Ortigia is an island that is the historical center of Syracuse, Sicily. So if you also hear it being called Syracuse, do not be confused. Ortigia is one of those places that people will tell you can be explored within a few hours. I promise you, you need to stay longer. You may not need to spend a full two days (we’ve been really working on practicing slow travel), but an overnight I think is well deserved in this incredibly lovely place.
Throughout this post I’ll give you enough to do with 2 days here, especially if you’re visiting during the summer season and you can spend some time on the beaches. We visited in the Spring and it was absolutely wonderful to enjoy in mild weather.
Where to stay in Ortigia
Due to a weird scheduling mishap on our end, we actually stayed in two different spots here. Honestly, we really loved them both so it worked out nicely. Plus, now I have two places to share that I’ve personally experienced. I also have a third that looked really lovely! Sometimes when you visit a place as you’re wandering around you notice a spot you may have overlooked or may have been out of budget for this trip, I’m going to add that spot here as well.
Maison Ortigia
I was charmed immediately upon seeing the balcony views from this hotel. It is right in the center of the island. This is a plus for getting around, you can walk to anything! If you’re driving however, we had to park about 15 minutes walk from our car. We didn’t find this problematic at all, but it is something to consider if you’re not much of a walker. The room was simple, but it was very bright, clean and comfortable and had a great shower and bathroom. The staff here were very kind and helpful and we were able to check into our room a little bit early which is always nice.
The balcony was truly the highlight here and we utilized it! We had a nice little happy hour on the balcony during “pre sunset” and it was beautiful! We also got to see the most glorious sunrise with views over the church bells and all of Ortigia.
The value here was amazing, we paid 68 euro for our room in April. I assume the cost will go up a bit more during high season, but for a nice room with a lovely view and all you need, we found this to be great value.
You can click here to view and book the hotel —-> Maison Ortigia
La Vacanza Ortigia
We got so lucky with this spot! We had a last minute change of plans due to weather and decided to show up in Ortigia with nothing booked. I found this spot in the morning and thankfully it was available. If we’d had known, we would have just stayed here both nights, it was so lovely!
It was very clean and comfortable, had a nice shower and a very cozy bed. The view from the giant glass windows was amazing. I believe they also have balcony rooms, which we’d have gone for if we weren’t booking so late. The host was so kind and welcoming and was felxible with our strange time coming and going.
Waking up to sunset here was phenomenal! We could even see Mount Etna from the window! This place was also directly across the street from the parking garage where we parked our car, which made things very easy. It was within walking distance to anything and everything we wanted to do on Ortigia as well.
If you are interested in booking this apartment, you can find the link here —-> La Vacanza Ortigia
Hotel Henrys House
We noticed this spot as we were wandering around Ortigia. I am assuming our last minute booking is what prevented us from booking here as they had no availability when I was searching. I absolutely would have stayed here. This hotel is stunning inside and out and has, in my opinion, some of the best views over the sunset! It has sea-view rooms that look like absolute perfection, and it has amazing reviews! Anything above a 9 on booking.com you KNOW is going to be good!
Click here to book this hotel —-> Hotel Henrys House
How to get to Ortigia
By Car
If you are driving to Ortigia you should know it is not complicated to drive around Sicily. We found it pretty average compared to some other challenging countries we’ve driven in. One strong piece of advice though, would be to park before you even enter the island of Ortigia itself. Driving out onto the island (even just to drop off your bags) would be difficult as streets are very crowded and narrow. We parked at Parcheggio Talete which was a covered parking garage right at the edge of the island. It was perfect, we were able to pay via an app, and we could easily walk to our accommodation.
By train
You can take a train into Siracusa and then walk (about 30 minutes) to Ortigia or take a taxi, tuk tuk, etc from the train station into town.
Where to eat & drink
Colapesce
I can’t express enough how THRILLED I am that we found this spot. It is right on the road overlooking the water and one of Ortigia’s small beaches. We were able to sit here in the sunshine for lunch and it was the most pleasant experience. When you walk by and see the little terrace set up, it’s hard to even tell how lovely it is. The interior decor is stunning and so cute!
I had a red prawn tartar on top of mozzarella and tomatoes here that was truly to die for. It was absolutely perfect in every way. I almost just ordered it again as soon as I finished eating it. The only reason I didn’t, was that I wanted to try some frito misto in town too. My husband had a salad with grilled chicken and he loved it as well. Everything was SO SO fresh and delicious. I had a nice glass of wine with lunch and we just enjoyed the peaceful vibe here immensely. I highly recommend eating here if you can, make sure to check opening hours as it seemed to be closed on certain times or days.
A Putia
One of the best dinners we had during our entire time in Sicily. We are the kind of people who make reservations months before we visit a place, so it was very rouge and very brave of us to just roll and up hope to get a spot here. They do not take reservations and it is a very small spot. Although the staff is on top of things, you don’t feel rushed here, and honestly some tables lingered far beyond what we thought was comfortable considering the line out front. We were very lucky as we were two people and visiting in April (sort of off season). It was also a little chilly out and we agreed to sit outside. Therefore we got seated almost immediately. There were people waiting in line for the entire duration of our meal, so make sure you’re aware and depending on your group size, you just might not want to make this effort. However, if you do, you will be REWARDED.
