Comments on Blue Guide Sicily
- 9th edition
- 8th edition
Sicily offers an enormous range of history: Greeks, Romans, Arabs and the Normans have all left their mark on a visually stunning landscape of volcanoes and vineyards.
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- 18 Comment(s)
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Hello. I value the Blue Guide to Sicily. It's the best guide for the island. I've traveled there many times in the last decade and I now live there three months of the year. For my latest trip, I purchased the new Blue Guide to Sicily. I have a few observations.
On Page 392-3, Feudo Bauly is said to be run by the Corsino family that has the wonderful Pasticceria Corsino in Palazzolo Acreide. Actually, Feudo Bauly is run by the Corsino family that owns the excellent Macelleria Corsino in Palazzolo Acreide. They are not related to the Corsinos of the pasticceria.
Café des Amis in Piazza Armerina, on Page 304, has been sold and is now closed to undergo renovations. So, we have no idea what the new Café des Amis will be like and whether it will still be popular.
Comment
Hello
A few entries need to be updated in Blue Guide Sicily.
Avola - Cafe Finocchiaro is listed as one of the most famous in Italy and we drove a 100km to reach Avola. To our surprise found that the cafe has been closed since a few years.
Cava Grande di Cassibile- the entry for Cava Grande is excellent and we wouldn't have found it if not for the Blue Guide. However, the directions to reach could be better as the signage on the actual road is very poor. Maybe include a small map.
La Foglia in Syracuse - we went to this restaurant on Blue Guide's recommendation and I should say it has been the best meal so far in Sicily. Thanks. We have also been to Don Camillo. It is good but La Foglia is better.
Il Borghetto in Taormina - We went to this restaurant in Taormina again based on Blue Guide's recommendation. It is in a piazza that doesn't see much crowd but for the excellent quality of food and service this place deserves a much larger crowd. Thanks for the recommendation.
Blue Guide Sicily is how I wanted a Guide book to be with enough historical sketches, background information and good solid practical information. A few more pictures would be good, but then the book will probably become too unwieldy.
Sicily 2015
To Whom It May Concern: My spouse and I recently made a trip to Sicily, Malta, and Calabria, and spent the majority of our time in Sicily (mid-October into early November). We used Ellen Grady's Blue Guide - Sicily (8th edition, 2012) extensive because of its focus - as is the case with all Blue Guides - on art, architecture, and history. Here are a few practical comments relating to lodgings: 1) Ragusa: The Hotel Rafael, which we had decided had the location and price range suitable for us, no longer exists. It is now a refugee shelter 2) Piazza Armerina: A real find, though we did not stay there (we took a tour by the very gracious owner) is the Suite d'Autore, Via Monte, 1, at the corner of the Piazza Duomo. This is a combination gallery and hotel. Prices are very reasonable (60 - 80 euro/night, double, with breakfast). Each room is beautifully, and intelligently decorated in the spirit of an art movement. It is worth checking it out, and we think, listing it in a future edition of the Blue Guide. 3) Piazza Armerina: We stayed at B&B 33, which is near Del Centro, which is the B&B listed in the guide. Checking out Del Centro, I was distinctly unimpressed. The nearby B&B 33 (which is on Umberto 33) we stumbled upon and stayed at. It is run by a early middle-aged couple. Rooms are comfortable and on the top floor is a modern kitchen with a fabulous view out over the historic center. The husband owns a nearby wine shop selling local wines and olive oils and generously invites one to taste everything. The breakfast spread was absolutely wonderful, including locally made ricotta cheese, lots of coffee, fresh cornetti, and much, much more. Altogether a wonderful experience. 4) Mazara del Vallo: We used the Blue Guide recommendation for lodging in Mazara del Vallo (a B&B in the renovated old railroad station). The son of the owner recommended a simple trattoria not too far away run by a friend, and it turned out the best simple meal we had on the whole trip. The name is Trattoria Da Giacomo - we shared a sublime pasta (bucatini) dish with a sauce made of local ingredients (including an unusual fish roe) and then shared a roasted chicken. With a half liter of house wine, the entire bill came to 20 euros. It was the real "find" of our entire trip. I hope this feedback will help for a future edition of this title in the Blue Guide series.
