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Questions about recent experiences on Sicilian Odyssey tour
we are leaving for Sicily Odyssey in a week. Would love to hear about recent experiences on this tour. thanks
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Sicily is just wonderful. It may still be very hot there.
Took this trip in May. Wife and i enjoyed it very much. Tour of the herb farm was very nice with a great lunch. In Siracusa the lunch at the Baron's home was wonderful. You will taste one of the best chardonnays made by the Baron. Get out and walk. Especially in Taormina. U will enjoy this trip!
happytravelers20, please leave a review when you return. Going in three weeks!
We enjoyed this tour very much. This is a low key tour - a lot of historic archeological sites. History is an important component of the Sicilian experience given its important position in the Mediterranean-from ancient history to WWII to natural tragedies. However, the experience is primarily a cultural one. You will see an amalgamation of cultures, given its location and the diverse background of invaders throughout history. We saw a low key, easy lifestyle that was different from the mainland, with economic challenges. There were surprising differences in the food from the mainland.
The hotel in Ragusa was quirky - no 2 rooms were the same! We were in oldest medieval building and had a balcony floor for the bed - scantly furnished with quirky features . Our friend was in former servant room - small. Not much time spent in the rooms so it did not matter. The next quick stop at the Verdura more than made up for any inconvenience.
Some lovely surprises! As noted by wildcat03, the lunches at at the Baron's house and Herb Farm were memorable. Piazza Amerina was on my bucket list and fabulous! It was evident that the Mafia is alive and well in Sicily today. (It controls the trash!) I did not think the extra excursion to Mount Etna was worth the price. It is unclear in the description whether the Mount Etna tour is included in the tour now.
Overall, it was a great tour.
In what sense? Not mileage, since Messina is less than 10 miles from the mainland of Italy.
Agree about Mt. Etna. The best thing about it was admiring the view from the restaurant at the Grand Hotel Timeo.
I went to Sicily in April, not with Tauck, it was a more thorough tour than with Tauck. Mount Etna was included and was one of my favorite experiences. I do love geology and geography and studied to A level in England. Back then, I never dreamed I would be able to walk around the slopes of an active volcano. We enjoyed our walk round one of the craters very much. We had a lunch/ very good wine tasting at a winery on the slopes and had some of the wine shipped home.
Smiling Sam - you are right. Some areas in the west of Sicily is closer to Africa than mainland Italy. Misread my notes!
Updating the request to hear from recent Sicilian Odyssey travelers! We are going in early October—our first Tauk tour! I would also love advice on what to pack, given there seem to be some dressier events. My husband and I have traveled to Italy several times, but never to Sicily. One Tauk travel advisor suggested that restaurants might have dress standards slightly dressier than most, at least for dinner?
We took this wonderful tour almost 3 years ago. Dressy attire was not required.
Europeans dress nicer than many Americans when dining at nice restaurants. You are always safe with black slacks and top accessorized with scarfs or jewelery. Dinner is often considered an event and it is respectful not to insist on wearing super casual clothes. I know some will disagree. You will dine in some private elegant homes.
When we went on this trip, super casual was not the norm for the dinners. While not dressy, I would describe the attire as business casual. Nice pants and blouse or casual dress for women, and collared shirt for men along with decent slacks (and a handful of sports coats).
I agree with you, bucketlist, especially about how many Europeans view dining out as a multigenerational event. How I dress is a personal preference, but I am always mindful of the societal norms of the countries I am a guest in.
I can’t say about the Tauck tour, but when we went with another company everyone was a seasoned traveler, we ate in fantastic restaurants, local and it was usually just our group, so it was way more casual. We did not have to find any meals on our own. Everyone looked fine.