I’m excited to invite you to join me in Sicily in 2027 to explore all the island has to offer! On my last group trip to Italy, we explored some of the country’s best culinary and historical sights, and this time we’re doing it again in Sicily. Think rocky cliffs along the sea, golden durum flour, wheat fields, thick focaccia, cannoli, and wood-fired baking. I’d love to have you along!
Where: Sicily, Italy
When: September 18–24, 2027 · 7 days, 6 nights
With: Maurizio Leo and Matt Rodbard of TASTE
Limited to 25 travelers.
Please click above to join the waitlist—travelers do sometimes cancel!
The Trip
This is the part of Sicily most tours skip. We’re going to the source—the mills, the bakeries, the wheat fields—and spending a week tracing how the island turns ancient grain into some of the most distinctive bread in the Mediterranean.
I’m co-hosting with my pal Matt Rodbard, editor-in-chief of TASTE, and the week is built around great food and small-group access to the people doing this work: an afternoon with Filippo Drago at his mill in Castelvetrano, a morning baking sfincione on a working estate, pane nero baked in a wood-fired oven. We’ll eat extraordinarily well along the way (as we always do on my trips!)—local made couscous in Trapani, busiate pasta with fresh pesto, granita, and brioche for breakfast.
The backbone of the trip is around bread and grain, but it doesn’t mean we can’t explore all the delicious things the island has to offer, too, right?
This trip was built around places I’d want to see and all related to the incredible food Sicily has to offer. And all along the way, we’ll have time to see the sights, learn the history, and talk about sourdough starters, mixing techniques, fermentation, and baking.
Highlights
- Travel with Maurizio Leo, founder of The Perfect Loaf, and TASTE editor-in-chief Matt Rodbard, for a week of bread-led conversations at curated stops across western Sicily.
- Bake sfincione, Palermo’s iconic thick focaccia, from scratch at Anna Tasca Lanza, one of Sicily’s most celebrated food institutions.
- Hand-roll cannoli and assemble cassata in a medieval hill town, learning the convent pastry tradition behind Sicily’s most iconic sweets.
- Spend an afternoon with Filippo Drago at Molini del Ponte, exploring ancient Sicilian wheats like Tumminia, Russello, and Perciasacchi. Then, taste pane nero pulled from a wood-fired oven at a traditional Castelvetrano bakery.
- Eat through Palermo’s three legendary street markets, hand-roll Trapani-style couscous in the Marsala countryside, and pair lunch with fortified wines at the historic Florio winery.
- Discussions led by Maurizio on bringing Sicily home—applying ancient grains, sourdough fermentation, and traditional techniques to your own kitchen.
Our Itinerary
Day 1 — Saturday, September 18: Welcome to Palermo
Arrive independently in Palermo and ease into Sicily’s capital with an afternoon walking tour through the historic center, where layers of Arab, Norman, and Baroque history set the stage for the week ahead.
Gather at the hotel terrace for a relaxed welcome reception before heading out on foot for dinner at a beloved local restaurant; typical seasonal dishes include pasta con le sarde and eggplant caponata. A convivial first evening to meet fellow travelers, hosts, and savor Palermo’s unmistakable energy.
Meals: Dinner · Stay: Eurostars Centrale Palace
Day 2 — Sunday, September 19: From Market to Cheese Tasting
Begin the day immersed in Palermo’s legendary street food culture with a guided walk through the historic markets of Vucciria, Ballarò, and Il Capo, alive with vendors, color, and tradition. Sample classic snacks like panelle (crispy chickpea fritters) and crocchè (golden potato croquettes). Step inside the former convent of Santa Caterina to taste exquisite marzipan fruit and time-honored convent sweets. Lunch is pure Palermo: pane ca’ meusa, a sesame roll filled with veal, served schietto (plain) or maritato (with ricotta and caciocavallo).
In the afternoon, journey into the countryside to a cheese producer for a visit and tasting, before returning to the center and a free evening.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch · Stay: Eurostars Centrale Palace
Day 3 — Monday, September 20: Sfincione, Sicily’s Bread of Place
Depart Palermo for the rural heart of Sicily and Anna Tasca Lanza, one of the island’s most revered centers of food culture, set within a working agricultural estate at Tenuta Regaleali. After a welcome and a guided walk through the farm—introducing the estate’s olives, grains, vegetables, and preserves—dive into a hands-on, bread-focused cooking class centered on sfincione, Palermo’s iconic thick, square focaccia.
