Sicily: Panda mania, 3 volcanos and no sight of the mafia

Sicily is a incredibly versatile island. The many different cultures of Sicily‘s past have left their traces everywhere, the cuisine is among the best of the world, there are active volcanoes to climb and beautiful beaches to explore. We took a 10 day round trip around the island, hope you enjoy!

We spontanously booked a flight to Palermo around Easter, and as usual didn’t plan very much in advance. We wanted to make a round trip along the coast in 10 days, and the easiest way around the island is by car. 

Our not-planning-in-advance lead to extremely high rental car prices. In fact, the price for a small rental car was the same as for an old, charming Fiat Panda so we did the only logical thing and bought one on our third day in Sicily. 

Buying a car in Palermo.

Starting from Palermo, we headed east to Milazzo, where weh ad to leave the Panda behind and  took the ferry to the Lipari islands. Stromboli was our first stop, an island where no cars except for golf buggies are allowed. The whole island smells like flowers, there a black volcanic beaches and the active volcano, named Stromboli, spits out lava every few minutes-an unbelievably impressive spectacle. You can either hike up (only with a guided tour) at sunset and watch the outbursts from nearby at dark or watch from a safe distance on one of the many boats.


From Stromboli we took the ferry to the island Volcano, and island that smells a lot like foul eggs at times and everyone gets around on mopeds, that are rented all over the island. At sunset, we went up to the volcano to see the sulfur founts in the crater, an amazing sight. Also, the view from up there to the neighboring islands is incredibly beautiful!

View from the crater of Volcano.

Back on the main land, we got back our Panda and headed south to Mount Etna, up to the Rifugio Sapienza at 1910 m. From there we walked up to the 2500 m mark, going further up through the icey landscape without a guide is forbidden (which we didn’t book), so we headed back down to the Rifugio.  Mount Etna looks like another planet, it’s hard to imagine that the the very next day we were sleeping on the most beautiful beach.

Strolling through the ancient streets of Syracusa, meeting the cutest dog at the Scala dei Turci and eating the best ice cream of our lifes at Liparoti in Trapani (Pistaccio!!) – we fell in love with Sicily. Pistaccio Pesto, little capers from Salina, olive oil, huge lemons and oranges (that grow on the fertile soil around Mount Etna), busiate, red wine,… we did a little grocery shopping in Sicily and advise everyone who goes there to do the same. Good thing we bought the Panda, otherwise we could have never carried home all the food. 

Ice Cream in a Brioche <3

Fish market in Trapani

Apart from a few initial repairs in Palermo and one flat tire, we didn’t have any issues with our Panda. It fit into every little parking spot, conquered mountain roads, needed almost no fuel and made us feel like Sicilians, not tourists. 

After 10 days, we took the ferry from to the Italian main land and cotinued our way back to Munich. On the Passo del Brennero, the Panda experienced his first snow – and brought us home safely. 

After 10 days, we took the ferry from to the Italian main land and cotinued our way back to Munich. On the Passo del Brennero, the Panda experienced his first snow – and brought us home safely. 

We were (Oldtimer) Panda fans before the trip for the bulky look, now we are certain that they get you pretty much everywhere. Stay tuned for our next Panda adventure, something big is coming up!