Why

It is easy to see why Sicily makes a wonderful family friendly destination for your family holiday. A family holiday in Sicily allows you and your family to experience a vast range of activities, cultures and gastronomic delights. Whether you choose to enjoy a week in Taormina or Cefalù Sicily will appeal to families with both younger and older children. There are beaches with gently shelving sand and an exciting range of places to visit that may appeal to older children such as the bustling capital of Palermo, ancient temples of Agrigento and picturesque coast of western Sicily.

Pass through city walls that protect labyrinths of streets, piazzas and centuries of culture which will fascinate the kids or have an ice-cream at a café overlooking one of the many vibrant piazzas. Italians love children and have always a great welcome for them.

When and How

Sicily is a great year round destination but can get crowded in July and August. There are still plenty of places to escape to though. Try to catch a festival and travel outside of school holidays if your children are still young as you will get better value and there are fewer tourists. May and June are best.

You can fly to Catana or Palermo (you may have to go via Rome or Paris from Dublin for scheduled flights) or by charter fight with Sunway to Catana. Ryanair fly to Trapani and you can check many budget flights and scheduled flights here and Sunway flights here.

Hiring a car is pretty essential to get to see all of the best of Sicily and explore this wonderful area even if it is just for a few days. You can book car hire here.

Family friendly accommodation

There are a wide range of family friendly accommodation options available. Most hotels welcome children even if there are no special facilities and you can check for special offers and deals here with booking.com.

Italy specialists Citalia are one of the leaders in the upmarket package market for Italy and you can check their hotel and self catering accommodation only and full packages here. They have a 5% discount for online bookings. Sunway also feature Sicily and you can check their packages here.

Authentic Italy specialise in a wide range of villas and apartments if you want to book a self catering option in some stunning locations with special offers and deals. Self catering is generally a high standard and in stunning locations.

For good holiday village options with good children’s facilities have a look at Keycamp.

The Hotel Acacia is a modern hotel set within its own spacious and beautifully landscaped grounds leading to the private Beach Litorale Himera. It is an excellent choice for families as there are interconnecting rooms via an internal door available for younger children or via the balcony for older children and parents preferring more privacy. For those looking for an activity-based holiday, there is an extensive range of land and water based activities. The hotel runs a children`s club from 10am to 6pm for children aged between three and twelve. Here they can enjoy a number of activities such as t-shirt painting, pizza making, picnics and olive picking. You can book this here through Citalia.

Kempinski Giardino di Costanza Resort and Spa is a new five star deluxe hotel that is located in Mazara Del Vallo amongst olive groves and vineyards that overlook the Mediterranean Sea. Each room has its own private balcony or terrace which is enclosed and safe for young children. All of the room types are suitable for families, sleeping a maximum of two adults and one child and interconnecting rooms are available. Further facilities are two outdoor swimming pools, including a family pool, a fitness room, an indoor pool, sauna, spa and jacuzzi. Children are welcome and can enjoy their own menu. You can book this here with booking.com for special offers and deals.

What to do with the kids

Mount Etna is one of the most impressive sights in Italy and is also one of Europe's most active volcanoes. It is closely monitored and you can arrange guided to tours. You can also arrange a jeep tour and a walking tour and children will enjoy the fact that the eruptions have been so recent.

You can take a boat trip from Milazzo to the Aeolian Islands where you can swim and snorkel on black sand beaches.

The Lo Zingaro is a nature reserve which protects the coastline and you can either walk the coastal path or take a boat trip. There are beautiful coves and clear waters for exploring.

Stroll the atmospheric alleyways in Cefalù and Siracusa and stop for coffees and ice creams in small squares.

Vendicari on the southeast of the island has lovely sandy beaches set in a nature reserve.
Selinunte has a beach and an aqua splash water park to cool off in.

Visit the terrific temples at Agrigento, Segesta, and Selinute and the Greek theatre at Taoramina. There are also lots of castles for exploring including the Castello di Eurialo and the Castello di Lombardia.

Take a ride down the cable car from Taormina to the beach at Milazzo.

You will find lots of family friendly travel tips and advice in our research and advice section to help you book the right family holiday. Check out also the experiences of other parents and travellers in our parents forum and add your own experiences as we are a great believer in real parent's experiences as the best measure of whether somewhere will suit you for your family holiday. 

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