Working step by step with the school’s chefs and Maurizio, learn how dough, fermentation, and local wheat come together, then layer the bread with slow-cooked onions, tomatoes, anchovies, oregano, and cheese, while preparing classic caponata.
The morning culminates in a relaxed four-course lunch and discussion, paired with wines from Tasca d’Almerita. Return to Palermo mid-afternoon for free time and an evening aperitivo.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch · Stay: Eurostars Centrale Palace
Day 4 — Tuesday, September 21: Erice and Its Pastries
Check out and travel west to Erice, the medieval hill town perched dramatically above Trapani, long celebrated for its convent-born pastry traditions. Late morning, step into the kitchen of a local pastry legend for a hands-on workshop devoted to cannoli and cassata—learning the techniques, ingredients, and deep-rooted monastic history behind these iconic sweets. Of course, we’ll be tasting the results all along the way.
Lunch follows at a relaxed trattoria, then a gelato stop and free time to wander Erice’s cobbled streets. Arrive in Trapani in the late afternoon and check in. Optional sunset drink at the rooftop bar.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch · Stay: Palazzo Gatto
Day 5 — Wednesday, September 22: From Field to Flour
Begin in the Marsala countryside with a hands-on Trapani-style couscous cooking class, where semolina takes center stage—rolled, steamed, and transformed into couscous paired with seafood, fresh busiate pasta, and a simple dessert, all shared after the lesson.
In the afternoon, step into Sicily’s grain heritage at Molini del Ponte, guided by Filippo Drago, the leading advocate for ancient Sicilian wheat varieties. Learn how stone milling preserves flavor, nutrition, and terroir, and taste breads made from these flours, including Pane Nero di Castelvetrano, paired with Nocellara del Belice olive oil, Trapani sea salt, and wild oregano. Continue to a traditional bakery to see how these traditions live on today.
The day closes with a discussion led by Maurizio on how everything you’ve seen—the grains, the milling, the fermentation—translates back to your own oven at home. Then a special group dinner in Trapani, where grain and sea meet once more.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner · Stay: Palazzo Gatto
Day 6 — Thursday, September 23: Salt, Sea & Fortified Wine
Begin the morning the Sicilian way with a short walk to a local café for brioche col tuppo e granita. From there, head south to the historic Florio winery in Marsala for a guided visit of its atmospheric aging cellars, followed by a private tasting lunch with chef-crafted dishes paired with Marsala wines from Vergine Riserva to Superiore Riserva.
In the afternoon, continue to Nubia to explore the world-famous Saline di Nubia, where sea, sun, and wind have shaped Sicily’s salt pans for centuries, with a hands-on salt-flavoring workshop. Return to Trapani for free time, then a farewell dinner and a final toast to western Sicily.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner · Stay: Palazzo Gatto
Day 7 — Friday, September 24: Arrivederci
Morning check-out, final goodbyes, and group transfer to Palermo Airport.
Meals: Breakfast
Where You’ll Stay
Eurostars Centrale Palace — Palermo (3 nights). A 4-star hotel in an elegant 18th-century palazzo in the heart of Palermo, steps from Via Maqueda and the major landmarks. Baroque and neoclassical décor, a panoramic restaurant, fitness center, sauna, and air-conditioned rooms.
Palazzo Gatto Art Hotel & Spa — Trapani (3 nights). A boutique hotel in a restored 18th-century palazzo in central Trapani, blending historic architecture with contemporary Sicilian design. Modern spa, rooftop jacuzzi with city views, wine lounge, and stylish rooms.
Price
Double occupancy: $8,990 per person
Single occupancy: $10,070 per person
Deposit: $750 per person
The trip is all-inclusive except airfare.
Limited to 25 travelers.
Please click above to join the waitlist—travelers do sometimes cancel!
💬 Have a question about the trip? Contact Academic Travels:
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 1-877-298-9677
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Check Out Last Year’s Trip
In 2025, I led two fantastic groups of bread-hungry travelers to northern Italy for the best food, sights, and, well, more food.
Check out the highlights from last year’s trip to get an idea of what’s in store for 2027.
I hope to see you in Italy!
