over-the-top. The sites we visited were well chosen, and we often had a few days in one place.

This was a wonderful trip. I learned so much more than I expected. Enrico Nucci, our guide and group leader, was very helpful. His knowledge, experience, and sense of humor enriched our experience.

This was my best Road Scholar trip! The pacing was well done and the lectures were exceptional. The sites were extraordinary. I really feel like I understand and appreciate Sicily.

We thoroughly enjoyed our Sicily trip. It was better than we anticipated. We would do it again with Enrico. The sites, the scenery, the people, the history, the art so much in such a small space in such a short time.

This is a wonderful program for a full immersion in Sicilian history and culture. I enjoyed that very much. Beds were uncomfortable for me. I found the physical activity just fine, as described. The participants were friendly to me as a solo traveler. Enrico is a superb leader. You are in good hands with him.

Sicily is a crossroad in the Mediterranean Sea, thus learning more about this little island will teach you more about most of the civilizations that existed in Europe for thousands of years.