Municipal tourist information offices are located at the airport (tel. 091/591-698; Mon–Sat 8:30am–7:30pm) and in the city center at Piazza Castelnuovo 35 (tel. 091/6058351; Mon–Fri 8:30am–2pm and 2:30–6:30pm). Other city-run tourist offices are in Piazza Bellini (tel. 091/740-5908; Mon–Fri 8:30am–6:30pm and Sat 9:30am–6:30pm), and elsewhere around the city, including the port. The Micro-Tourist Information Centre Palermo at Via Torremuzza 15 in the Kalsa district (tel. 091/783-8185) is a for-fee service where you can rent bikes or arrange kayaking and hiking excursions. The office also arranges some offbeat tours, such as a tour of sites in Palermo where anti-Mafia activity has centered and a visit to artisan studios in the Kalsa district.
Safety
Palermo is home to some of the most skilled pickpockets on the continent. Police squads operate mobile centers throughout the town to help combat street crime, but your best defense is common sense. Don’t flaunt expensive jewelry, cameras, or wads of bills, and be especially careful in crowded street markets and on buses; routes to Monreale and Mondello, popular sightseeing destinations, are fertile ground for pickpockets. Thieves on scooters are adept at snatching jewelry and handbags. Do not carry a wallet anywhere accessible, even in an inside jacket pocket, where someone (or a pair, as is often the case) brushing against you can easily get to it. When traveling around Sicily, don’t leave documents, cash, credit cards, expensive electronics, and other valuables in an unattended car, even out of sight in the trunk. Stash them safely at your hotel or, if you’re on the move and stopping at an attraction en route, carry them with you.
City Layout
The capital of Sicily has an Old City that built up around the old harbor of La Cala, which expanded north toward Monte Pellegrino. The street plan of the Middle Ages is still in effect in the old parts of town, so it's easy to get lost.
Two main roads cut across medieval Palermo, the Old City, virtually quartering it. The first main road is Corso Vittorio Emanuele, which begins at La Cala, the ancient harbor, and cuts southwest to the landmark Palazzo dei Normanni and the Duomo (the Palermo cathedral). Corso Vittorio Emanuele runs east-west through this ancient maze of streets known to the Arabs of long ago. The other street splitting the town into two sections is Via Roma, which runs north and south.
The Old City is split into quadrants at the Quattro Canti, the virtual heart of Palermo. This is the point where Vittorio Emanuele crosses Via Maqueda, an artery beginning to the west of the rail depot, heading northwest. Running roughly parallel to Via Maqueda to its east is Via Roma, which heads north from Piazza Giulio Cesare. Via Roma and the much older Via Maqueda, virtually parallel streets, shoulder the burden of most of the inner city's heavy traffic.
La Kalsa, the medieval core of Palermo, lies to the southeast of the busy hub of Quattro Canti. The residential neighborhood of Albergheria is to the southwest of Quattro Canti. This is the center of the sprawling Ballarò market. Like La Kalsa, Albergheria was heavily bombed in World War II.
Via Cavour divides the medieval core to the south and the New City to the north. Despite its heavy traffic, the more modern section of Palermo is much easier to navigate. At the heart of this grid are the double squares of Piazza Castelnuovo and Piazza Ruggero Séttimo. Palermitans call this piazza maze Piazza Politeama (or just Politeama). At the double square, Via Ruggero Séttimo (a continuation of Via Maqueda) crosses Via Emerico Amari.
Heading northwest from Politeama is Palermo's swankiest street, Viale della Libertà, home to smart stores and tiny boutiques. It is also the street of many upmarket restaurants, bars, office blocks, and galleries. Via Libertà races its way to the southern tip of Parco della Favorita.
Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before planning your trip.
