I arrived in Sicily on a cheap flight from Malta.

That is the honest version of how this trip started — not a carefully planned grand tour of southern Italy, but a budget airline alert and a two-day window. Malta to Catania, €30 each way, grab a bus to Taormina, figure out the rest later. This is how slow travel actually works when you are watching prices across thirty open tabs.

What I did not expect was that those two days would produce some of the most memorable photographs of my Italy trip — and that I would end up returning to the same views repeatedly, at different hours, unable to quite leave.

Taormina does that. It is the kind of place that earns its reputation completely — and it earned it long before The White Lotus put it on every streaming platform and Instagram feed. I arrived before the second season aired, which I mention only because it is relevant: what I found was the real thing, not a set.

Quick Facts

Getting to Taormina

Taormina has no airport. The nearest is Catania Fontanarossa, about 55 kilometres south. From there, Interbus runs direct coaches to Taormina-Giardini station several times a day — the journey takes around 1.5 hours and costs a few euros. Taxis and private transfers are available but significantly more expensive.

From Messina in the north, trains and buses both run regularly and take around 45 minutes. If you are coming from mainland Italy by ferry, Messina is your landing point and Taormina is a short connection away.

One thing to know: Taormina’s train station — Taormina-Giardini — sits at sea level at the bottom of the hill. The town itself is 250 metres up. From the station, you take a local bus up the switchback road (runs frequently, costs almost nothing) or a taxi. Do not attempt to walk up with luggage unless you are very fit and have very little luggage.

I came from Malta, which gave me a slightly unusual entry point — Catania airport, then the Interbus straight to Taormina. The bus ride along the Ionian coast with the sea on one side and the Sicilian hills on the other was already worth the trip.

Where to Stay in Taormina

Taormina splits into two zones: in town (on the hill, close to everything) and by the beach (at sea level, near Mazzarò and Isola Bella). Staying in town means walking to everything; staying by the beach means using the cable car to get up to town.

For a first visit, I recommend staying in town. The views from the hillside at dusk are part of the experience, and you lose them if you are down at sea level.

The road below Taormina, where cliffside hotels compete for the best view of Etna

The cliffside hotels between town and beach level are in a category of their own — infinity pools suspended above the Ionian Sea with Mount Etna filling the horizon. They are not cheap, but the view alone justifies looking.

Recommended hotels:

Luxury:

Mid-range:

• Hotel Villa Ducale — Boutique hotel with panoramic terrace views over the Ionian, strong reviews, well-priced for what you get.
• Hotel Villa Belvedere — Family-run, garden with pool, good central location, reliable across the years.
• Palazzo Vecchio Taormina — Central, rooftop bar with Etna views, well-located for Corso Umberto.
• Jonic Hotel Mazzarò — Good value beachside option at Mazzarò, close to Isola Bella.

Budget:

• Hotel Condor — Honest, clean, well-located, and significantly cheaper than its neighbours. The sensible choice if you are watching your spending.
• Hotel Baia Azzurra — Simple seafront option in the Mazzarò area, good for those prioritising beach access over town proximity.

Search for more options:

Corso Umberto — The Main Street

Every visit to Taormina passes through Corso Umberto I, the pedestrianised main street that runs the length of the old town from Porta Catania in the south to Porta Messina in the north. It is lined with boutiques, cafes, gelaterias, restaurants, and churches — and during the day it fills steadily with visitors from the cruise ships anchored in the bay below.

Walk it at least twice: once during the day to get your bearings, and once in the evening when the cruise ship crowds have gone and the light changes. The evening version is quieter and more itself.

Along the way you will pass Piazza IX Aprile — a wide terrace that opens suddenly to reveal views across the Ionian bay and Mount Etna in one uninterrupted sweep. It is the best viewpoint on the main street and the place most people stop longest. The clock tower at one end dates from the 17th century; the Church of San Giuseppe on the square is small, quiet, and worth a few minutes inside. Come here at sunset when the light hits the sea and the mountain simultaneously — it is one of the most effortless photographs in Taormina.

