Cheap things to do in Palermo
Street food, free baroque, and a city that rewards slow walkers with empty pockets.
This is a plan for someone who eats at plastic tables, pays nothing at the door when possible, and considers a spleen sandwich a cultural experience. You will cover the old city on foot, take one bus out to Monreale, and come home full every night having spent very little. No rooftop bars, no tasting menus, no concierge.
Day 1: Vucciria and the Kalsa
Start with cannoli and baroque geometry at Quattro Canti, then lose the afternoon inside Vucciria market before finishing with a pani ca meusa at Franco u Vastiddaru as the Kalsa cools down.
- 9:30 AM
Pasticceria Costa
Via Maqueda pastry shop by Quattro Canti; a cannolo filled to order for a couple of euros.
Map - 10:15 AM
Quattro Canti
Baroque octagonal crossroads dividing four historic quarters, heart of Palermo's street grid.
Map - 12:30 PM
Vecchia Trattoria da Totò
No-frills trattoria inside Vucciria, order the pasta c'anciova e muddica and eat like a local for a few euros.
Map - 2:15 PM
Vucciria Market
What's left of Palermo's oldest market: a few stalls by day, street grills and cheap beer after dark.
Map - 7:30 PM
Franco u' Vastiddaru
Old-school pani ca' meusa and panelle, the benchmark cheap bite in the Kalsa, eat at the outdoor tables.
Map
Day 2: Normans, monks and street spleen
A morning of Byzantine gold inside the Cappella Palatina, an afternoon among Palermo's mummified dead, and a cheap pizza to close out the day at Osteria da Carlo.
- 9:30 AM
Caffetteria del Corso
Start the day Sicilian-style with an outstanding granita, sweet, cold, and cheap.
Map - 10:15 AM
Palazzo dei Normanni
Norman Palace housing the Cappella Palatina, book online and arrive at first entry to beat the crowds.
Map - 12:30 PM
Nino u' Ballerino
Pani ca' meusa institution, get the spleen sandwich with lemon, a Palermo street-food rite of passage.
Map - 3:00 PM
Capuchin Catacombs
8,000 mummified Palermitans arranged by profession, eerie, unique, and only a few euros.
Map - 7:30 PM
Osteria da Carlo
Cheap neighbourhood pizzeria by the Palazzo d'Orléans gardens; a margherita and a beer for very little.
Map
Day 3: Monreale, Ballarò and Mondello
Monreale Cathedral in the morning, street food at Ballarò, an afternoon on Mondello beach and a seafood dinner at Trattoria da Calogero.
- 9:30 AM
Monreale Cathedral
Free to enter the gold-mosaic nave; the cloister and roof terraces cost a few euros and are worth it.
Map - 12:30 PM
Ballarò Market
Arancine, panelle and sfincione from the market stalls for a few euros; liveliest before mid-afternoon.
Map - 3:00 PM
Mondello Beach
The 806 city bus from Politeama runs to the beach; swim if it's warm or walk the long curve of sand.
Map - 7:30 PM
Trattoria da Calogero
Fried calamari and a plate of pasta at a lively seafood trattoria off the Mondello square; closed Wednesdays.
Map
Where to stay
A Casa di Amici
A single dollar sign, a central location near the old quarters, and a name that actually delivers on its promise: it feels like staying with someone who lives here.
Balarm Hostel
The cheapest bed closest to the Kalsa and Vucciria, which means you roll out the door straight into the plan.
Make Palermo your trip
Swearby drafts the days from places people swear by. Swap any stop, then invite the crew by text, even friends without the app. Vote on dates, track costs as you go, and everyone gets one number at the end.
Get Swearby on the App StoreBefore you go
Book ahead
- Cappella Palatina: a few days ahead
- Palazzo dei Normanni: a few days ahead
- Streaty Original Street Food Tour: a few days ahead
- Teatro Massimo: weeks ahead
- No Mafia Walking Tour: a few days ahead
- Sicilian Cooking Class in Palermo: a few days ahead
Skip these
- Tourist menu restaurants with touts near Quattro Canti on Via Maqueda and Corso Vittorio Emanuele.
- Mondello beach in August and on summer Sundays, when the free beach is a sliver and lidos charge peak prices.
- The hop on hop off bus for the centre, and horse carriages or tuk tuks without a full price agreed in writing.
- Catania or Etna as a day trip from Palermo, both deserve their own stay.
The full Palermo travel guide: when to go, safety, getting around