Sicily, the largest of the Mediterranean islands, lies between southern Italy and North Africa. Cheap Panarea Hotels The island can be seen as a "stepping stone" between Europe and Africa. Tour operators Sicily. A beautiful, mountainous island, Sicily has been occupied by a series of migrants and invaders. These include the Greeks, Cathaginians, Romans, Byzantines, Arabs, Normans, Angevins and Spaniards. In 1861 Sicily became part of Italy when Garibaldi united the Kingdom of Italy and the island. Tour operators Sicily Eighty-five years later Sicily achieved "relative independence". This means that although Sicily belongs to Italy it is responsible for much of its own local affairs. Tour operators Sicily. The island is divided into nine provinces: Agrigento, Caltanissetta, Catania, Enna, Messina, Palermo, Ragusa, Siracusa and Trapani. Hotels Sant Agata Militello Throughout history islands have been invaded by foreign powers. Farmhouses in Agrigento However, Sicily's rugged terrain has provided its people with a degree of protection as many of its towns and villages are high in the mountains.  

'To have seen Italy without having seen Sicily is not having seen Italy at all, for Sicily is the key to everything.' So said Goethe. Tour operators Sicily. Tuscany might want a look in, and Rome might beg to differ, but Sicily, with a history of foreign occupation across the centuries, is certainly fascinating, with a real pot-pourri of culture, cuisine and architecture. Plus the odd volcano. Messina Agriturismo

Ironically, the earthquake that devastated the southeastern provinces in 1693 became the springboard for Sicily's most glorious period, the baroque. Messina Holiday Flats It gleams in the cities and towns of Palermo, Catania, Siracusa, Ragusa, Noto, Comiso, Scicli and dozens more, all of which had to be rebuilt from the ground up. Milazzo lodging After the Aragonese, Sicily passed briefly into the hands of the Austrians, to be willingly rescued in 1734 by the Bourbons of Spain, whose throne was actually located in Naples. Tour operators Sicily. During one forced exile in Palermo, the Bourbon king Ferdinand's wife Maria Carolina (sister of Marie Antoinette) built La Favorita. , A magnificent refuge in which to hide from the subjects she thoroughly loathed. Tourist Information office centre Agrigento Sicily remained in Bourbon hands until 1861, when unification created the Kingdom of Italy.

Tour operators Sicily