Guides & tips

Plan your trip like a local

Honest answers to the questions travellers ask us most.

Gold mosaics covering the walls and apse of a Norman royal chapel

Cappella Palatina and the Norman Palace in Palermo: tickets, opening times and whether a tour is worth it

What the Cappella Palatina and the Palazzo dei Normanni cost to visit, when the chapel is closed, how the Tuesday and Wednesday ticket differs, and which guided tours add something to a visit on your own.

Read the guide →
Corridor of an underground burial gallery with rows of clothed figures along the walls

Capuchin Catacombs in Palermo: tickets, opening times and whether a tour adds anything

What it costs to enter the Capuchin Catacombs in Palermo, what the opening times look like, who should think twice, and which tours include the catacombs on their own or combined with Monreale and Mondello.

Read the guide →
Group of visitors listening to a guide in a narrow old-town street of Palermo

Mafia tours in Palermo: the NO Mafia walking tour, an anti-mafia evening walk, or Corleone?

How to learn about the Mafia and the anti-mafia movement in Palermo: the NO Mafia walking tour compared with an evening walk, a street food tour and a bike tour, and whether Corleone is worth the trip.

Read the guide →
Gold mosaics covering the nave of the Norman cathedral at Monreale

Monreale and Cefalù from Palermo: half-day or full-day trip – which one?

Monreale’s mosaics and Cefalù’s seafront can be done in six hours or in nine. What each version of the trip leaves out, what it costs, and when the bus and train do the job.

Read the guide →
Turquoise water and pale limestone cliffs along the coast near Capo Gallo

Boat trip from Palermo to Mondello and Capo Gallo: snorkelling or caves, and which boat?

The boat trips from Palermo to Mondello Bay and the Capo Gallo reserve compared: three hours or four, RIB or shared boat, snorkelling or caves, with prices, ratings and review counts.

Read the guide →
Hands kneading pizza dough on a flour-dusted worktop in a cooking class kitchen

Cooking classes in Palermo: pizza, pasta, or market and cook — which one to book?

Palermo cooking classes compared by price, length and rating: pizza and gelato, pasta and tiramisu, a market visit with cooking, and the small-group and rooftop options, with who each one suits.

Read the guide →
Narrow Palermo street lined with bar tables and string lights at dusk

Party in Palermo: bar crawl, party boat or club night – which suits whom?

What a Palermo night out actually offers if you book ahead: the €17 guided bar crawl, the boats with music and an aperitif, and where the evening crowd goes on its own.

Read the guide →
Market stall piled with fried street food snacks and fresh produce in a Palermo old-town lane

Street food in Palermo: which tour to book, and Ballarò or Vucciria?

Palermo’s street food tours compared by price, length and rating, plus when Ballarò and Vucciria are actually worth visiting and which dishes a first tasting should cover.

Read the guide →
Doric temple of Segesta standing alone on a grassy hillside above a valley

Segesta, Erice and Trapani from Palermo: which day trip, and can you do it without a tour?

A full day to Segesta’s Doric temple, the hill town of Erice and the Trapani salt pans: the tours compared by price, length and rating, and when a rental car is the better answer.

Read the guide →
A golden limestone Doric temple standing on a ridge above almond and olive trees at Agrigento

Valley of the Temples from Palermo: day tour, or train and a guide on site?

Agrigento is about two hours from Palermo each way. Compare the 8-hour day tour with going by train or bus and joining a local guide at the temples, with prices, ratings and what each leaves out.

Read the guide →

Nearby

Other places in the region — same approach, their own tours:

Palermo tours from €14 · available today

Check availability