- Wander through colourful markets and try the unique street food of Palermo
- Enjoy a hands-on cookery class with a local chef in Erice
- Sample a variety of local specialities during produce and wine tastings
- Visit unique heritage sites and baroque cities, including Agrigento and Noto

Sicily Food Adventure
Share Your Photos...
#ExodusTravels
Reviews
Add your own reviewA packed week of food and culture
It’s incredible the amount of activities and experiences that this trip packs in. It’s pretty full on. But extremely interesting and rewarding, in terms of the amount you learn about Sicily… especially its food and culture.
Most Inspirational Moment
Our tour leader, Alessio, made the trip. But the nights in Palermo and Ragusa were the best. As those cities were most interesting. Along with the vineyard visit on Etna. All the visits to the produce makers (olive oil, cheese, wine) never felt like merely a sales exercise. There was no hard sell. But all were interesting. And delicious in terms of sampling. The mix of accommodation types was really good.
Thoughts on Group Leader
Alessio was brilliant at making sure everyone was enjoying themselves. You felt in very capable hands. We didn't have any dramas on our tour but I'm sure he would be excellent at sorting anything out if required. His local knowledge, as a Sicilian himself, and enthusiasm for the food and culture of Sicily is incredible. He can talk (!)but always in an interesting and sometimes amusing way.
Advice for Potential Travellers
Don't do this trip if you just want to sit on the beach or by the pool. You won't get much chance of that. Our group were almost all 50 years plus. There aren't any onerous levels of exercise involved but you do need to be able to manage a certain amount of walking. I would suggest that doing this in the spring or autumn is best to avoid the intense heat. But it did feel a bit end of season'ish in late September.
Sicily Food Adventure
An incredible week exploring Sicily! We toured food markets, made pasta from scratch, did an olive oil tasting at a local farm, saw fresh burrata being made at a buffalo farm then sampled cheese products, went to a beautiful winery on Mt Etna, then did a hike to the Volcanos craters. We learned so much about Sicily’s history, and culture, and of course, had lots of delicious food and wine!! I am already planning my next trip to Sicily!
Most Inspirational Moment
all the local experiences (family run cheese farm, olive oil, wineries, cooking classes, etc)
Thoughts on Group Leader
Veronica was amazing - so knowledgeable and passionate about Sicily! Marco our driver was also great!
Advice for Potential Travellers
Book a post-night in Catania! After an incredible week of exploring the island, it is nice to spend one extra day by the seaside or exploring the city of Catania
Sicily
Trip itself was good, weather not so good, but our memories of the holiday were spoilt by the delays to our return to England. While Etna erupting and closing Catania airport was no ones fault, British Airways did nothing whatsoever to help us find a replacement flight, in the end we had to find one through Expedia and fly back with Easyjet at considerable expense to ourselves. We did try to contact Exodus for any advice or help they might give, but had zero response, not your best moment.
Most Inspirational Moment
Getting back home with no help from Exodus or British Airways
Thoughts on Group Leader
Excellent
Advice for Potential Travellers
Don't rely on Exodus to book your flights, ours kept changing, and as they were very early outwards and very late return we had booked hotel rooms, but they resulted in staying at the wrong Heathrow terminal on departure, and paying extra because we had to change the dates. On return the Hotel we had booked at Gatwick was superfluous as the flight was cancelled and we flew to Luton 12 hours later.
Suggestions
Holiday good, flights bad
Etna in action!
This is a fantastic tour if you’re interested in both the food and the history of Sicily, as the tour combines both of them very well. The trip manages to pack so much in, every day there is something new to see, a new place to visit and a new tasting experience. The tour hops from hotel to hotel, using 5 different establishments, everything from small boutique style, to a holiday village with dome shaped bungalows and a 2 night stay in a large hotel complex on the outskirts of Catania. My week was full of a few unexpected things! Lost luggage between Milan & Palmero airports, absolute torrential rain on day 1 while in Palmero, an abandoned walk on Etna due to more extreme weather and to top it off an eruption of Etna on my departure day which coated Catania & the airport in a layer of black volcanic ash! This resulted in the airport being closed, several flight changes and finally getting home 2 days later than planned! It’s a packed itinerary, some early morning starts and a lot of distance covered in the bus. A good guide book together with the trip notes will help you no end.
Most Inspirational Moment
Lots of moments to mention. Visiting a mountain village to learn how to make pasta, the whole village was covered in thick fog! The visit to Ragusa, a perfectly beautiful town, I wished we’d had a little more time there. Being in Catania when Etna erupted! Although she ruined my return home, as a bit of a volcano enthusiast it was a bit of a special moment being part of that.
