Giro d'Italia "Getaway" - Sicily

We'll greet you at Catania airport on the east coast of the beautiful island of Sicily, and transport you to our luxury 4* hotel in the countryside - the Borgo Pantano - close to the historic city of Syracuse. Our mechanic will help you unpack and build your bike, we'll hand out the team kit, and make final preparations before tomorrow's ride. After discussing the tour's programme, the team will enjoy a relaxed stroll in the centre of the 2,700-year-old Syracuse, a UNESCO World Heritage site, birthplace of Archimedes, and one of the great cities in ancient Greece. We'll savour dinner in one of the excellent restaurants specialising in local Sicilian dishes. This assumes we can tear ourselves away from the beautiful pool at our spa hotel.

After a delicious breakfast at our hotel, we'll drive to our start point at Palazzo Acreide, 81km from the finish in Caltagirone. We'll then start our ride along the Giro course, through the magnificent, warm Sicilian countryside, encouraged on by the locals who have decorated their towns in pink to celebrate the race. It's a hilly route, so we'll be taking it easy, and our vans will be there to support us at all times. The finish town of Caltagirone is famous for its ancient pottery and terra-cotta, and for its beautiful Baroque architecture following the earthquake in 1693 which destroyed much of the city. Caltagirone is now a UNESCO World Heritage site. Following a rest and refreshment, we'll wander the streets of Caltagirone before watching the race finish, the first stage on Italian soil. We'll then drive to our hotel in Agrigento, where we'll enjoy our well deserved dinner.

We'll spend a relaxed morning exploring the ruins in the Valley of the Temples, one of the great historic sites in Sicily. These superbly preserved ancient Greek temples are simply magnificent, and the Valley is the largest archaeological site in the world, also UNESCO protected. After an early lunch, we'll then join the Giro race preparations and meet with some of the pros before they embark on stage 5, starting at 1:20pm. As they head west along the coast, we'll drive north-east to the start town of stage 6 - Caltanissetta - and then cycle the first 71km of tomorrow's stage. This takes us to another stunning historic site, the remains of a luxury Roman villa, the Villa Romana del Casale. We'll then drive to one of our favourite hotels in Sicily at the base of Mt Etna, Casa la Carrubbazza, for one of the best Italian meals you will ever have.

The final and best day, today's goal is to climb Mt Etna, the largest active volcano in Europe. Have you ever cycled up an active volcano before? Here's your chance. The Giro ascended Mt Etna in 2017, and it proved such a success that the organisers are repeating the experience ... but this time up the southern road. You have a choice of riding 30km from our hotel to the town of Paterno at the base of Etna, or if you prefer to save your energy we'll drive you there. Our ascent then starts. From Paterno, the 24km / 1,500m ascent of Etna is a truly unique experience, with solidified black lava flows a key feature towards the top. This is the first category 1 mountain of the 2018 Giro, so we'll be staying at the top to watch the pros as they ascend. We will transport you to Catania airport for your trip home or to your hotel if you wish to stay longer and enjoy Sicily!