Blue Guide Sicily review
From a reader in Australia: I have been meaning to write to you ever since I got back from my latest trip to Sicily in mid-July. I used your guide to Sicily on this trip and was mostly very happy with it. Having spent 3.5 months there last year, this time (another month June-July) I really wanted a guidebook that gave more in-depth info and the Blue Guide did that. Overall it was excellent and I was very happy with my purchase. I am interested in Italian history, art and architecture as well as food and wine and I found the guide very informative. A friend of mine who lives in Sicily (in Alia) was particularly impressed with your historical overview. He said it put things into better perspective than a lot of things he had read and answered a lot of questions he’d had about how things tied together historically. And I have to say we were impressed that Alia and Roccapalumba appeared in the guide at all! I am taking you at your word (where you say you welcome suggestions etc): In terms of suggestions for improvement I would have liked your dining and accommodation tips to come closer to the actual place rather than having everything for one provincia at the end of a rather large section. I actually thought your guide didn’t have that info for some time because it was so far away from where I was looking. I did find two things that I think were incorrect. For Ustica on p 107 it says the Torre Santa Maria is the archaeological museum. The museum is now in town at the old prisoner’s barracks (which has the big fosso they used to put prisoners in for solitary confinement). Sorry I don’t know the street name as I never really found a decent map of the town but if heading uphill up the main piazza it’s off to the right just past the little park area. Just go to the end as it’s on the edge of the cliff (spectacular views). The Crai supermarket is down an alley to the right as you go. And the Cantine Florio in Marsala (pp 152-153) charges 20 euro for the guided tour and degustation but it was worth every centesimo. (Your info appears to indicate that it’s free.) They have an excellent showroom where you can buy gift packs of their wines at reasonable prices. Palazzo Chiaramonte-Steri (p43) seems to be visitable only with guided tours but when I went in July there was no need to book. You just turned up. Tours in languages other than English or Italian might be problematic. The guides were students of the uni and it cost 5 euro. They took me by myself AND didn’t close for lunch. Fantastic value. BTW I’m not sure if you have mentioned this somewhere but it might be worth mentioning that in Sicily regardless of what their advertised hours are - on signs outside museums, on their websites etc - things can always change! Not to mention that no-one ever has change so keep a large supply of coins. Some other things: Alia has an agriturismo called Al Lago Verde. The main business is the restaurant which is excellent but they also have rooms. I haven’t stayed there but have eaten there a number of times. The food is terrific but the owner’s wife is famous for over-charging and they don’t bring an itemised bill so you need to keep track of what you’ve been eating and what it costs. The husband is lovely. The prices for the quality and quantity of food are very reasonable. Their mixed antipasto is delicious, very different from the stereotypical antipasti and practically a meal in itself. They have a lot of meat dishes but also pizza. There is also a good pizzeria in Alia itself – Sutta le Archi – just off the main drag in Via Archi. But it should be avoided at all costs on Friday and Saturday nights as it’s packed with a zillion young people and it takes hours (literally) to be served. Apparently if a takeaway order comes in for the same type of pizza you’ve ordered they’ll sell it to the takeaway person! But at quieter times and at lunchtime it’s good. Again they might overcharge foreigners but it’s very reasonably priced and the pizzas and other food are good. Not haute cuisine though. Not sure if you prefer to feature more fine-dining places? [No--we like to feature a range of places. Ed.] Alia’s Bar Centrale has been on TV as having the cheapest coffee in Italy. 