Sicily and the Aeolian Islands: Palermo, Stromboli, Messina
9 days · 295 nm · starts in Palermo · Italy
Palermo
Fly into Palermo and take over the yacht at the Villa Igiea marina or at Arenella. Provisioning in town and an evening at the Vucciria market: Palermo deserves a day of its own, but this route has no room for one.
Palermo → Cefalù
East along the north coast of Sicily. Cefalù is a town under a sheer rock with a 12th-century Norman cathedral and Byzantine mosaics inside. The marina is small and booked ahead in season.
Cefalù → Vulcano
The longest leg out to the islands, a full day in open water. Vulcano greets you with the smell of sulphur: the Gran Cratere is an hour's walk up, and from the anchorage at Porto di Levante three neighbouring islands are in sight at once.
Vulcano → Stromboli
North, to a volcano that has been erupting continuously for two thousand years. The anchorage off Stromboli is open and uneasy, but in the evening boats move round to the Sciara del Fuoco — the black slope down which lava runs into the sea — and watch the eruptions from the water.
Stromboli → Panarea → Lipari
Back south with a stop at Panarea, the smallest and most fashionable island in the archipelago. Lipari is the Aeolian capital: a castle on a crag, an archaeological museum and the only real town out here.
Lipari → Messina
East to the Strait of Messina. Messina is the gateway between two seas; a gilded statue of the Madonna stands at the harbour entrance, and on the waterfront an astronomical clock puts on a whole performance at noon.
Messina → Milazzo
West again along the north coast. Milazzo is a long headland with a castle on top and the main charter base for the archipelago: twenty miles from here to Vulcano.
Milazzo → Cefalù
The start of the way back along the Sicilian shore. Another night in Cefalù, this time with time to spare for the cathedral and the climb up the Rocca.
Cefalù → Palermo
The final leg, refuelling and handover in Palermo.
To be honest from the start: this is not a one-week loop. Palermo is on the north-west of Sicily, the Aeolian Islands and Messina on the north-east, and about a hundred and fifty miles lie between them one way. The full circuit including Messina is nine sailing days and roughly 295 nm — a ten-day charter. What fits into a week is its core: start and finish in Milazzo, twenty miles from the islands. The full version is below, and where to cut it is in the practicalities.
Practicalities
- Timing: the full version is nine sailing days and does not fit into a week. Either take a ten-day charter, or start and finish in Milazzo: that leaves Vulcano, Stromboli, Panarea, Lipari and Salina — about 120 nm and no day longer than thirty.
- The Strait of Messina: tidal streams here reach 4–5 knots and turn every six hours, with whirlpools where they meet. The passage is planned from the stream tables rather than the clock, and the fleet hands them over with the boat.
- Berths: the Aeolians have few sheltered harbours, a good share of nights are at anchor or on buoys, and almost every anchorage is open from at least one direction. Moving round to the lee of an island at night when the wind shifts is normal here, not an incident.
- Stromboli: the climb to the crater is permitted only with a guide and only to a set altitude, and the rules change after every increase in activity. Check the current restrictions before you leave; the eruptions are visible from the water in any case.
When to go and what it costs
Italy is dearer than its neighbours in summer and noticeably cheaper in spring: a median €202 per person per week in spring against €462 in summer. If your dates are flexible, May and early June give the best balance — and booked 2–3 months ahead, a spring week comes out at about €173 per person.
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