Thoughts on Group Leader
Alessio was a superb group leader. As an original native of Palmero himself, his knowledge of Sicily was unsurpassed. I found him informative, a great story teller and I appreciated that he shared a lot about life in Sicily as a real local, it gave what he said true authenticity. He very clearly knows his job, and seems to know someone familiar in every town! I liked that Alessio wasn’t overbearing as a group leader, if people wanted a bit of ‘space’ away from the group there was always time to do this.
Advice for Potential Travellers
Despite thinking May would be glorious weather, I’d pack a raincoat and an umbrella as well as your sun cream.
Suggestions
One thing I’d ask about before you book are the flights offered by Exodus. I had an arduous journey from London, via Milan, with lots of hanging around. What should be a 2.5 hr flight direct ended up being more like 6 hours, plus if you don’t live near London there is the travel there to also factor in. All in, it took me a full day to get to Palmero. I think this is one area Exodus need to look at, offer more direct flights. In hindsight I’d have booked my own flights. As a final point, I’d give special praise to Monica, the local emergency contact. She was brilliant in helping me when I was stranded at the airport, sorted me an extra nights accommodation and text me the following day to make sure I was ok.
Food Trip to Sicily
A thoroughly enjoyable, varied holiday. Plenty of interesting visits, no shortage of excellent local food and wine.
Most Inspirational Moment
The cookery experience, and then enjoying the results!
Thoughts on Group Leader
Knowledgeable and enthusiastic, Francesca worked really hard to make our trip work.
Advice for Potential Travellers
Wear loose clothes! Be prepared to hotel hop and abundance of coach travel.
Suggestions
A short trip on the last morning after hotel check out would be helpful, the overly long wait at the airport was a pain.
Great trip
Really enjoyed this trip, we got to see most of the island of Sicily whilst being able to taste some traditional dishes and wines.
Most Inspirational Moment
Visiting the local markets in Palermo and Catania
Thoughts on Group Leader
Our group leader Francesca was a little disappointing- she wasn’t proactive enough. On the first night she didn’t organise dinner for the group, she had to be prompted to organise the optional extra tour. There were issues with one persons room in Ragusa but she didn’t offer to sort it out in the end myself and my companion helped the other person. The coach driver had a room in the main hotel whilst an elderly lady had a room at the top of 2 flights of stairs in another hotel down the road. She felt uncomfortable, I felt the group leader should have swapped the room etc. She left us 3 nights to sort out our own meals and in Catania just left us without a clue where the best places to go to were. Also in food tasting she always made sure she got her food first, she should wait until guests had their chance to taste the food. On the plus side her knowledge of Sicily was excellent and she was very interested in making us fall in love with the country and culture.
Advice for Potential Travellers
Be prepared for rooms in Sicily to not always have access to windows and fresh sir
Suggestions
I did enjoy the trip very much, I have been on 4 other tours and I am only being negative about the tour leader as in comparison to my other trips she was a 5 out of 10 rather than a 9 or 10 out of 10 that I’ve experienced before.
Well worth waiting for: the first post-Covid trip!
We first booked this trip to travel in April 2020, and had postponed it 3 times before we heard it would happen – and with fewer restrictions/requirements as the departure date approached, for which we were most grateful.
Most Inspirational Moment
Too many to mention, but street food in Palermo markets, lunch in Piazza Armerina, and all the incidentals associated with visits to local producers (meeting water buffalo herd, cookery lesson near Trapani). Visits to cultural sites were a good contrast: it was interesting to see how they had developed and changed since we visited over 15 years ago. The fact that, despite its being the first tour for over 2 years, it all seemed to run smoothly.
Thoughts on Group Leader
Rosario was really enthusiastic about the history and culture of his home island, and ready to transmit this in his good English; he also has a good sense of humour, which may have been tested at times. He managed to deal with the varying requirements of the group, and was always ready with recommendations of ways to spend any spare time, or places to eat. Our driver, Maurizio, was excellent, both at negotiating some of the roads and dealing with slight changes to the route, in particular being led through Piazza Armerina by a police car, rather than having to wait for an hour while the Giro di Sicilia passed through.
Advice for Potential Travellers
Don't expect a restful holiday! Apart from at the beginning and end, with 2 nights each in Palermo and Catania, we stayed somewhere different every night; that provides a challenge for sensible packing. if you're going in early April as we did, you may need some warmer clothes to deal with the time in Ragusa, Noto and Mt. Etna: while the UK was having a heatwave, we were all scrabbling for extra layers to cope with the cold winds!