20c for an espresso. Il Granaio in Roccapalumba is also good. But these last two (Sutta le Archi and Granaio) can’t compare with Lago Verde and come nowhere near Vin Vito and Giardino delle Aloe (below). They’re just good-value, good trattorie. I can also highly recommend Osteria Vin Vito in Castellana Sicula – superb. Everything was wonderful but the tronchetto dessert (regional specialty – ricotta pastry thing) was divine and the caponata was the best I’ve ever had. Favignana – Il GIardino delle Aloe – spectacular food in a lovely garden setting. They also have rooms. You can buy half-pension plans from some hotels on the island (I stayed at Villaggio l’Oasi) and eat at various restaurants on the list for 25 euro a night. Amazing value. Castellamare del Golfo – Egesta Mare was excellent. And Caccamo’s A Castellana, in the dungeons of the castle, is reliable, extensive menu and very reasonably-priced. Sciacca – at the port, the trattoria Ristorante Italia da Nino. Despite the unprepossessing name, really good seafood. And if it lasts, the tiny slow food-type place in Ustica, Carruba e Cannella. Via Tre Mulini. Just a few tables. Run by a young couple with just a few dishes but superb. Most of it organic. They do take-away too. Food is sold by weight. Their apple caponata (Palermitan specialty) is delicious. Oh yes, the best cannoli on the planet are from the hole-in-the-wall Pasticceria d'Ambra in Lipari.
Carravagio in Messina
Dear Sir/Madam, I am writing to you in order to inform about an information that I think is wrong. I have recently purchased a copy of the eighth edition (2012) of Blue Guide Sicily. I usually double-check the information with internet sites and I think there is a mistake in the book. Here are the details: in page number 432, talking about the masterpieces by Caravaggio hold in the Museo Regionale of Messina, according to the book, they are: Nativity and The Raising of Lazarus. As you can check in this web (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nativity_with_St._Francis_and_St._Lawrence), Nativity was stolen in 1969 in Palermo and remains lost. However, this web: http://www.regione.sicilia.it/beniculturali/dirbenicult/database/page_musei/pagina_musei.asp?id=5&idsito=43, informs that the painting hold in Messina is Adorazione dei pastori. The information is confirmed here: http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adorazione_dei_pastori_(Caravaggio). Nevertheless, the rest of the information given by the guide about the history of the painting (commissioned by the Senate of Messina for the Capuchin church) is right, as well as the other masterpiece, The Raising of Lazarus. I hope this information is helpfull for you, and I would like to congratulate you for this excelent guide. Yours faithfully,
Comments on Blu eGuide Sicily
Hello. I have been meaning to write to you ever since I got back from my latest trip to Sicily in mid-July. I used your guide to Sicily on this trip and was mostly very happy with it. Having spent 3.5 months there last year, this time (another month June-July) I really wanted a guidebook that gave more in-depth info and the Blue Guide did that. Overall it was excellent and I was very happy with my purchase. I am interested in Italian history, art and architecture as well as food and wine and I found the guide very informative. A friend of mine who lives in Sicily (in Alia) was particularly impressed with your historical overview. He said it put things into better perspective than a lot of things he had read and answered a lot of questions he’d had about how things tied together historically. And I have to say we were impressed that Alia and Roccapalumba appeared in the guide at all! I am taking you at your word (where you say you welcome suggestions etc): In terms of suggestions for improvement I would have liked your dining and accommodation tips to come closer to the actual place rather than having everything for one provincia at the end of a rather large section. E.g. The Rough Guide, though far from as detailed as the Blue Guide, has the info at the end of the historical and sight-seeing info for each place and personally I find that more user-friendly. I actually thought your guide didn’t have that info for some time because it was so far away from where I was looking. I did find two things that I think were incorrect. For Ustica on p 107 it says the Torre Santa Maria is the archaeological museum. The museum is now in town at the old prisoner’s barracks (which has the big fosso they used to put prisoners in for solitary confinement). Sorry I don’t know the street name as I never really found a decent map of the town but if heading uphill up the main piazza it’s off to the right just past the little park area. Just go to the end as it’s