Sicilian Genealogy Book

It's finally in print: The first book in English dedicated to genealogical research in a specific region of Italy - Sicilian Genealogy and Heraldry.

It's more than genealogy and family history. This is a book that touches the soul of Sicily, with chapters on the Sicilian identity and much more. If there were ever a book that explains "how to be Sicilian," it is this one. Read more in our (very biased) review of this book.

Yes, this book is part of Best of Sicily's publishing program. Expect to see more titles soon...

Sicily's Beaches 2013

It's almost Summer, and already beach season in Sicily!

Sicily is full of beaches, and our Sicily beach page lists most of the public ones. This is the most complete, objective list on the web; it omits dirty urban beaches which are best avoided.

For weather forecasts visit our Sicily weather page, which also indicates holidays and things like seasonal foods.

Greek Icon Display

Over 40 Greek icons are on display at Palermo's Norman Palace until August 25th.

On loan from a museum in Athens, these treasures were salvaged over a century ago from St Nicholas Orthodox Church of Messina, claimed during the earthquake of 1908 which destroyed most of that city.

Also displayed are some manuscripts from the Byzantine Catholic Monastery of the Holy Savior.

Open hours are 8:30 to 5 Monday through Saturday, and 8:30 to 1 on Sundays.

Anna Bonomolo Concert

Anna Bonomolo is one of Sicily's best-known jazz talents, and jazz fans can catch her this Saturday, June 8th at 9:30 in Palermo's Villa Pantelleria Theatre. Included in the ticket price are refreshments before the outdoor concert.

For tickets: circuitoboxofficesicilia.it and tickettando.it.

It's a great way to begin the summer concert season.

Sicily Hotels

We recently updated our hotel reservation service and changed affiliation, which is to say that we are now with Booking.Com, part of Priceline.

In the process we simplified our hotel reservation page. It is now possible to select a list of hotels by choosing a locality on a map or in a list.

Booking.Com is the service that 3 or 4 members of our staff use when making hotel reservations, in Sicily and in other places. It works well, and the prices are at least as good as anything you'll find elsewhere. Many travelers consider it an advantage that - compared to most other online reservation services - this one usually permits you to pay at the hotel and not necessarily in advance. This feature depends on the specific hotel, however, so it is not universal.

But the system is extremely easy to use and very user-friendly.