Suggestions
It would have been good to visit Siracusa (as in the original itinerary) and possibly Taormina, which would mean a longer tour - and perhaps slightly more relaxed. if you make the trip longer, would it be possible to arrange a trip from Palermo to Cefalu? It was the original French capital of Sicily, and has the first cathedral, which is like a mini-Monreale.
Food and culture
As we’d first booked to travel in April 2020, this was a much-anticipated break, and our first one travelling abroad, and it really went well. It was the first post-Covid trip, so we weren’t sure that everything would happen as expected, but it was well organised, and all eventualities catered for.
We were impressed by the range of food tasting opportunities (too many to mention), particularly the chance to visit small producers who are obviously diversifying from their original production – and the street food in Palermo was a revelation!
We also enjoyed the cultural visits, but would have liked to visit Siracusa (on the itinerary when we originally booked).
Most Inspirational Moment
Seeing the range of produce in local markets, and tasting regional products in their locality.
Thoughts on Group Leader
Rosarios was great fun, but well organised, and took account of the various requirements (particularly dietary) of our varied group. His English was pretty good, and he was extremely knowledgeable about the history and culture of Sicily - and eager to share it. He was also helpful in suggesting where to go in the limited spare time, and on places to eat (though there were some evenings when we didn't need to, after the tastings of the day). Maurizio, our driver, was extremely good, and very patient with us and the odd hiccup with traffic conditions. He did a wonderful job on some intersting roads.
Advice for Potential Travellers
Don't expect this to be a restful holiday! There's a lot of travelling, even with stops for tastings or cultural sites, and it's only at the beginning and end that there are 2 nights in the same place. Palermo airport seemed very well organised; Catania not so much. Be prepared for much waiting around in between check-in and boarding. Gatwick was extremely well run on our departure, but earned a few black marks on our return: no staff to move a stairway to the plane for disembarcation, and long waits before baggage arrived.
Suggestions
I think it would be worth making this a slightly longer tour, to include Siracusa and Taormina in the east, and possibly a day trip to Cefalu from Palermo/. Cefalu was the original French capital, and has an earlier, scaled-down version of Monreale with its own cathedral.
An excellent return
This was my first holiday outside the UK since the first covid lockdown and it was excellent. The group remained covid-free for the entire week – a bonus! Rosario was enthusiastic and energetic throughout. As his first group in 2 years, he was determined to ensure we enjoyed ourselves!
Most Inspirational Moment
I loved the quality and quantity of fruit and veg in the different food markets we visited in Palermo (and watching the non-veggies attempting to eat certain local delicacies).
Thoughts on Group Leader
As before - he was excellent. Not only was he knowledgeable but also his spoken English was really good. Maurizio the driver deserves praise too for safely negotiating spaces scarcely wider than his vehicle.
Advice for Potential Travellers
Don't think that holidays are restful in any way! If you fancy a rest, I'd recommend extending the holiday by a few days. Arriving a day or two early ensures you start the holiday well-rested rather than tired from rising very early for the group flight. Plus add a day or two at the end if you'd like to see Taormina which sadly isn't included in the current tour.
Suggestions
I'm sorry that covid led to small changes in the tour - for example I was looking forward to tasting the range of local cheeses near Ragusa and was sorry we didn't go to Taormina. However having any holiday at all post-covid was a thrill!
Great mix of food and culture packed into just 8 days
Great way to spend a week in Sicily. The trip is pretty busy, moving on most days, packing in the main sights and a lot of food! I enjoyed the mix of history (valley of the temples and the roman villa) with the food and culture aspect, particularly the visits to the local producers and food market trips.
Most Inspirational Moment
For me the valley of the temples, made even better by the great guide.
Thoughts on Group Leader
Rosario was a great guide, very knowledgeable of all aspects of Sicilian history, culture and food. Organised us well and provided good options for what to do with any spare time we had, allowing me to make the most of these limited times.
Advice for Potential Travellers
Not much time to unpack in each location so dont take too much! Catania airport is a crazy place, be prepared to queue.
Start
Finish
Availability
Adult Price From
Optional Single Supplement
Sunday Sunday
07 Apr 2024 07 Apr 2024
Sunday Sunday
14 Apr 2024 14 Apr 2024
Availability Guaranteed (Available)
Adult Price From £ 1,899 £ 2,449 Book with 25% deposit
Optional Single Supplement
+£ 375
Available upon Request
Availability
This departure is available for new bookings and has reached the minimum number of passengers required to go ahead. Please click Continue to proceed with booking or contact our Sales team for assistance.
