*Arches of Alcantara*
A Sicilian Farm Stay - Hosted by American Expats Retired in Sicily
A cozy Sicilian farmstay bed & breakfast in the countryside near Taormina, Sicily, Italy
On-site English-speaking hosts to assist you in every way
Close to the lovely beaches of Giardini Naxos, the Alcantara Gorge, Mt. Etna, Wineries, the Greek Theater, Isola Bella,
shopping and restaurants

Your on-site American expat hosts, Barbie and Ken (not kidding). We're here to help however we can.

We’re expats who were born and raised in the United States. I acquired Italian citizenship through ancestry. After that, my husband was able to get dual citizenship based on marriage. In 2014 we visited Sicily for the first time and managed to locate many cousins I never knew I had. They were so warm and welcoming. It was a life-changing experience for us. We returned every year after that and fell in love with the people, the culture, the climate, and oh yes. . . the food!

Eventually, we purchased a small farm and in 2020 we retired from our American jobs, sold nearly everything, and after tearful goodbyes to friends and family, we moved to Sicily to begin a new life in the old country where my grandparents were born.

Prior to moving to Sicily, we were Airbnb hosts in Oregon for five years, maintaining a Superhost status the entire time. The hosting experience was great fun for us and gave us plenty of experience for doing things right in Sicily when we launched our Sicilian Farmstay Bed and Breakfast. Our native language is English, but we can speak a bit of Italian too.

The covers of two books written by Barbara Palermo about her experience gaining Italian citizenship by descent and moving to Sicily to start a Sicilian Farmstay Bed and Breakfast in Taormina.

If you are interested in learning how we acquired dual citizenship and moved to Italy, read my books!

“Over the Sicilian Moon” describes the process of getting Italian citizenship, locating and meeting relatives in Sicily, making annual trips to the island, getting an Italian mortgage, buying a small farm, and starting renovations. And we did it all while still living in the United States with a five-year plan to permanently move to Italy. The book follows our journey until we were finally able to move abroad…during a pandemic.

“Retired in Sicily” describes what happened next. Learn what it’s really like to live in Sicily, including establishing residency, making friends, adopting animals, using the public healthcare system, voting, paying taxes, purchasing vehicles and getting an Italian driver’s license, navigating a new language and culture, dealing with an erupting volcano and other natural disasters, and much more.

Both books are available on Amazon in paperback or kindle. You can also read more on our Press and Books page.

Your American hosts, Barbie and Ken, (I’m not kidding!). We live on-site and are here to assist you however we can.