Getting there

Monterrey

Three nonstops to Europe, then a short flight to Catania. Aeroméxico to Paris (out Mon, Thu, Sat; back Tue, Fri, Sun), Iberia to Madrid (Tue, Fri, Sat), and Aeroméxico to Madrid. About 20 hours door to door on one ticket: for example, out of Monterrey Saturday 15:00, into Catania Sunday 18:40 via Paris.

• You’ll spend a night in Madrid or Paris on the way home. The flights to Monterrey leave Europe in the morning (Madrid 09:00 or 13:00, Paris 11:55), and nothing from Sicily lands in time. Fly Catania to Madrid or Paris one afternoon and home the next day. Plan it as part of the trip, and do the same on the way out if you want it relaxed.
• Our suggestion: Catania to Madrid or Paris on Monday 6 September, home on Tuesday 7. All three flights to Monterrey run on Tuesdays (Aeroméxico from Madrid 09:00 and Paris 11:55, Iberia from Madrid 13:00; summer 2026 schedules).
• Price with a checked bag: from about $1,400 USD return on one Iberia ticket via Madrid (seen in October 2026 for late August 2027, with the night in Madrid on the way home). Other days and airlines ran up to about $2,500, so book early.
• Via the US or Canada? We checked. From Monterrey every US or Canadian routing has two stops, costs more and needs a US visa. Madrid is still the best way.
• Book on iberia.com (Mexico site), aeromexico.com or airfrance.com. For the Madrid–Catania leg, ryanair.com.

Mexico City

Fly from MEX: AIFA (NLU) has no flights to Europe. About 16 to 18 hours door to door.

1. Aeroméxico nonstop to Rome, daily, then ITA to Catania, on one ticket. Book on aeromexico.com.
2. Iberia via Madrid: three nonstops a day, then on to Catania. Book on iberia.com.
3. Air France or Aeroméxico via Paris, then Air France to Catania.

• No forced night on the way home: the evening flights from Madrid (18:25, 23:55) and Rome (23:15) connect the same day.
• Price with a checked bag: about $1,430 USD return via Rome and $1,540 via Madrid (seen in October 2026 for late August 2027).

For every Mexican passport

Don’t route through New York, Newark or Canada unless you hold a valid US visa or Canadian eTA: you need one even to change planes. Stick to Madrid, Paris, Rome or Barcelona.

If you do have a US visa, you can get a Canadian eTA online, and from Mexico City the cheapest trip we found was Air Canada via Montreal: about $1,250⁠–⁠1,300 USD return with a bag.

• Los Angeles: ITA nonstop to Rome, then on to Catania; or Delta via New York (JFK has a nonstop to Catania). About 15 to 18 hours, $1,100⁠–⁠1,900 USD return with a bag. ITA’s Economy Light fare has no checked bag and its bag fee is steep: buy Economy Classic.
• San Francisco: ITA or United nonstop to Rome, United to Paris, or via New York. About 16 to 19 hours, $1,300⁠–⁠2,000 USD with a bag. United Basic Economy charges about $75 each way for the bag.
• Montreal: Air Canada flies nonstop to Catania (8h40, Tue, Thu, Sat in summer 2026). Late August 2027 isn’t on sale yet; if it doesn’t run, go via Rome on Air Canada or Air Transat. $1,100⁠–⁠2,000 USD with a bag.

Searching

Google Flights shows almost every airline, but it rarely finds the whole trip from the Americas to Catania. Search the long flight and the Sicily flight separately, then book each on the airline’s own site. ITA Matrix lets you force a routing (for example through Madrid on Iberia).

Nonstop, about 2h40, from all three Paris airports.

• Orly (ORY): Transavia and easyJet, several flights a day in summer. The easiest choice.
• Charles de Gaulle (CDG): Air France, until the end of September.
• Beauvais (BVA): Ryanair. Beauvais is a 1h15 coach ride from Paris.
• Transavia also flies Orly to Comiso about once a week in summer. Only worth it if the day suits you.

Price with a checked bag, late August: about €250⁠–⁠400 return on Transavia or easyJet; €355⁠–⁠600 on Air France Standard.

The catch: the cheapest fares on Transavia, easyJet and Ryanair include only a small bag under the seat, and Air France Light has no checked bag. On Transavia, the Plus fare is often cheaper than Basic plus a bag. Add the bag when you book; it costs more later and much more at the airport.

Turkish Airlines flies Istanbul Airport (IST) to Catania nonstop every day, in about 2h25.

In summer 2026 it alternated a morning flight (07:05, arriving 08:30) and an afternoon flight (16:50, arriving 18:20). If that holds, Saturday 28 August is a morning arrival. Fly home on Monday 6 September, after Sunday’s beach brunch; check whether Monday is a morning or an afternoon flight once the 2027 timetable is out.

• Sabiha Gökçen (SAW): Pegasus, AJet and SunExpress don’t fly to Sicily. Flying to Rome or Milan and changing onto a second airline takes longer, means two tickets, and usually isn’t cheaper once you add bags.
• Price with a checked bag, late August: about €350⁠–⁠550 return. Take the ExtraFly fare or above; the cheapest EcoFly fare has no checked bag.
• One flight a day, one plane. It will fill up in late August. Book as soon as your visa is in hand, or buy a changeable fare earlier.

