While driving in regional Sicily is often the best way to move around it can leave you a shaking mess. Italians drive fast, parking is not for the faint hearted and a squeezing experience and you have to be on the ball with the local lingo to work out the parking zones and ticket process. Still if you can master all this it will save you a lot of time avoiding the somewhat unreliable public transport.

Driving is always best avoided in big cities like Catania, Palermo and Messina. If you are in these places, find a parking garage to leave your car and head out on foot and public transport. If you are driving through a large centre the busiest times on the road are usually 8-9am and 1-2pm particularly on week days, and Saturday evenings from 7-9pm.

If you're determined to drive in Sicily do note that your driving license should be honoured by rental agencies. It is wise to get an international driving permit just in case or if you plan to use private cars. Cars can be rented almost anywhere but for tourists you're best to try at airports and in major towns where you will find Avis, Hertz, Europcar and other major agencies. You must be 21 years to rent a car and you will require a credit card.

Driving in Sicily is on the right. The speed limits are a rather fast 130km/hr on highways, 110km/hr on state and provincial roads, 90km/hr on secondary and local roads and 50km/hr in urban areas. Drink driving is fined heavily, which may surprise you despite the amount of lunch and dinner time drinking that goes on. Police can levy on-the-spot fines for speeding. Seat belts and children’s car seats are compulsory.

Parking varies from town to town but is usually restricted in the narrow streets of historic centres to local vehicles. Areas that are signposted Zona Disco (disk zone) allow free parking for limited periods but you must display your time of arrival on a disk or a piece of paper. Parcometro is common in the cities with machines that provide a stamped ticket you leave on the dashboard. If in doubt ask locals what to do. Similarly some petrol stations are automated for bills or credit cards.

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