View Trip NotesSunday Sunday
05 May 2024 05 May 2024
Sunday Sunday
12 May 2024 12 May 2024
Availability Guaranteed (Available)
Adult Price From £ 1,979 £ 2,699 Book with 25% deposit
Optional Single Supplement +£ 375
Availability
This departure is available for new bookings and has reached the minimum number of passengers required to go ahead. Please click Continue to proceed with booking or contact our Sales team for assistance.
View Trip NotesSunday Sunday
12 May 2024 12 May 2024
Sunday Sunday
19 May 2024 19 May 2024
Availability Guaranteed (Available)
Adult Price From £ 1,979 £ 2,679 Book with 25% deposit
Optional Single Supplement +£ 375
Availability
This departure is available for new bookings and has reached the minimum number of passengers required to go ahead. Please click Continue to proceed with booking or contact our Sales team for assistance.
View Trip NotesSunday Sunday
02 Jun 2024 02 Jun 2024
Sunday Sunday
09 Jun 2024 09 Jun 2024
Availability Guaranteed (Available)
Adult Price From £ 1,999 £ 2,599 Book with 25% deposit
Optional Single Supplement
+£ 375
Available upon Request
Availability
This departure is available for new bookings and has reached the minimum number of passengers required to go ahead. Please click Continue to proceed with booking or contact our Sales team for assistance.
View Trip NotesSunday Sunday
16 Jun 2024 16 Jun 2024
Sunday Sunday
23 Jun 2024 23 Jun 2024
Availability Guaranteed (Limited) Only 1 space left!
Adult Price From £ 1,979 £ 2,579 Book with 25% deposit
Optional Single Supplement +£ 375
Availability
This departure is guaranteed to go ahead but there are only 1 space left. Do not delay your booking!
View Trip NotesSunday Sunday
01 Sep 2024 01 Sep 2024
Sunday Sunday
08 Sep 2024 08 Sep 2024
Availability Guaranteed (Available)
Adult Price From £ 1,979 £ 2,479 Book with 25% deposit
Optional Single Supplement +£ 375
Availability
This departure is available for new bookings and has reached the minimum number of passengers required to go ahead. Please click Continue to proceed with booking or contact our Sales team for assistance.
View Trip NotesSunday Sunday
08 Sep 2024 08 Sep 2024
Sunday Sunday
15 Sep 2024 15 Sep 2024
Availability Available
Adult Price From £ 1,979 £ 2,479 Book with 25% deposit
Optional Single Supplement +£ 375
Availability
This departure is available for new bookings, and will be guaranteed to go ahead once it reaches minimum numbers. Please click Continue to proceed with booking or contact our Sales team for assistance.
View Trip NotesSunday Sunday
22 Sep 2024 22 Sep 2024
Sunday Sunday
29 Sep 2024 29 Sep 2024
Availability Guaranteed (Limited) Only 1 space left!
Adult Price From £ 2,099 £ 2,579 Book with 25% deposit
Optional Single Supplement
+£ 375
Available upon Request
Availability
This departure is guaranteed to go ahead but there are only 1 space left. Do not delay your booking!
View Trip NotesSunday Sunday
29 Sep 2024 29 Sep 2024
Sunday Sunday
06 Oct 2024 06 Oct 2024
Availability Available
Adult Price From £ 1,949 £ 2,399 Book with 25% deposit
Optional Single Supplement +£ 375
Availability
This departure is available for new bookings, and will be guaranteed to go ahead once it reaches minimum numbers. Please click Continue to proceed with booking or contact our Sales team for assistance.
View Trip NotesSunday Sunday
13 Oct 2024 13 Oct 2024
Sunday Sunday
20 Oct 2024 20 Oct 2024
Availability Available
Adult Price From £ 1,949 £ 2,399 Book with 25% deposit
Optional Single Supplement +£ 375
Availability
This departure is available for new bookings, and will be guaranteed to go ahead once it reaches minimum numbers. Please click Continue to proceed with booking or contact our Sales team for assistance.
View Trip NotesSunday Sunday
20 Oct 2024 20 Oct 2024
Sunday Sunday
27 Oct 2024 27 Oct 2024
Availability Available
Adult Price From £ 1,999 £ 2,499 Book with 25% deposit
Optional Single Supplement +£ 375
Availability
This departure is available for new bookings, and will be guaranteed to go ahead once it reaches minimum numbers. Please click Continue to proceed with booking or contact our Sales team for assistance.
View Trip NotesWould you like to include flights with your booking?
- ATOL protected
- Competitive flight prices
- Full refunds in the event of FCDO cancellations or major disruption at your UK departure airport
- Specialist support to rearrange flights and transfers
- Regional flights available from many UK airports
You may also like
The Adventure Begins Here
Get regular inspiration straight to your inbox from Exodus' experts.