Rome to Sicily

Rome to Sicily in ten nights, down the western side of Italy and then right round the island. It is a one-way trip and the direction alternates by departure date, so some groups ride it north instead.

Pompeii provides the first rest day, reached past Vesuvius and along the Amalfi Coast, and the ruins deserve more of a morning than most itineraries give them. Acquafredda follows, then Parghelia by way of the Gulf of Salerno and Tropea, a cliff-top town on the Calabrian coast that is the best overnight stop on the mainland leg.

Sicily arrives by ferry. Taormina gets the second rest day, a cobbled hill town with a Greek theatre looking straight at Mount Etna, and the optional ride around Etna itself is the highlight of the trip for most riders. Etna is the tallest and most active volcano in Europe and the roads on its flanks run through lava fields and old flows. Cefalu follows on the north coast, then Agrigento and the Valley of the Temples, where the Greek temples are better preserved than almost anything in Greece, before the finish at Catania in Etna’s shadow.

Edelweiss include a choice of BMW motorcycle, ten nights in comfortable middle-range hotels with several in historic districts and seaside locations, a guide and a tour book. Flights are separate and the airports differ by direction, Rome and Catania, so booking needs a little care. A guided city tour of Rome is available at 350 euros per person with a 65 euro single supplement, and prices are per person for 2026. Sicily is the draw, and getting there by road rather than by plane is most of the pleasure.