r/sicily • u/Ok_Pause8456 • 2d ago
Turismo 🧳 Which is best way
Which is the best smoothest drive to Palermo?
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u/mb_durden 2d ago
If you want to see beautiful landscapes, pass through the Nebrodi park and then take the A20
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u/mb_durden 2d ago
going through Linguaglossa-Passopisciaro-Randazzo-Floresta-Tortorici and take the A20 to Rocca di Capri Leone
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u/mbrevitas 2d ago edited 2d ago
Nah, once you get on the SS120 (at Fiumefreddo) follow it to Cesarò (past Linguaglossa, Passopisciaro and Randazzo), then drive the whole SS289, then take the A20 west from Sant'Agata. The highest road through the Nebrodi, with thick forests and great views, easy to follow.
Between Taormina and Randazzo you can also go via Francavilla and Castiglione (SS185, SP7i) instead of Fiumefreddo and Linguaglossa, stopping at the Alcantara gorge and to see Castiglione, but the SS120 is fine if you don't plan to stop.
Edit: personally, I'd detour via Bronte too, but I really like pistachio.
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u/mb_durden 2d ago
my friend, I live in the Nebrodi, I’m local lol
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u/mbrevitas 2d ago edited 2d ago
Ok, quindi? Preferisco la 289 alla 116. La discesa da portella Femmina Morta a Sant’Agata è fantastica, soprattutto l’ultima parte da San Fratello, ma è bello anche passare in alta quota attraverso il cuore dei Nebrodi. Anche se non ci vivo conosco la zona, ci vado ogni anno, non è che la mia opinione non vale.
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u/mb_durden 2d ago
davvero stai consigliando di non passare da Floresta?! Se stai consigliando questo è una opinione fallace. Ci si perde una miriade di passaggi diversi e variegati che la gente nemmeno si immagina ci siano in Sicilia.
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u/mbrevitas 2d ago
Sì, sto consigliando di non passare da Floresta. Anche i boschi del crinale dei Nebrodi (di cui Floresta è al bordo, e Portella Femmina Morta al centro) e Monte San Fratello hanno paesaggi diversi e variegati che la gente non si immagina ci siano in Sicilia. Opinioni diverse.
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u/mb_durden 2d ago
Chiaro ma ti perdi tutta la zona del vino etneo, le vette dell’Etna e dei nebrodi, vedere le Eolie dall’alta montagna mentre alle spalle hai l’Etna. È come ripercorrere tutti i paesaggi che l’Italia offre in pochi km
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u/mbrevitas 2d ago
Scusa, ma l'hai mai fatta la statale 289? I vigneti dell'Etna stanno a est di Randazzo e quindi prima sia della SS116 che della SS289 se vieni dalla costa est. Dalla SS289 e dalla parte di SS120 tra Cesarò e Randazzo che fai per arrivarci hai una vista spettacolare sull'Etna da varie angolazioni (e a Portella femmina morta puoi imboccare il primo tratto di dorsale dei Nebrodi fino a delle radure con vista sull'Etna da 1500 m di quota), le Eolie le vedi pure dalla SS289 (un filo più lontane, ma le vedi) col tempo limpido...
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u/mb_durden 2d ago
Minchia allora non lo hai capito che vivo qui!? Non so, ti servono delle prove? La zona più interessante dei vini dell’Etna è nord
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u/aferriss 2d ago
I've done both and prefer the inland route. The coastal route has a ton of tunnels, more than you'd think so you don't get as much of a view of the coast as it seems on the map.
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u/k4rl0s24 2d ago
I took the southern route in the morning and the coaststreet in the evening. Beautiful sunset(s) 🌞🥰
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u/FreddySuperschmelz 2d ago
SS 113.. very pittoresque
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u/Ok_Pause8456 2d ago
Is that the southern one?
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u/FreddySuperschmelz 2d ago
No, it’s the superstrada from messina to palermo
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u/Ok_Pause8456 2d ago
We are in a rental car, can we take that way? And I’m not sure how to put it into my maps lol
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u/FreddySuperschmelz 2d ago
Well, drive to messina, and then check the blue signs direction Palermo….. there are so many spots on that road that are worth visiting…. Milazzo for example ist really worth a visit….mthen there are Tindari, Patti, Capo d´ Orlando, and many more… if you find the time, bistit the nebrodi mountains…. Alcara li fusi, Tortorici, Montalbana d´ Elicona…. In my opinion the most beautiful part of Sicily!
