Sicily Italy travel, events, property & culture

Taormina Property and Real estate focus

2009-08-02T21:14:00.002+01:00

Taormina is a stunning small village on the East coast of Sicily which attracts the stars and everyone looking for a scenic town with beautiful beachside property and with cute shopping streets, restaurants and a roman theatre with a stunning distant view of Mount Etna.

The properties, real estate and villas here offer excellent rental opportunities and even on a fairly low budget, buying a 1 bedroom apartment near to the village centre, can be well worth considering. For some apartments on sale at this time take a look at Taormina Property and Real estate.

You can also learn more about Taormina and atractions. The beach itself is at the bottom of a cliff and is accessible via some steep steps (excellent exercise) or via a cable car. On top of the cliff, are the main hotels, B&B's, shops and restaurants.

Next time we will take a look at Catania and the Real Estate market.

39 Degrees Celcius - too hot in Sicily

2009-08-02T21:11:00.001+01:00

In Catania, Sicily this week, temperatures hit 39 degrees celcius. Too hot!

We are now looking for people who are SELLING properties in Sicily, whether it be Catania, Etna, Taormina, Noto or anywhere else on Sicilia. Would you like to sell properties or land in Sicily? We are interested in talking to you.

Email us now at valeria@investsicily.com or visit our Sales Contact FormDon't forget to check the July properties also on our site at www.investsicily.com

Sicily Property of the month:

2009-08-02T21:07:00.002+01:00

Sicily Property of the month:

This month we offer you a magnificent villa in Taormina, the most exclusive resort in Sicily. The villa is located on a hill overlooking the sea and it is surrounded by beautiful terraces and by a Mediterranean garden with swimming pool. Read more and view photos.......

New Property for sale in Sicily

2009-05-09T17:58:00.002+01:00

A quick post to let you know about 2 new properties we have added to InvestSicily.com

May 2009 - Fairly new small villa near to Taormina, Sicily. Apprx 160 metres square and quite close to the beach and village. This is through Iemme Real Estate. Details:

May 2009 - Also just added, Farmhous for sale in Ragusa. 200 square meters and in the countryside and a great opportunity for a property in a relaxed part of Sicily.

Messina Bridge Development - Sicily bridge

2009-03-27T19:08:00.002Z

The Messina bridge Development which would connect mainland Italy with Siicly could start in 2010 and it it does, it will be one of the most amazing bridge developments in the world.

Soem people oppose the bridge because they say it will create environmental problems, mean more money for the mafia and could be better spent. There are certainly benefits though and these would be:

Much quicker travel times between Sicily and the mainland.
A lot of construction jobs.
Increased property prices in Sicily and Southern Italy.
Improvements for road freight to and from Sicily.

Send us your comments with your views. Do you want the Messina Bridge development to proceed? Are you opposed to it?

Alternative Islands: Buying property in Northern Cyprus

2009-01-02T12:12:00.001Z

The North of Cyprus for real estate, is considered by many to potentially be a prime location for buying. The Northern coast, compared to other areas in Cyprus, is less developed and up until recently, it avoided the large developments.

The Northern coast is now expected to become an important investment area and over the next 10 years and according to who you talk to, or what media you read, the prices on the North coast of Cyprus could quite likely rocket!

Overall, Cyprus continues to be popular for visitors, with numbers in recent years rising, and with many areas of Cyprus as a whole, continuing to develop. Many older people are these days deciding to retire to Cyprus and rental opportunities, at least at the time of writing, continue to be good.

If you are thinking about buying property in Cyprus, do consider the North coast of Cyprus, especially if you are looking for somewhere with potential for profit.

Property in Sicily and the economy

2008-11-14T14:55:00.000Z

It is a strange time for buying and selling property with the economy sluggish and the EU State officially now in recession. Many of you often ask me if it is a good or bad time to buy and sell in Sicily and it really depends on your personal situation.

Sicily and Italy as a whole are a bit different in that the Italian economy has been in downturn for 2-3 years now and thus the recession will have far less effect in Sicily and Italy, than it is likely to in countries such as Spain, Germany and the UK.

It also depends on why you are buying and selling. If you are selling for example you may get less money now than 2 years ago, but then rebuying you can buy cheaper. Also if you are selling in Italy and plan to be in a country such as the UK, the weakness of Pound Sterling actually makes you 20% better off than 1 year ago just in currency rates so it could be a great time to sell in Sicily to buy in the UK for example. You can see that it really depends on your personal situation.

You can view the latest Sicily property offerings online and the latest is a 4 bedroom apartment in Catania. Location is very central and close to the rocks near to sea-front area.