on the edge of the cliff (spectacular views). The Crai supermarket is down an alley to the right as you go. And the Cantine Florio in Marsala (pp 152-153) charges 20 euro for the guided tour and degustation but it was worth every centesimo. (Your info appears to indicate that it’s free.) They have an excellent showroom where you can buy gift packs of their wines at reasonable prices. Palazzo Chiaramonte-Steri (p43) seems to be vistable only with guided tours but when I went in July there was no need to book. You just turned up. Tours in languages other than English or Italian might be problematic. The guides were students of the uni and it cost 5 euro. They took me by myself AND didn’t close for lunch. Fantastic value. BTW I’m not sure if you have mentioned this somewhere but it might be worth mentioning that in Sicily regardless of what their advertised hours are - on signs outside museums, on their websites etc - things can always change! Not to mention that no-one ever has change so keep a large supply of coins. Some other things: Alia has an agriturismo called Al Lago Verde. The main business is the restaurant which is excellent but they also have rooms. I haven’t stayed there but have eaten there a number of times. The food is terrific but the owner’s wife is famous for over-charging and they don’t bring an itemised bill so you need to keep track of what you’ve been eating and what it costs. The husband is lovely. The prices for the quality and quantity of food are very reasonable. Their mixed antipasto is delicious, very different from the stereotypical antipasti and practically a meal in itself. They have a lot of meat dishes but also pizza. There is also a good pizzeria in Alia itself – Sutta le Archi – just off the main drag in Via Archi. But it should be avoided at all costs on Friday and Saturday nights as it’s packed with a zillion young people and it takes hours (literally) to be served. Apparently if a takeaway order comes in for the same type of pizza you’ve ordered they’ll sell it to the takeaway person! But at quieter times and at lunchtime it’s good. Again they might overcharge foreigners but it’s very reasonably priced and the pizzas and other food are good. Not haute cuisine though. Not sure if you prefer to feature more fine-dining places? Alia’s Bar Centrale has been on TV as having the cheapest coffee in Italy. 20c for an espresso. Il Granaio in Roccapalumba is also good. But these last two (Sutta le Archi and Granaio) can’t compare with Lago Verde and come nowhere near Vin Vito and Giardino delle Aloe (below). They’re just good-value, good trattorie. I can also highly recommend Osteria Vin Vito in Castellana Sicula – superb. Everything was wonderful but the tronchetto dessert (regional specialty – ricotta pastry thing) was divine and the caponata was the best I’ve ever had. Favignana – Il GIardino delle Aloe – spectacular food in a lovely garden setting. They also have rooms. You can buy half-pension plans from some hotels on the island (I stayed at Villaggio l’Oasi) and eat at various restaurants on the list for 25 euro a night. Amazing value. Castellamare del Golfo – Egesta Mare was excellent. And Caccamo’s A Castellana, in the dungeons of the castle, is reliable, extensive menu and very reasonably-priced. Sciacca – at the port, the trattoria Ristorante Italia da Nino. Despite the unprepossessing name, really good seafood. And if it lasts, the tiny slow food-type place in Ustica, Carruba e Cannella. Via Tre Mulini. Just a few tables. Run by a young couple with just a few dishes but superb. Most of it organic . They do take-away too. Food is sold by weight. Their apple caponata (Palermitan specialty) is delicious. Oh yes, best cannoli on the planet are from the hole-in-the-wall Pasticceria d’Ambra in Lipari. Hope you don’t mind my raving on. I hope some of it might be useful.
Sicily p.386 Teatro Massimo Bellini
Dear Blue Guide Editors, I have been a great Blue Guide fan for years, am much enjoying the 2012 edition on my current trip to Sicily, my ninth, and greatly look forward to using the India edition this winter. P.386 of the Sicily edition, however, says the Teatro Massimo Bellini opened with the premiere if Bellini's "Norma" in 1890. But "Norma" had its premiere elsewhere in 1831. (Maybe this was the Catania premiere, but that's not the same thing.) I don't ever remember spotting an error in a Blue Guide before, and record my gratitude for your guides to many cities and regions in several different countries.
