In Ortigia, I am wearing beautiful leather sandals and a floaty white Grecian-inspired dress as I walk along narrow alleyways with old buildings all around me and the sea rarely out of sight.
Go to Ortigia, Sicily if you:
love, love, love fresh, seasonal and delicious food;
like Italian food but want to love it;
appreciate varied and old architecture virtually unspoilt by modern infill;
like the idea of staying on a small island with plenty to see;
enjoy finding quirky or interesting places to stay;
love the idea of renting a holiday home with a roof terrace or balcony;
can’t get enough of cacti, succulents and creative plant pots;
are blown away by Baroque architecture;
like a massive choice of restaurants and bars in close proximity;
like to idea of buying perfume and toiletries from Ortigia in Ortigia;
rate a town by its market and available fresh produce;
are vegan or vegetarian and want to guarantee amazing food at designated vegetarian restaurants;
like being wowed by architecture and history;
want October/November sunshine and warmth;
appreciate largely car-free streets;
want to walk (or bus/taxi) to a park of Greek and Roman remains, extraordinarily well-preserved;
enjoy, or might enjoy, granita for breakfast;
appreciate night time walks where buildings are lit up;
think all of the above sounds amazing (the positives will far outweigh the negatives).
Don’t go to Ortigia if you:
feel claustrophobic in narrow, dark streets;
hope it might not be overcrowded between July to September;
assume most restaurants will be cheap;
are planning a beach holiday (only summer solariums and tiny snippets of beach);
like to hire a car and park by your accommodation;
want somewhere with regular public transport (eg to/from Catania airport);
only stay in big, chain hotels;
hate seeing cats wandering around;
like sitting in quiet parks;
assume that there is no rain in summer;
are likely to underestimate how hot it is and book accommodation without air conditioning;
feel lost if there is no soil or grass to walk on;
hope it will be a cheap holiday destination;
dislike small, densely-packed islands;
choose it for being an island; the very short bridges to Syracuse detract from the 360-degree sea;
want an escape from shops;
passionately hate cruise ship tour groups.
(based on a seven-night stay in August 2018 and a two-night stay in October 2019)