Sicily flights with Alitalia

2008-09-22T00:22:00.000+01:00

Alitalia seem to be on their last legs and it is probably best to try and avoid booking now with Alitalia. There are several airline which fly to Sicily including airlines such as:

You can find a full list of flights and airlines to Sicily, Italy online.

Xmas Flights to Sicily, Italy

2008-07-23T18:35:00.001+01:00

If you are also looking to spend Christmas in Sicily, I advise you to think early about booking flights because budget flight prices for between Dec 20th and Jan 5th will be unlikely. Outside of those dates you can still get excellent prices with British Airways from London, UK but during those dates prices are almost triple.

I surfed the various airline sites and price comparison sites a few days ago and I did find tickets for £170 return including taxes direct between London and Catania direct and booked.

Alitalia at this time also have a sale on and you can fly to Sicily from London, UK for £150 including taxes, provided you do not mind one stop on mainland Italy AND these fares were Expedia.co.uk Special fares. Let us know of any good prices and deals wih your comments. More info about flights to Sicily here.

The Etna Erupts

2008-05-15T14:43:00.000+01:00

The Etna has been active again this last week with a seismic shift which caused the Etna to sprew some ash and to rumble a little. The Etna was lettign off steam the last few days and seems now to be settling.

For those of you thinking about buying property in Sicily, do no tbe alarmed. The Etna is an active volcano which is active and which every summer lets off a little steam. People are not usually in danger because the lava which does flow is usually controlled using machine diggers to carve a convenient patht for the lava to follow.

In terms of Sicily property news, the latest apartments in Sicily for sale are available on Invest Sicily. If you are also interested in Skiing in Italy read this.

Skiing on the Etna volcano, in Sicily

2008-03-06T13:05:00.000Z

This time of year, between the months of January and April is an excellent time for skiing the Etna volcano. You can literally stand on the ski slopes of the Etna and view the coast at the same time and on some days, ski on top of the Etna and lie on the beach the same day (although may be a little chilly).

There are ski lifts on top of the Etna and depending on what eruptions have occured on this acytive volcano, the previous months, the ski lifts will hopefully be working when you are there. Every few years lava damages the lifts in part, but lately the lifts have been working fine.

Skiing the Etna is NOT so much about having the best skiing. If you want that you will be better off in the Italian, Swiss or Frecnh alps. Skiing the Etna is more about enjoying the view and skiing somewhere unusual and combined with good food and wine in the evenings, you cannot go wrong. You can get further information from the Catania Tourist office at Via Cimarosa 10, I-95124 and you can email them direct at: Email: apt@apt.catania.it

For accommodation in Sicily you can try Holiday Velvet and try British Airways for flights diret from cities such as London, UK.

Sant' Agata in Catania - February 2008

2008-01-16T16:03:00.000Z

If you are in or around Catania, Sicily in February this 2008, look out for the annual Aant' Agata festival in the city. This festival is centruies old and this festival continues to be very popular in Catania.

If last year is anythign to go by, you can expect to see several hundred thousand people flocking into the streets, particularly around the centre and the Piazza Duomo area. The events will commence from the 3rd of February and events including:

A fireworks display
A running race
Parades
Many street vendors selling hot food

The fireworks festival is scheduls to start from 8pm, although in true Italian tradition, do not expect them to start on time. For visitors to Catania, this is a great event to be present at, with the atmopshere excellent for this event unusually.

4 bedroom Catania apartment for sale, Sicily

2007-11-29T19:08:00.000Z

Sicily Property News: A friend has asked me to mention that she is selling a 4 bedroom apartment in Catania, Sicily in Italy and this apartment is in the city centre in a prime location.

Photos and a further description of the Catania apartment for sale are visible on InvestSicily.com. The apartment I am told is 480,000 Euros. The apartment has 4 bedrooms, is right by the sea-front and classy shopping area, has two bathrooms and two balconies etc.

You can also write directly for further information on this property, to Valeria at the email address: appartcatania@yahoo.it

------------------------------------
Subscribe to this newsfeed. Get all updates sent to your RSS reader.
Select one of the RSS news readers above or add our feed link: http://sicilyvillasproperty.blogspot.com/atom.xml to your own RSS reader.

Sicily attractions and the Botanic Garden in Palermo

2007-11-21T10:51:00.000Z

If you are out and about in Sicily then one attraction I visited which I recommend for visiting and which is great is the Botanic Garden in Palermo, on the West coast of Sicily. Even if you are in the Palermo area for buying or selling property, it never does any harm to take a break and enjoy the beauty of nature.

The Palermo's Orto Botanico (Botanical Garden) are open usually 7 days a week and cost roughly 4 Euros and these gardens, which are a part of the University of Palermo, cover an area the size of two hundred and fifty acres. The gardens include an aquarium and numerous exotic plants.