Teatro Antico di Taormina

Through the arches – 2,300 years of history with a sea view

The Teatro Antico is the reason most people come to Taormina, and it earns its status completely. Built by the Greeks in the 3rd century BC and substantially rebuilt by the Romans, it sits on the hillside with the Ionian Sea in one direction and Mount Etna in the other — a combination that makes it one of the most dramatically sited ancient theatres anywhere in the world.

The Teatro Antico still drawing a crowd after 2,300 years

What strikes you first is not the ruins themselves but the view through them. Standing in the seating bowl and looking toward the stage, the arched openings in the Roman stage wall frame the sea beyond — a piece of framing so perfect it feels almost deliberate, as if the Romans understood exactly what they were doing. They probably did.

Every doorway in the Teatro Antico frames something worth stopping for

The theatre is still used for performances — the Taormina Film Festival takes place here each July, and concerts run through the summer season. If you visit during performance season, it is worth checking whether there is an evening show. Watching anything in this space, with the Sicilian sky above and the sea below, would be worth it regardless of what was on stage.

Book your ticket in advance to avoid queues — entry costs around €13 and the skip-the-line difference in wait time is significant:

→ Ancient Theater of Taormina ticket with audio guide

Practical tips for the Teatro Antico:

• Opening hours vary by season — check before visiting
• The audio guide is genuinely useful here given how much history overlaps in the site
• Go early morning or late afternoon for the best light and thinner crowds
• The view from the upper seating tiers toward Mount Etna is worth the climb up the steps

Isola Bella

Isola Bella — the Pearl of the Mediterranean, seen from above

Isola Bella is the small wooded island connected to the mainland by a narrow sandy path, sitting in the bay directly below Taormina. From above, from the Teatro Antico or from Castelmola, it looks almost impossibly picturesque: a green rocky island with turquoise water on both sides, flanked by two curved beaches.

One detail worth knowing: the sandy path connecting Isola Bella to the mainland disappears at high tide, turning the island into a true island. Visit at low tide to walk across — check the tide schedule before heading down. The water on both sides of the path is clear and swimmable, though the rocks require shoes rather than bare feet. The nature reserve on the island itself is a protected area — walking paths are marked and the vegetation is left deliberately wild. Allow 30–45 minutes for a proper circuit of the island.

At sea level it is somewhat busier, particularly in summer when the beaches fill and the water gets crowded with swimmers. The nature reserve on the island itself is worth a short walk. The water is excellent.

The cable car from Taormina town down to Mazzarò beach runs regularly and is the easiest way to reach the area – a few minutes’ ride down the cliff face with views opening over the bay as you descend.

For a different perspective entirely, the boat tours around Isola Bella and into the sea caves along the coast are excellent and not expensive:

→ Giardini Naxos Half-Day Boat Tour with Aperitif

→ Naxos: Isola Bella, Blue Grotto & Mazzarò Bay Boat Tour

Giardini Naxos — The Beach Below

Giardini Naxos – the beach below the cliff that Taormina sits on

Giardini Naxos sits at the bottom of the hill that Taormina occupies — a seaside town in its own right, with a long sandy beach, a working harbour, and a seafront promenade lined with restaurants. It is also the site of the first Greek settlement in Sicily, making it historically significant in ways that the beach crowds rarely suggest.

From the beach at Giardini Naxos, looking back up at the hillside, you can make out Taormina’s old town clinging to the rock face and — if you know where to look — the tiny cluster of houses that is Castelmola higher still. The view in the other direction is the open Ionian, and on clear days you can see the Italian mainland across the Strait of Messina.

Giardini Naxos is significantly less expensive than Taormina for food, accommodation, and general living. If budget is a concern, staying here and bussing up to Taormina each day is a sensible strategy.

