Car Hire in Sicily - Getting to Sicily

Sicily's airports are quite efficient located at Palermo (Falcone-Borsellino Airport) and Catania and a smaller airport at Trapani with flights to Palermo, Lampedusa and Pantelleria. The airport of Reggio di Calabria has flights for Rome and Milan. You have the option of catching a bus, train (in Palermo), taxi or rental car from the airports into the main centres.

There are trains that run direct from Rome and Naples and it takes an hour to transport the train onto a ferry at the Strait of Messina, cross the Strait, and unload it in Sicily. A faster InterCity train will arrive in Palermo from Messina in about three hours. Within Sicily, trains travelling along the coasts are recommended as well as going to major cities or towns located near their respective stations. There are various local bus routes that depart from the train stations.

Most ships from Naples arrive at Palermo while most ships from Malta arrive at Catania. Though they are hardly tourist sights, Sicily's ports are conveniently located near urban centers.

Villa San Giovanni, the mainland Calabrian town where you board the ferry for Messina, is only about six hours from Rome if you take the Autostrada (Route A1 from Rome to Naples, then Route A3 to Villa San Giovanni). The A20 runs from Messina to Palermo and the A18 runs from Messina to Catania.