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u/LunacyTheory Sicilianu 2d ago
Driving 113 will take you at least triple the time that the autostrada would take
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u/LunacyTheory Sicilianu 2d ago
For example, to just go from Terrasini to Palermo via SS113, it is almost 2 hours instead of 30 minutes
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u/Capra_e_Cavoli 2d ago
Catania-Palermo is like…the worst highway in the world 😂😂
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u/LunacyTheory Sicilianu 2d ago
Eh, is not as bad as they say. I drive it often and it is only bad when there is a total closure because of an accident. I have driven on much worse “highways” in the US, Africa, and Asia. In fact, there are horrible highways just in Eastern Europe I will never drive again if possible.
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u/Capra_e_Cavoli 2d ago
I'm from Catania! It was a bit of a joke to say it's the worst in the world, but it's definitely the worst in Sicily. There are constant road closures, construction zones, and two-way sections where you can't pass... it's pretty awful 🤷♀️
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u/pinetree-polarbear 2d ago
Its an italian highway...if you are a halfway decent driver its fine!? 🤣
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u/RevolutionaryCost59 2d ago
Not the worse in the world. You haven't seen my country highway from Kota Kinabalu to Sandakan
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u/fzzg2002 2d ago
Northern route is very picturesque, but you’ll pay quite a bit in tolls, if this is a factor for you
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u/RedKleeKai 2d ago
We drove the northern route going to Palermo and got some great scenic views along the way! And tons of tunnels. And then drove inland on the way back to stop at Caltagirone.
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u/Emotional_Pin_2348 2d ago
The inland route is actually more beautiful than the coastal route because there are a lot less tunnels you’ll be driving through!
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u/zen_arcade2 2d ago edited 2d ago
Both suck in a way:
Coast: tolls, several long tunnels, potholes, more traffic along the way
Inland: one big stretch of roadworks from Scillato to Catania, heavy traffic around Catania
Both are very scenic with different landscapes. If you take the coastal route and you’re not in a hurry you can go downhill through the Nebrodi park, very scenic.
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u/PatternParticular585 2d ago
The one crossing, you get to see real Sicily and stunning panorami and you might detour to etna, Roman mosaic etc.
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u/cookie360 2d ago
I drove the coast road last week, it's lovely. No issues at all. Cefalu is well worth a visit.
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u/Commercial-Dish5093 2d ago
If you are intrested in luxury shopping and fashion, you have a pretty neat high end luxury outlet inland in Agira outlet village!
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u/DegreesOfLosing 2d ago
Coastal Highway, through the island is very slow with lots of poor infrastructure roads.
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u/ZorroHulk 2d ago
lol I just did this last week. If you drive that north coast it’s a thousand tunnels. It is beautiful between the tunnels, but you were mostly driving in the dark across the north coast until cefalu. I thoroughly enjoyed driving through the country by the way of the route shown and would have preferred it when driving from Syracuse to Palermo.
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u/hsvandreas 2d ago
We did the inland route two weeks ago. Beautiful! However I don't recommend it at all if you have someone in the car who easily gets road sick. The entire route is full of serpentines. We had to stop three times because our 2 year old had to throw up and we had already been too far to turn back.
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u/lorenzodimedici 2d ago
Inland route by far is smoothest drive. Make sure you have an offline map ready in case you lose service. Re: Taormina, if you have a hotel/bnb call ahead and find out where to park because it’s very hard to just pull into town they might tell you to park lower on the hill.
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u/maxrain30 2d ago
I preferred the inland route.
Less tunnel fatigue, better scenery, and the drive felt more relaxed overall.
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u/Dry_Swordfish9690 1d ago
I did both routes 4 days ago!! I will say the coastal route gives you an amazing view of Etna as you come around, but there are I swear over 40 tunnels you have to pass. The central road had a lot of construction. Truly depends on your level of comfort!!
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u/LunacyTheory Sicilianu 2d ago
If you want to see anything, avoid the northern route as it is 85% tunnels. But the A19 from Catania to Palermo does have some traffic and lane closures for repair.
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u/Zwergpirat 2d ago
If you decide to take the inland route, I highly recommend making a small detour to the Villa Romana del Casale. For me, it's one of the absolute highlights of Sicily.