Syracuse is easier to reach than its position on the map suggests, and the single most useful thing to know is that the bus beats the train.
That is unusual in Italy and it is true here because there is no railway station at Catania airport. Here is how to arrive, how to get about once you have, and where to go for a day. The wider planning is in my complete guide to Syracuse.
Which airport
Catania Fontanarossa. About an hour away and where essentially everything flies.
Palermo exists and is on the other side of the island, roughly three and a half to four hours by road. Only worth it if you are touring Sicily end to end and arriving that way anyway.
From Catania airport, the bus
This is the answer. Direct coach from outside the terminal to Syracuse, fifty five to seventy minutes, around six euros sixty, running roughly every half hour to hour through the day.
It drops you at the bus terminal near the bridge, which is a short walk from Ortigia with luggage. No changes, no transfers, cheaper than the train and faster.
The train, and why not
There is no station at the airport. To take the train you would first get into Catania Centrale, then take the coastal line south, which comes to about an hour and three quarters all in and costs more than the bus.
The coastal railway is genuinely pretty and if you are already in Catania city it is a fine way to travel. From the airport it is simply the wrong tool.
Arriving by car
The drive from Catania is about an hour on the motorway and straightforward.
The problem is at the other end. Ortigia has restricted vehicle access, the lanes are too narrow for most cars, and parking on the island is close to impossible in summer.
What to do. Leave the car in one of the car parks on the mainland side, near the bridge, and walk across. Ask your accommodation which one before you arrive, because the answer varies and some places have an arrangement.
If Syracuse is your whole trip, do not hire a car at all. If you are touring the south east, hire one and keep it parked.
Getting around once you are here
On foot, on Ortigia. The island is a kilometre end to end. Nothing else helps.
The archaeological park is about twenty five minutes’ walk from the bridge, uphill and dull at the end, or a short city bus. In July, take the bus.
The beaches are a bus or a train south. Fontane Bianche has its own station, which makes it the easy one.
Taxis are not plentiful. Book the night before for an early flight rather than assuming.
The drive south
Everything worth a day trip is south, and the road runs through dry stone walls and low scrub with the sea on your left.
It is a good drive and it makes the case for hiring a car for one day rather than the whole trip.
Noto, half an hour inland
Twenty eight kilometres, about thirty minutes.
Noto is the finest baroque town in Sicily and the reason is a disaster: the 1693 earthquake flattened it, and it was rebuilt from nothing, all at once, in the same honey coloured stone. The result has the coherence of a stage set rather than the accumulated muddle of most Italian towns.
It is UNESCO listed as part of the Val di Noto. The main street is a run of palace façades and church steps and it goes gold in the late afternoon.
Half a day, and it pairs with Marzamemi.
Marzamemi, twenty minutes further
A small fishing village built around a square that opens straight onto the sea, with an old tonnara, a tuna processing works, standing at one end of it.
The square fills with tables in the evening. It is tiny, it is slightly self aware about being pretty, and it is still lovely. Go for dinner rather than lunch and stay for the light going.
Vendicari, if you have the morning
Between Noto and Marzamemi there is a coastal nature reserve of salt pans, dunes and long empty beaches, with a ruined tuna works standing right on the shore.
It is a walk rather than a sight. In spring and autumn it fills with migrating birds including flamingos. If you have a car and no fixed plan, this is the one that surprises people.
Catania, an hour north
The opposite of Syracuse: big, loud, built in black volcanic stone, and holding one of the great fish markets in Italy.
Go for a morning, eat extremely well for very little, come back. It also works as a last day, since your flight leaves from there.
What not to try
Taormina and Etna in a day. Two hours each way and a mountain in the middle. It is a bad day.
Noto as a half day with a beach. Noto and Marzamemi together are a full day. Splitting it wastes both.
Agrigento. Three hours each way. Stay a night or leave it.
Arriving with luggage
Worth thinking about for ten seconds before you arrive.
The bus terminal and the railway station are both on the mainland, a ten to fifteen minute walk from Ortigia across the bridge. That walk is flat and easy, and it is still a walk.
Once you are on the island, the lanes are narrow, some are stepped, and a taxi cannot always reach your door. Ask your accommodation where the nearest vehicle can stop and how far the walk is from there. The answer varies enormously and some places will meet you.
Wheeled cases and worn limestone are not friends.
Cruise ships
Ships call at Syracuse through the season and tender passengers into the harbour on the island side.
If you are staying in town, this mainly matters as a warning: the cathedral square and the market get a sudden wave between about ten and four on ship days, then empty completely. If you find the island unaccountably busy on a weekday morning, that is why, and the answer is to walk five minutes south.
Read also: a Syracuse itinerary, the best beaches near Syracuse, and my complete guide to Syracuse.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you get from Catania airport to Syracuse?
Take the direct bus from outside the terminal. It runs every half hour to hour, takes fifty five to seventy minutes and costs about six euros sixty, dropping you near the bridge to Ortigia. There is no railway station at the airport, so the train means changing in Catania and takes closer to two hours.
Is there a train from Catania to Syracuse?
Yes, from Catania Centrale in the city rather than from the airport. It runs down the coast and takes a little over an hour. It is a pleasant ride if you are already in Catania, but the airport bus is faster and cheaper if you have just landed.
Do you need a car in Syracuse?
Not for the city. Ortigia has restricted access, no realistic parking, and is walkable end to end in twenty minutes. Hire a car for a day if you want Noto, Marzamemi or Vendicari, and leave it on the mainland side.
How far is Noto from Syracuse?
About twenty eight kilometres, or thirty minutes by road. Marzamemi is a further twenty minutes beyond it, and the two together make a comfortable full day rather than a half day.
What is the best day trip from Syracuse?
Noto and Marzamemi together: the finest baroque town in Sicily followed by a fishing village whose square opens onto the sea. Add Vendicari nature reserve if you have a car and want a walk. Catania an hour north is the alternative if you prefer cities and markets.
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