We genuinely LOVED every bite of food we had here, and we wished we’d ordered more once we realized how incredibly good it all was. We each had pistachio pesto pasta because we knew we wouldn’t want to share with one another. I had the MOST amazing giant and delicious prawns. Griffin had the meatballs and loved them as well. When we saw the table next to us get the rigatoni in red sauce I begged Griffin to get it with me for desert. But alas, we ended up getting actual desert. It was a creamy pistachio and ricotta cake that was delightful. The bottom line is, this place is awesome, worth the wait, delicious, and their only flaw in my eyes is the lack of reservations. I hope you go, and may the odds be ever in your favor.
Don Peppinu
Watching someone hand pipe the filling into my cannoli before I got to eat it felt like a spiritual experience. This place truly had the best cannoli we had during our entire time in Sicily. We had it dipped in pistachio topping and it was absolute perfect. They also have delightful gelato! We also saw this same spot in Taormina, so it is a chain, but a damn good one! Do not skip!
Sicily Fish & Chips
You will likely walk by this place and see people outside eating some amazing looking fried seafood. Do not pass go, do not skip this place, get some for yourself. It is such a cute and easy stop and a lovely little place to rest and snack. Literally, we came here straight from lunch and I ate an entire basket of shrimp to myself and they were fantastic. It kills me that my husband isn’t a seafood eater so I couldn’t try more. They also had mixed options, fish options, calamari, etc. But, I must say, any chance you get in Sicily to eat shrimp, take it. I was not disappointed by a single shrimp on this entire island.
Mikatu
This was the most perfect spot for aperitivo. We got to witness the most beautiful sunset sitting right by the water and enjoying the scene. It’s a popular area so try to get there on the early end of things to get a table. We had a nice spritz here and some great snacks. The vibes were nice and the sunset was truly unreal!
Verga Courtyard
This was a neat little spot for a cocktail around aperitivo time. You could easily walk right past it if you weren’t looking for it, and the courtyard itself is really beautiful. We just stopped here for a quick drink but it seemed to be a pretty popular spot, it was filing up as we were leaving, as things often are.
Viola Espressobar
We stopped here for some gelato and brioche and it was an excellent choice! Honestly, this could have kept me full for 2 days but Griffin crushed his brioche and gelato with no problem. They had great flavors here and it was definitely work the stop!
Things to do
Enjoy strolling the streets and shopping
Oritiga has a TON of shopping! We are honestly not big on purchasing things when traveling (carry on only), but we do love to pop into shops, and there are so many here. They have such wonderful local products and beautiful ceramics. The souvenir shops are largely the same and all selling the same products, but we found some really special shops here as well that someday we’d love to come with an extra suitcase to shop at!
Walk along the Harbor & Park
You can actually essentially walk “along the water” around the entire town of Ortigia. The harbor area is set a bit lower, you would go down stairs or a ramp to reach it. It is a charming little area and a beautiful place to view the sunset. We saw some yachts and small boats parked here in April so I am sure that there are tons during the high season. There are some cute little places to snack, play some games, or relax at along this area. There is also a little “beach club” of sorts with some nice deck chairs along the water.
Check out the Cathedral of Syracusa and other churches
The cathedral is something you can’t miss even if you tried, it is on a large and very beautiful square and it is very large itself. It was actually built on the ruins of a Greek temple and you can see evidence of this even from the outside as you walk around. There are so many churches on Ortigia Island and I always enjoy checking them out, even though I’m not very religious.
Palazzo Borgia del Casale
This was such a random find for us but we really enjoyed it. We are easily tempted by a good palace and as we were wondering down the alley we noticed a little sign that said palace tour. When we walked upstairs the place looked deserted. Then someone appeared and offered us the tour and a glass of wine for 8 euro and we thought “a palace and Prosecco?, why the heck not!”
This is a very small Palazzo but it has an audio guide you can listen to on your phone. The rooms were seriously beautiful and we had it entirely to ourselves, which was really nice. It also had a balcony overlooking the main square and the Duomo. It was so nice to sip our glass of Prosecco and people watch over the square. If you have a little time and don’t mind dropping 8 euro this is a neat spot to see!
Boat Day
I think it would be silly to not mention the option of getting out on a boat here. We didn’t plan for this as we were visiting in the Spring and couldn’t trust the weather. But if you’re visiting in the warmer months I would truly love to get out on a boat and see this area from the water.
If you’re looking for tour options you can check them out here —-> Ortigia Boat Tours
Nearby Day Trip
Etna Urban Winery
I thought I was going to love this place when I read about it online and booked it, but wow did we really enjoy visiting here in person. We booked the Sicilian wine lunch and self guided tour. I will admit I thought this was going to be a bit more “self” guided than it was.
It started with an explanation of the wine and winery, which we really enjoyed. This was followed by a family style lunch and wine tasting. After lunch we were able to walk the vineyard and explore the property at our own pace, which was so lovely.
Personally, if I were to return I would see if we could book a private tour and tasting. I don’t particularly enjoy eating family style with strangers for a number of reasons. But we LOVED the food! Every single thing we ate was SO good and we greatly enjoyed the wines as well. We were driving so Griffin didn’t drink on this one, but if you’re staying in Catania they will also help you arrange transportation.
If you’re looking for more information on where to stay in Italy, check out my post here —-> FREE Guide to my Favorite Stays in Italy
If you’re interested in other Sicilian towns check out my guide here —-> 48 Hours in Taormina, Sicily
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