I spent 9 days touring Sicily. There are 4 things I'll do differently next time I visit.

I went to Sicily for the first time last year, and I'd do a few things differently on my next visit to make my trip even better.

Kristine Solomon

• In October, I spent nine days traveling from eastern to western Sicily, tracing my family's roots.
• I had a great time, but rain and transportation issues were just a few of the hurdles I encountered.
• On my next trip, I'll visit during another season and spend less time traveling around the island.

As the great-granddaughter of Sicilian immigrants, I'd always dreamed of exploring my family's homeland.

Last year, I finally took the plunge and spent nine days tracing my roots across Sicily from Catania to Palermo, my great-grandfather's birthplace.

Despite my limited timeframe, I got a great sense of Sicily's landscape, rhythms, and personality, and I'm already planning to return.

However, there are a few things I'll do differently.

For starters, I'll visit during a different season

There were dark clouds over Ortigia, too.

Kristine Solomon

I booked my trip for the first week of October, and when I noticed rain in the forecast every day, I brushed it off. How accurate are weather forecasts anyway?

Apparently, they're pretty accurate. It rained about half of the time I was there.

The unpredictable weather put a dark cloud (literally) over my day trip to Taormina and brought a damp chill to my beach weekend in charming Cefalù.

Although most showers passed within a few hours, one torrential downpour completely wiped out my half-day in Noto, a beloved Baroque town. Still, I found my silver lining at a wine bar where I had a glass of Mt. Etna Rosso and one of the best meat-and-cheese boards of my life.

I knew Sicily had wet winters (typically beginning in November), but after my experience, I won't risk traveling so close to that season again.

Tackling both coasts in one trip was too much, so next time, I'll only visit one side of the island

When planning my trip, I wasn't sure whether I should choose one coast to explore or attempt to see the whole island. Unfortunately, my online research didn't help — travelers were divided.

So, I based myself in Catania in the east and Palermo in the west, taking day trips from each city. However, all of my travels meant I was on the road more often than I wanted to be.

Next time, I'd like to dig deeper into the west side, which felt like it had a lighter, beach-town atmosphere.

However, I'll choose multiple cities to stay in, instead of just one

In addition to Palermo, I'll choose two or three other cities to use as home bases.

Sean Pavone/Shutterstock

Even though I plan to stick to one coast during my next visit, I'll still have multiple bases. The difference is that I'll choose them more strategically.

Last time, booking a room in Palermo and taking day trips from there made sense in theory. But in practice, it was exhausting and resulted in a lot of wasted time.

In the future, I'll choose two or three other cities, in addition to Palermo, to use as hubs. This will ensure I'm closer to all the places I want to see, from San Vito Lo Capo to Favignana.

I'll book bus and train tickets in advance — and have a backup plan

During my visit, I decided to rely on Sicily's public transportation system.

One day, I arrived at Palermo Centrale 20 minutes early, only to find my train had already sold out. The next departure was in three hours, so I had to scrap my day trip, which threw my whole itinerary off.

Earlier in the week, a nationwide, 24-hour transit strike also left me stranded. I thought my Taormina plans were ruined until I found five beach-bound strangers to share a taxi with.

Next time, I'll buy tickets at least a day in advance to avoid sell-outs, start my days earlier in case of delays, and make a plan B for each day, because you just never know what could happen.

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