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Sicily Tours
Looking forward to the new edition of the Blue Guide Sicily. I’m sure the revising editor Michael Metcalfe has turned in a great tome. It will stand pride of place alongside our copy of the Blue Guide to the Aegean Islands which is simply fabulous.
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Palermo - Palazzo Marchesi Ugo delle Favare. Just talked with them: they have not rented apartments in many years. The phone number listed is their private number.
question
do you have a blue guide for Palermo or, if not, will you have one in the future…
if not, can you recommend one of yours
and/or someone else’s…
thank you
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La Cirasella (farmhouse accomodation in Province of Catania) on page 435. The web site address in the book is incorrect. It should be: http://www.cirasellaetna.com Please correct this error. This is a wonderful place to stay–gracious hosts, peaceful setting, delicious meals.
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Few errors: addresses, open hours, etc. The most important: Convento dei Cappuccini (p.69) is NOT at 1 Via Cappuccine, it is at 1 Piazza Cappuccine! Besides, I would not name the article “Convento etc.” I would recommend to name it clearly and explicitly: Cattacombe dei Cappuccini.
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My wife and I are long-time enthusiasts of the Blue Guide series, having carried several volumes to Italy in the early eighties, but it was not until this month that we had the opportunity to experience the Guide in its new incarnation during our travels in Sicily. Of the many volumes we had in hand, the Blue Guide towered above all. The beautifully written narrative of Ellen Grady was seasoned with the wit and perception, and it seemed possible to inhabit an earlier world of Goethe and Lawrence when viewed through her eyes. Restaurant and hotel recommendations–new to us in the series– were not only welcome but well-chosen, as were the appendices dedicated to wine and food. We particularly enjoyed the beautiful color photographs–printed on high quality paper stock– taken by Giaccomo Mazza–especially those that departed from conventional travel guide fare and showed almost abstract landscapes in a profusion of colors.
We are delighted that the Blue Guide series is better now than it has ever been before. We look forward to traveling with you in the years ahead!
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Hi there. Just returned from my second trip to Sicily using the Blue Guide as our main reference. We took the guide’s advice on L’Arco in Modica and it was truly awful. The wine was almost undrinkable, the antipasto and pasta by far the worst we had anywhere in Sicily. The charm of not having a written menu was lost when we were charged 30 euro for a dud meal, significantly more than we had paid for vastly superior food elsewhere. One place worth including for Modica is Osteria dei Sapori Perduti, on Corso Umberto, very reasonably priced authentic and flavoursome rustic local food. Phone 0932944247. We have been about five times over two different trips and it is great - the same staff in the past couple of years, very busy and full of locals.
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We just returned from our trip to Sicilia which was, as predicted by your unnamed author, wonderful. The Blue Guide proved to be indispensable and fantastic! We traveled with several, “Lonely Planet”, Touring Club of Italy’s “Authentic Sicily” to name a couple, but the Blue Guide is far and away the best!
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“La Finestra sul Sale” is a great place to stay, but beware that the cafe/restaurant downstairs turns into a nightclub with loud music (either DJ or live), from thursday through sunday - don’t expect to be able to sleep until 1:30 am, as this area is directly below the rooms.
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Sorry, bad news. The Resort was forced to close because Isola Longa is part of a wildlife protected area, which does not foresee accommodation for visitors, even on such a Spartan basis. It is a shame, because I loved it. However, the same company are still running their B&B in the saltmill Ettore e Infersa, see http://www.salineettoreinfersa.com, La Finestra sul Sale, which is stunning. If they go there, they will be able to sympathise with the charming lady who wanted to launch the project, something entirely new for Sicily.
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