Fewer crowds
January is quietest.
January, at 13% of the busiest month (August). Low season, under 35% of the peak: November to March.
A good place. At the right time.
Best time to visitSicily.
Plan your visit
Find your month.
What matters most?
Weather 50% · Crowds 30% · Cost 20%
Start with May.
#1 of 12 · Balanced · 8.0/10
Overnight stays are 54% of the busiest month.
Based on Sicilia regional averages.
- Afternoon high
- 76°F
- Sea temperature
- 65°F
- Crowds
- Moderate
The sea averages 65°F (19°C). Fresh: fine once you are in. Warm air does not always mean warm water.
Check what is open. The off-season flag comes from visitor patterns. Confirm accommodation, services and transport for your dates.
Price context. Historical regional hotel-price season: a little above usual. There is no room-rate baseline in euros.
Historical averages, not forecasts or live prices.
A regional guide. Figures cover Sicilia, including Palermo, Taormina, Syracuse and Mount Etna. Conditions vary within the region.
The whole calendar
Already have dates?
Explore your month, then weigh up the trade-offs.
May at a glance
Balanced match #1 · 8.0/10
Overnight stays are 54% of the busiest month.
The sea averages 65°F (19°C). Fresh: fine once you are in. Warm air does not always mean warm water.
Check what is open. The off-season flag comes from visitor patterns. Confirm accommodation, services and transport for your dates.
Read the May guide- Afternoon high
- 76°F
- Night low
- 56°F
- Sea temperature
- 65°F
- Rain days
- 4
- Daylight
- 14h 10m
- Crowds
- Moderate
All 12 months, on the same measures. Tap a heading to sort or a month to open its guide.Select a month to open its guide. Scroll the table for more detail.
| Rank | Month | Overall | Weather | Crowds | Cost | High | Low | Sea | Rain days | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | May | 8.0 | 9.6/10 Excellent | Moderate | Pricey | 76°F | 56°F | 65°F | 4 | 14h 10m |
| #2 | June | 7.9 | 10.0/10 Excellent | Busy | Pricey | 85°F | 64°F | 73°F | 2 | 14h 45m |
| #3 | October | 7.7 | 9.1/10 Excellent | Moderate | Pricey | 76°F | 61°F | 74°F | 7 | 11h 17m |
| #4 | September | 7.6 | 10.0/10 Excellent | Busy | Pricey | 84°F | 66°F | 79°F | 5 | 12h 29m |
| #5 | July | 7.5 | 9.9/10 Excellent | Peak | Pricey | 91°F | 69°F | 79°F | 0 | 14h 32m |
| #6 | April | 7.5 | 7.9/10 Very good | Moderate | Moderate | 69°F | 51°F | 61°F | 5 | 13h 08m |
| #7 | November | 7.5 | 6.8/10 Good | Low | Moderate | 67°F | 54°F | 69°F | 9 | 10h 11m |
| #8 | March | 7.2 | 6.0/10 Good | Low | Moderate | 63°F | 47°F | 59°F | 8 | 11h 53m |
| #9 | December | 7.1 | 5.5/10 Good | Low | Moderate | 61°F | 48°F | 64°F | 8 | 9h 35m |
| #10 | August | 7.0 | 9.8/10 Excellent | Peak | Pricey | 91°F | 70°F | 81°F | 1 | 13h 39m |
| #11 | February | 6.7 | 4.7/10 Fair | Low | Moderate | 59°F | 45°F | 59°F | 7 | 10h 47m |
| #12 | January | 6.6 | 4.6/10 Fair | Low | Moderate | 58°F | 45°F | 60°F | 9 | 9h 50m |
Overall follows your priorities. Crowds compare each month with this place's own year. Highs, lows and rain days are historical averages for 2011–2025.
A little perspective
The shape of the year.
Afternoon highNight low
Top balanced match · May
May
- High
- 76°F
- Low
- 56°F
- Rain
- 4 days
- Crowds
- Moderate
Some weather measures are unavailable. Gaps in the chart mean no data.
Off season can mean fewer services. Confirm what is open for your dates.