• London: daily nonstops in about 3h from Gatwick (easyJet, and in summer British Airways and Wizz), Stansted (Ryanair, Jet2) and Luton (summer). None from Heathrow. About €250⁠–⁠420 return with a bag.
• Rome: around 110 flights a week to Catania on ITA, Ryanair and Aeroitalia, 1h15. The easiest connection in Europe.
• Milan: 140+ a week from Linate, Malpensa and Bergamo.
• Madrid: Ryanair all year, Iberia in summer.
• Athens: Aegean, in summer.
• Coming from elsewhere in Italy? A domestic flight to Catania has no passport control.

Turkish passports: start in February

With an ordinary (burgundy) Turkish passport and no valid Schengen visa or EU residence permit, you need an Italian Schengen visa. Getting an appointment is the hard part: Turkey files more Schengen applications than almost anywhere, and Istanbul slots are scarce.

• Where: Italian visas in Turkey are handled by iDATA (idata.com.tr), not VFS. Never pay a broker for a “guaranteed appointment”.
• When: you can apply up to six months before the trip, so from about late February 2027. Aim to submit in March to May, not June.
• Which office: the one for the city you’ve lived in for the last 90 days (Istanbul, Ankara or Izmir). Ankara and Izmir are said to have earlier slots.
• Cost: €90 visa fee plus about TRY 2,200 iDATA service fee (2026 prices).
• You’ll need, among other things: €30,000 travel medical insurance, a refundable booking in Ortigia for every night, a return flight reservation, three months of bank statements and payslips, an employer letter, and e-Devlet residence and family registry certificates. A copy of our invitation helps explain the trip but doesn’t replace the booking.
• Ask for multiple entry if you’ve used Schengen visas before; since 2025 Turkish applicants can step up to longer visas.
• You don’t need a new visa if you hold a valid Schengen visa that covers the dates, or a residence permit from a Schengen country. Green and grey passports are said to be exempt; confirm with the consulate.

To be confirmed We’ll check the Istanbul consulate’s exact document list in January and post it here.

Everyone else

• EU passports: nothing to do.
• Mexican, US, Canadian and UK passports: no visa for up to 90 days. Since April 2026 the EU registers fingerprints and a photo at your first Schengen border, so allow extra time in the queue. The separate online travel authorisation (ETIAS) isn’t live yet and has no start date; we’ll update this if that changes.
• Passport validity: at least three months beyond the day you leave the Schengen area, and issued within the last ten years.

Three ways, from cheapest to easiest:

1. Coach (Interbus). €6.20, about 70 minutes, every 15 to 30 minutes in the day. Buy at interbus.it or the desk in arrivals. On Saturdays and Sundays the last one leaves at 22:10. It stops at the bus station on the mainland, a 15 to 20 minute walk from the island.
2. Train. A shuttle bus takes you to the airport station, then about 12 direct trains a day to Syracuse (around an hour). Buy the ticket “Catania Aeroporto Fontanarossa Bus → Siracusa”, €10.20, which includes the shuttle.
3. Private transfer. Pre-booked, about €130⁠–⁠160 per car for up to three people, or €180⁠–⁠250 for a minivan of six to eight. About an hour, door to the edge of the old town. Bluekeys, Welcome Pickups or your hotel can book it.

Metered airport taxis have no fixed fare to Syracuse; agree the price before you get in. Uber exists but is thin on the ground.

Flying into Comiso instead? There’s no direct bus; a private transfer costs about €230 and takes 1h30.

Going home: allow 1h30 from Ortigia to Catania airport by car, more by coach.

You don’t need a car in Ortigia. The island is small, flat and closed to most traffic. Rent one for two or three days if you want to explore: Noto, the wild beaches at Vendicari, Marzamemi, Modica and Ragusa.

• Driving onto the island: cameras on both bridges fine you €70⁠–⁠160 per entry during restricted hours, which in summer cover most of the day and all evening. If your hotel is on the island, ask it to register your plate so you can drop your bags.
• Parking: Talete (covered, on the island’s edge) and Molo Sant’Antonio (just across the bridge), about €15 a day. Both have had closures and works, so check they’re open nearer the date. Hotel valets charge €25⁠–⁠30.
• Licences: drivers from Mexico, Turkey and the US need an International Driving Permit alongside their licence. Get it at home before you fly.
• Scooters: €40⁠–⁠60 a day for a 125cc, but a foreign car licence usually doesn’t cover one. Plan on a motorbike licence (A1 or higher), and ask the rental shop in writing.
• Etna and Taormina: go with a driver or a tour, not your own car.

1. Price it with a checked bag on every airline you compare.
2. One ticket or two? One ticket is safest: if the first flight is late, the airline rebooks you. Two separate tickets give more choice, but a missed connection is your problem. Leave at least three hours between them.
3. Check the airport. Catania (CTA) first, Comiso (CIY) second. Palermo is three hours away: only a backup.
4. Get travel insurance that names volcanic ash or airspace closure, with medical cover. If Etna closes Catania, the airline has to rebook you, but it owes no compensation, and a one-ticket trip is the one it must get you to Sicily on.
5. Book refundable or changeable fares if you’re waiting on a visa.
6. Send us your flight times once you’ve booked.