The gardens are not worth traveling across Sicily for but if you are travelling or in Palermo then ithe gardens are worth visiting for an hour or two. Learn more about Sicily and investing.

Visiting Catania in Sicily, Italy

2007-10-31T21:09:00.000Z

If you are visiting Sicily soon and Catania is one of the places you will be staying in, there are a few things I highly recommend that you do and visit whilst there.

Catania fish market is amazing with the market a chance to really experience the real Sicilian way of life, with traders bartering, the strong smell of fresh fish and the lively atmosphere of the place in general.
Take a day trip to the top of Mount Etna. The volcano is active and provides a wonderful view of Catania.
Museo Belliniano. This museum is well worth seeing.

Learn more about Sicily, Italy and consider booking your accommodation in Sicily, Italy with Holiday Velvet.
------------------------------------
Subscribe to this newsfeed. Get all updates sent to your RSS reader.
Select one of the RSS news readers above or add our feed link: http://sicilyvillasproperty.blogspot.com/atom.xml to your own RSS reader.

Staying in Sicily

2007-09-19T13:54:00.000+01:00

A question I often get asked is where should people book to stay in Sicily when they visit Sicily, whether it be Taormina, Catania, Messina or any other part of this wonderful island.

The first time I visited Sicily I booked my flights and my hotel through http://www.expedia.co.uk/ and I have to admt, they are very good. I like the service they offer and the hotel was quite decent. The more I travel and now with a family in tow with kids to think about, I happily came across the idea in Barcelona of apartments rental. I love the concept of staying in an apartment and being able to make 1 or 2 meals in the apartment now and again to reduce the holiday costs a little and also to have the space for the familt to relax. One thing more than any I found was that it can actually save a lot of money on hotel costs.

Last time I went to Sicily I rented an apartment in Catania for 10 days and all went perfect. It was just the slowness of the check in staff at Catania airport that bothered me. The stay itself though was good. You have to go up the Etna and visit Taormina. It is stunning.

Sicily Guide books

2007-07-16T22:39:00.000+01:00

It might seem obvious, but I strongly recommend getting a travel guide book if you plan to visit Sicily any time soon. A book such as the Lonely Planet Sicily is the bible fo rme when I travel to any place. No, before you ask, I do and have never worked for Lonely Planet (I wouldn't mind a job with them though).

To have so much information in such a small package is invaluable. Having an address of a recomended restaurant, which you can then simply show a taxi driver if you are really stuck, knowing what the local tipping situation is when you are in a restaurant, knowing how best to get to the airport etc etc all all such useful things to know.

You can read more about Sicily travel guides on http://www.investsicilyproperty.co.uk/books.htm

Property & Real estate market in Sicily, Italy

2007-06-14T19:40:00.000+01:00

The Sicily, Sicilian real estate and property market has been a little in the last 12 months with the indecision in the Italian government and the issues between Prodi and Berlusconi etc. Overall though, real estate, including apartments and villas have still increased in value over the last 12 months.

Things are a little sluggish but consider the fact that Sicily is the only Mediterranean island which is undeveloped for tourism and the fact that is prices are good now for owning property, imagine what the same properties in Sicily, will be worth when the Italian economy IS strong again in a year or two or three?

Need information on flights to Catania, Sicily and info on the new Catania airport?

The modernisation of Catania airport, Sicily

2007-05-17T14:41:00.000+01:00

Flying in and out of Sicily on business can be a lot easier when the airport you are using is spacious, has good facilities and is well organised. Catania International airport, which serves the main east coast city of Catania and other resorts such as Taormina, has in the last 6 months been renovated and the results are now impressive.

Catania airport has now had an extra terminal added onto the airport and the result of this is a whole load more space in the airport. The airport before was cramped and facilities not the best. With new toilet/washroom facilities, more cafes and shops, the improvements are welcome additions. If you use the aiport like I do, several times a year, you will appreciate the benefits the new changes will bring. Need information of flights to and from Catania?

Taormina Sicily, Italy

2007-04-20T18:31:00.000+01:00

If you are looking for somewhere which really is beautiful in Sicily and which has a beach and is lively, then Taormina is a place you should definitely consider buying real estate or property in.

Situated on the east coast of Sicily and about 1 hours south of the large city of Catania and Catania International airport), Taormina is a small sits which ismaily based on top of a cliff face, hence the stunning views.

In the summer time many of the stars come to Taormina for the annual film festival and it is easy to see why this place is so popular. The town centre is composed of a few hundred privately run and stylish shops, cafes and restuarants, whilst the beach sits below the cliffs and can be accessed by steps, road or by the cable car.

