Three days that walk the Arab-Norman core from the Palatine Chapel to the Kalsa, ride one bus up to Monreale's mosaics and come back for the Teatro Massimo and the Vucciria, then finish with a morning at Mondello, the Capuchin Catacombs and a cannolo.
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Checked October 10, 2026. That’s the day we last confirmed the hours, prices and closed days.
April to June and late September to October are warm, dry and bearable on foot. July and August pass 95°F (35°C) and the city half closes around August 15; the Festino di Santa Rosalia fills the center on July 14 and 15. Winter is mild at around 59°F (15°C), with most of the year's rain between November and January, and the sea is too cold for Mondello.
Sleep in the Kalsa or around Via Maqueda and the Quattro Canti to walk to everything on day 1 and eat well at night. Politeama and Via Libertà are newer, quieter and on the Mondello bus. The streets around Stazione Centrale are handy for the airport bus and dull after dark.
The old town is a walk; Via Maqueda is pedestrian for most of its length. AMAT buses cost €1.40 for 90 minutes or €3.50 for a day, bought in the MyAmat app or at a tabacchi; on board the driver charges €1.80. Bus 806 runs Politeama to Mondello in about 25 minutes and bus 389 climbs from Piazza Indipendenza to Monreale. Taxis rarely use the meter; agree the fare first.
Albergheria · 90 min
Be at the Piazza Indipendenza gate for opening; the chapel's gold mosaics are the main thing to see in the city. The Royal Apartments close Tuesday and Wednesday for the regional parliament and the ticket drops to €10; buy online from Fondazione Federico II, last entry 4:30 p.m. (12:30 p.m. on Sundays).
€14.50
Cassaro · 75 min
The nave is free; the €7 monumental ticket adds the royal tombs of Frederick II and Roger II and the walk along the roof, with the whole Arab-Norman skyline below. The ticket desk opens at 9:30 a.m. and in winter the roof shuts at 2:30 p.m. on weekdays, so keep it in the morning.
€7
Quattro Canti · 30 min
Walk down the Cassaro to the baroque crossroads where the four old quarters meet, then step into Piazza Pretoria for the fountain of nude statues the locals named the Fountain of Shame.
Quattro Canti · 40 min
Two Norman churches side by side on Piazza Bellini: Byzantine mosaics in the Martorana, three red domes and bare stone in San Cataldo. The Martorana opens mornings only (10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Sunday mass only), so go before lunch; tickets are €2 and €2.50.
€4.50
Albergheria · 75 min
Ten minutes south into the Albergheria; eat standing: panelle and crocchè in a bun, an arancina al burro, a slice of sfincione from the cart. Stalls fry into the afternoon, but the produce side packs up by about 3 p.m.
Albergheria · 45 min
Two minutes from the market: the Jesuit church where every surface is inlaid marble. €2 for the church, €6 with the museum; Sundays are mass only.
€2
Kalsa · 75 min
Walk east through the old Arab quarter to Piazza Marina's giant fig trees, then along the Mura delle Cattive to the Foro Italico lawns for the sunset over the bay.
Kalsa · 90 min
Home cooking on Via Vittorio Emanuele at the Kalsa end: pasta con le sarde, sarde a beccafico, caponata. Book a day ahead; it is small and fills by 8:30 p.m.
Monreale · 75 min
Take bus 389 from Piazza Indipendenza at about 8:15 a.m.; it is a 40-minute climb on a standard AMAT ticket. The cathedral is free and opens 9 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 4:45 p.m. (Sunday afternoons only); pay around €4 for the terraces and the Roano chapel.
Monreale · 45 min
Next door: 228 twin columns, each pair carved differently, and the Arab fountain in the corner. Open 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Monday to Saturday, mornings only on Sunday; free on the first Sunday of the month.
€8
Capo · 60 min
Bus back to Piazza Indipendenza, then 15 minutes on foot to the market behind the Teatro Massimo. Order pane ca meusa (spleen in a bun) schietta with lemon or maritata with cheese; the squeamish take sfincione and a plate of fried seafood.