Castelmola — The Village Above Taormina

The view from Castelmola — Taormina spread below, the Ionian stretching to the horizon

Castelmola sits 500 metres above sea level on the peak behind Taormina — about 4 kilometres away and several hundred metres higher. It is a medieval hilltop village of narrow alleys, old stone buildings, and views that stop you mid-sentence.

I spent an afternoon and an entire evening here. The afternoon was for the village and the light; the evening was for the sunset, which I had not planned for and could not leave.

Taormina below, Etna above — the view that makes Castelmola worth the climb

The views from Castelmola look in every direction simultaneously. Turn one way and you see Taormina’s rooftops and Isola Bella and the full sweep of the Ionian coast down to Giardini Naxos. Turn the other way and Mount Etna fills the horizon — Sicily’s volcano, always present, always watching.

A side street in Castelmola — quieter than Taormina, more itself

The village itself is small enough to explore in an hour. The streets are steep and narrow — proper Sicilian lanes, not the boutique-lined pedestrian street of Taormina below. There are a handful of bars and restaurants, a ruined castle at the very top, and the famous Bar Turrisi, known since the 1940s for its almond wine and its eccentric interior.

The lanes of Castelmola go up — always up

The almond wine, vino alla mandorla is a local speciality. It is dry white wine infused with bitter almonds, orange peel, and herbs. It tastes exactly as unusual as that sounds, and I mean that as a recommendation.

The Sunset from Castelmola

Dusk from Castelmola — the best reason to stay past sunset

I did not intend to stay for the sunset. I had been walking the village since mid-afternoon and was thinking about the bus back down to Taormina when the light started to change.

The sky went from blue to pink to a deep mauve in about twenty minutes, and the sea below turned the same colour as the sky. Taormina’s rooftops glowed briefly gold. Isola Bella became a dark shape against the silver water.

Mount Etna at sunset seen from Castelmola, it looks exactly like what it is

And then I turned around and Mount Etna was a perfect black silhouette against an orange and gold horizon, and I understood why people talk about this view the way they do.

Stay for the sunset. It is the best thing about Castelmola, and Castelmola is already very good.

Getting to Castelmola: The Interbus runs from Taormina’s bus station several times a day — about 20 minutes, inexpensive. Alternatively, if you are coming from Messina, the Taormina and Castelmola Tour from Messina combines both in a single day trip with transport included.

Food and Drink in Taormina

Pistachio and chocolate at Gelatomania — the essential Taormina stop

Sicily takes food seriously, and Taormina, despite being a tourist town delivers on its Sicilian obligations.

The gelato is exceptional. Pistachio gelato made from Bronte pistachios (grown on the slopes of Mount Etna) is a specifically Sicilian thing, and it tastes different here from anywhere else you have had it. Gelatomania on Corso Umberto is the obvious stop.

A Sicilian cannolo, one of the things you eat here that you cannot fully replicate elsewhere

The cannolo is the other essential. A fried pastry tube filled with sweetened ricotta, sometimes with pistachios or candied fruit, dusted with icing sugar. The key is finding one that has been filled to order rather than sitting in a display case for hours — the shell softens quickly once filled. Ask, and any decent pastry shop will fill it fresh in front of you.

For a proper Sicilian food experience that goes beyond the tourist circuit, the Taormina Sicilian Cooking Class with visit to the local market is worth the morning — market, cooking, and eating, all in one.

Where to eat:

Taormina has restaurants across every price point, from Michelin-starred dining rooms with Ionian views to honest trattorias one street back from the tourist circuit. Here is a range that covers all budgets:

Splurge:

• Principe Cerami (San Domenico Palace, Four Seasons) — Michelin-starred, Executive Chef Massimo Mantarro’s reinterpretation of Sicilian cuisine, tasting menus, wine cellar of over 1,000 labels. One of the finest dining experiences in Sicily.
• Otto Geleng (opposite the Teatro Antico) — Michelin-starred, remarkable setting inside a 19th-century hotel that hosted Oscar Wilde and Truman Capote. Short, precise tasting menus. Book well in advance.
• St. George Restaurant by Heinz Beck (Ashbee Hotel) — Michelin-starred under the direction of two-Michelin-starred German chef Heinz Beck. Creative Sicilian produce, elegant terrace setting.