Property is affordable on a reasonable budget if you look for a 1 or 2 bedrom apartment just off of the main streets. Taormina real estate is certainly worth considering if you want to see in a vibrant and enjoyable place.
---------------------------------------
Subscribe to this newsfeed. Get all updates sent to your RSS reader.
Select one of the RSS news readers above or add our feed link: http://sicilyvillasproperty.blogspot.com/atom.xml to your own RSS reader.

The Sicilian language: A little Sicilian before buying your villa (15th March 07)

2007-03-15T10:23:00.000Z

If you plan to live or spend time in Sicily in the future (or Sicilia as the locals might say), then understanding a little bit about the culture can improve your experience. Before buying a villa in Sicily, why not learn a few words of Sicilian and read up on a little of the history?

The Sicilian dialect, or language as many experts consider it, has ancient roots and a long history. There is also a tradition of literature in Sicilian, starting from the XIII century at the court of Frederick the II, called the ‘Sicilian School’ (learn more about the Sicilian School on http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sicilian_School ). The Sicilian language has its most ancient roots in the language of populations who lived in Sicily long before the Greeks and the Romans arrived: the Sicani, Siculi and Elimi. During the centuries the Sicilian language was influenced by the several populations that invaded or influenced Sicily: Greeks, Phoenicians, Romans, Arabs, French, Lombard, Provencal, Spanish, German, Catalan etc.

If you are curious about the Sicilian language, check this online Sicilian-English dictionary websters-online-dictionary.org/definition/Sicilian-english.
---------------------------------------
Subscribe to this newsfeed. Get all updates sent to your RSS reader.
Select one of the RSS news readers above or add our feed link: http://sicilyvillasproperty.blogspot.com/atom.xml to your own RSS reader.

Buying property on the Etna volcano, Sicily, Italy (13th Feb 07)

2007-02-13T16:45:00.000Z

Buying and living in property or real estate actually on the hillsof the Etan Volcano is far different from what you might first at think. My father-in-law lives on the Etna and I often visit and what a great place to live.

The Etna is far bigger than many people think and the sides of the Etna thus cover many many miles and many villages exist on the Etna. The etna volcano does erupt but the lava is always directed with the use of trenches, to direct the lava safetly. The lava also tends not to travel far. Still interested in buying property on a volcano in Sicily?

The land is incredibly fertile because of the lava and the view is magnificient. Can you imagine being able to see both the ocean and the volcano. On some days you can ski on the top of the Etna or you can relax on the beach. Property prices tend also to be far cheaper than in the city of Catania.

Food and Sicily: The benefits of living an downing property in Sicily

2007-01-24T20:51:00.000Z

If you live and own property in Sicily Sicilia then you will already no doubt appreciate two things: The climate and the food. If you are still considering whether or not to delve into the real estate market and buy that villa you want, the food might persaude you otherwise.

The person who is responsible for really highlighting the relationship between Sicily and food in the last year, has been Jamie Oliver. Known popularly as the Naked Chef, Jamie's TV tour and cookbook promote the islands cuisine.

In Sicilia try some arancini, some bruschette or some seafood risotto. Enjoy the benefits of cooking with mozzarella, basil, anchovies and cherry tomatoes (grown on the incredibly fertile Etna). I would personally consider buying property in one of the villages on the Etna volcano, near Catania. The lava makes the soil very very fertile and this makes the foods which grow, extremely rich in flavour. The villages also often provide a stunning view of the ocean. You can see the Etna and ocean from your villa.
To learn all about Sicilian and Italian food you can buy Jamie oliver's book.

Connecting Sicily and Holland (3rd Jan 07)

2007-01-03T18:11:00.000Z

Getting to and from Sicily is now made easier especially for those of you who have business and reasons to visit Holland. The excellent news is that a new airline called Transavia fly to from Catania, Sicily to Amsterdam, Netherlands.

This budget airline have cheap flights and fly fairly regularly.You can visit their website at
http://www.transavia.com/en/destinations.
---------------------------------------------------
Subscribe to this newsfeed. Get all updates sent to your RSS reader.
Select one of the RSS news readers above or add our feed link: http://sicilyvillasproperty.blogspot.com/atom.xml to your own RSS reader.

Sicily jobs created - good news for the economy (31st Dec 06)

2006-12-31T22:53:00.000Z

Property and real estate news - anything that benefits the local economy must good for Sicily and anyone living in Sicily. The recent news in the last 2 weeks is that more than 2,500 have been hired for call centre work via the Almaviva group.

The Sicily jobs will involve permanent contracts for the workers, many of whom work in palermo and Catania and several of whom were previously part-time workers.