Teatro Massimo · 60 min
Italy's largest opera house, with the steps from the end of The Godfather Part III. Tours run daily 9:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. (last at 6:20 p.m.) in English and Italian, 40 minutes, but stop during rehearsals; check the day's slots online before you walk over.
€14
Olivella · 75 min
Five minutes away: the metopes from Selinunte and the bronze ram, in a cool cloistered convent. Tuesday to Saturday 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., Sunday mornings, closed Monday.
€8
Vucciria · 120 min
Dead by day, alive after dark: Piazza Caracciolo's grills do stigghiola (lamb intestine) and pane ca meusa for a few euros. Taverna Azzurra pours sangue (sweet red wine) for small change; eat on your feet.
Mondello · 150 min
Bus 806 from Politeama, about 25 minutes; the sand is public at the ends, and lidos rent a bed and umbrella for the morning from May to September. Swim before 11, when the city arrives.
Mondello · 75 min
Walk the lungomare to the piazza. The carts sell sfincione and panelle; the seafront trattorie do spaghetti ai ricci (sea urchin) and fritto misto, pricier than town but you are on the water.
Vucciria · 45 min
Bus 806 back to Politeama and 15 minutes on foot, for Giacomo Serpotta's stucco: the Battle of Lepanto in white plaster and a hundred laughing putti. The €6 ticket also opens the Oratorio del Rosario in San Domenico two streets away; closed Tuesday.
€6
Cappuccini · 60 min
A 10-minute taxi or bus 327 west, to about 8,000 mummified Palermitans in corridors sorted by profession; open 3 p.m. to 5:30 p.m., €5, no photographs. If you would rather not, the Zisa palace nearby is the same era as the Palatine Chapel, €8, closed Monday.
€5
Cappuccini · 30 min
Five minutes from the catacombs, for a cannolo with the ricotta piped in when you order and a slice of setteveli, the seven-layer chocolate cake the shop is credited with. Around €3 each.
€6
Teatro Massimo · 100 min
Seafood a few streets from the Teatro Massimo: raw red prawns, swordfish rolls, pasta with sea urchin when it is in season. Book; it has a dozen tables and the Palermitans know it.
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From Falcone Borsellino (PMO), the Prestia e Comandè bus runs every 30 minutes to Politeama and Stazione Centrale in about 50 minutes: €6.30 single, €11 round trip (€10 online). The Trenitalia train to Palermo Centrale leaves twice an hour and takes about an hour for around €6. A taxi is a fixed city fare; agree it before you get in.
About €50 to €80 a day per person: €5 to €10 for a street-food lunch, €15 to €30 in tickets, €25 to €40 for dinner with wine, and €3.50 for the day's buses. Monreale's cloister and terraces add about €12.
Plans change. Ask Chat and it proposes a reshuffled day you can apply, or just answers the question.
Cefalù, or the Zisa and Palazzo Abatellis at a slower pace; a fifth day, Segesta and Erice. Three days covers the Norman monuments, Monreale, two markets and a swim.
Day 1: the palace, the cathedral, the two churches and Casa Professa are all indoors and a few minutes apart. If day 3 is the wet one, swap Mondello for Palazzo Abatellis and the Zisa; Waystop can save that as a rain plan.
Buy online from Fondazione Federico II before you go. It skips the ticket line at the Piazza Indipendenza gate, and the price changes with the day: about €14.50 with the Royal Apartments from Thursday to Monday, €10 for the chapel alone on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Yes, AMAT bus 389 from Piazza Indipendenza, a 40-minute ride with a bus every 35 to 40 minutes, on a standard ticket. The line was interrupted for a spell in June 2026 and a shuttle ran from the Rocca stop, so check it the day before; tourist shuttles from the center cost more and run to a timetable.
Same country first, then the cities people tend to pair with Palermo. Want two or three in one go? String them together in the trip builder.
Add your dates, your hotel and who’s coming, then ask Chat to change anything: it proposes the edit and you tap Apply. Want a long lunch instead of a museum? Just ask. Every place is checked against Google Maps before it lands on your day, and Chat can tell you when to leave for the next stop. Going on to another city? Build a multi-city trip.