Sicilia regional averages · Historical patterns, not a forecast. Gaps mean no data. Crowds compare months within this region.
The busiest month records 7.5 times the overnight stays of the quietest.
Very-good-or-better weather scores: April to October. No month has a poor weather score.
Peak-season months: July to August. Low-season months: November to March.
The two busiest months account for 34% of annual overnight stays.
Events that move crowds and prices Ferragosto (15 August) and Italy's peak holiday weeks, typically 1–17 August 2027: Italians' own peak holiday: beaches packed and roads jammed; city shops and restaurants close around the 15th. Official site.
Hotel prices here run +15% against their yearly average in August and −18% in January, on the regional price index.
Before you go
Pack a little context.
Good weather
May, outside the busy season.
Very good or better April to October. June and September share the highest displayed weather score (10.0/10). Highest weather score outside the busy season: May.
Lower prices
January to March.
These are three lower-price months on the historical regional hotel index; there is no euro room-rate baseline.
School holidays
Summer break meets the busy season.
If your dates follow US school breaks: June falls in busy season; July and August fall in peak season. Spring break spans low season in March and moderate season in April.
Local families travel too: at least 30% of people in Italy live where schools are out on a typical day June to August and December. Italy's school calendar for September isn't fully published yet. (School holidays: OpenHolidays, ODbL, and official calendars.)
About these answers
These are historical seasonal patterns. Crowds compare a month with this place's own busiest month; they do not measure queues at individual sights. Weather answers use the displayed weather scores. These seasonal facts stay the same when you change your priorities; your Overall recommendation updates above. Prices retain the scope stated beside them. Full methodology.
Choose your season
The year, season by season.
Winter
Dec–Feb
Low season throughout.
58–61°FAfternoon highs
Spring
Mar–May
A quieter start, a busier finish.
March falls in low season; April and May fall in moderate season.
63–76°FAfternoon highs
Summer
Jun–Aug
A busy season for visitors.
June falls in busy season; July and August fall in peak season.
85–91°FAfternoon highs
Autumn
Sep–Nov
A busier start, a quieter finish.
September falls in busy season; October falls in moderate season; November falls in low season.
67–84°FAfternoon highs
Ranges span monthly average afternoon highs, not daily extremes. Conditions and seasonal openings vary within Sicily.
How we know
The default Balanced Overall weighs weather 50%, crowds 30% and cost 20%. Your priority choice updates the Overall, month ranks and recommendation. While your weather weight is at least 40%, Overall cannot exceed weather by more than 2. Close scores can describe different trip experiences. How the scores work.
| Statistical region | ITG1 · Sicilia |
| Region type | Beach (Eurostat NUTS3 typologies weighted by population: urban 69%, coastal 100%, mountain 77%; median ground height 383 m) |
| Population used | 4.8 million (1 January 2025) |
| Crowd reference years | 2024–2025 average |
| How our weather was checked | Official climate averages for Catania Sigonella and Palermo Boccadifalco from the national weather service, every month: afternoon highs typically within 1°F (0.7°C), night lows within 2°F (1.1°C). |
| Climate index | HCI:Beach, observed climatology over 15 years (2011–2025) |
| Hotel occupancy (annual) | 56% |
| Accommodation mix | 62% hotels, 3% camping |
| Hotel rates | ISTAT, NIC consumer price index for accommodation services (ECOICOP 112), by region |
| Country price level (restaurants & hotels, EU27 = 100) | 107 |
| Daylight latitude | 37.59° N |
Crowds: Eurostat nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments by month and NUTS 2 region, per 1,000 inhabitants, divided by days in the month. "Season here" is the month's figure as a share of this region's busiest month. "Visitors" ranks overnight visitors per resident against all Europe's regions that month. Weather: Holiday Climate Index (Scott et al. 2016; Rutty et al. 2020) computed from ERA5 reanalysis with daily highs, night lows and rain days corrected from open national weather-service station records and population-weighted to the region. Prices are regional where the page says so (ISTAT, NIC consumer price index for accommodation services (ECOICOP 112), by region), otherwise national. Hand-written notes are marked and nothing depends on them. Full method · this region's data.