Mid-range:

• Duomo Ristorante (opposite the Cathedral) — Reliable, well-established, pasta alla Norma and fresh seafood done properly. The terrace facing the baroque fountain is worth the slight premium.
• Limu Restaurant — Contemporary Sicilian with a lighter touch than the traditional trattorias. Good wine list, less tourist-facing than most on the main street.
• La Tavernetta da Piero — The kind of honest trattoria that is increasingly hard to find in Taormina. Local clientele, straightforward Sicilian cooking, fair prices.

Budget:

• BamBar (Corso Umberto) — Iconic granita bar open since 1947. The pistachio and almond granita served with warm brioche is a Taormina ritual. Go in the morning.
• For genuine budget eating, take the bus down to Giardini Naxos — the seafront restaurants are significantly cheaper and the fish comes off the same boats.

An evening option: If you want a memorable evening in Taormina, the Opera Performance in the Nazarena Theater — a small historic theatre in the old town — is a genuinely beautiful experience. Not the Teatro Antico scale, but intimate and very Sicilian.

Day Trips from Taormina

Taormina is an excellent base for the eastern side of Sicily. Half a day in any direction produces something worth seeing.

Mount Etna is the most obvious — Europe’s most active volcano, 3,329 metres high, visible from almost everywhere in this part of Sicily. Day tours typically include a drive to the crater area, sometimes with wine tasting from the volcanic soil vineyards on the lower slopes:

→ Catania Mount Etna Half-Day Volcano Tour with Product Tasting

→ From Taormina: Full-Day Etna, Wine & Alcantara Canyons Tour — this one combines Etna and the Alcantara Gorges in a single day, which is the most efficient way to do both

Alcantara Gorges — a volcanic basalt canyon about 20 kilometres inland with crystal-clear river water and dramatic rock formations — deserve their own time. I have written a full guide: Alcantara Gorges: The Complete Guide to Sicily’s Volcanic Canyon.

The Godfather Villages — Savoca and Forza d’Agrò

I read The Godfather before coming to Sicily. I had also watched the film more times than I can accurately count. So arriving in this part of eastern Sicily — the hills, the ancient stone villages, the landscape that Mario Puzo drew on even though he wrote the novel largely from New York — meant arriving with a particular set of images already in my head.

I did not make it to Savoca on this trip. It is on the list for next time, and it is on this guide because if you share the same connection to the book or the film, you should know about it.

Savoca is a hilltop village about 15 kilometres north of Taormina, tucked into the Sicilian hills above the Ionian coast. Francis Ford Coppola chose it as the location for Michael Corleone’s time in Sicily — the scenes of him hiding after the restaurant shooting, falling in love with Apollonia, asking her father for permission to court her. The village was cast as a stand-in for the fictional Corleone, and it worked because it looked exactly like what a small Sicilian village had looked like for centuries: stone streets, old churches, a bar on the square where men sat and watched the road.

Bar Vitelli — the bar where Michael sits with Don Tommasino and asks to court Apollonia — still exists. It still looks almost exactly as it did in the 1972 film. The family who runs it has leaned into the history without overdoing it: there are photographs, some memorabilia, and the almond granita that Apollonia’s father offers Michael in the scene. You can sit where the scene was filmed and order the same drink. For anyone who loves the film, this is not a tourist gimmick — it is a genuine piece of cinema history in a working Sicilian bar.

The Church of San Nicolò above the village is where Michael and Apollonia were married on screen. It is a small Norman church with a terrace overlooking the valley. The view is the same view you saw in the film.

Forza d’Agrò, a few kilometres further, provided additional exterior shots. It is smaller than Savoca, less visited, and if anything more atmospheric — a village that has barely changed since the medieval period, perched on a ridge with views in every direction.

Neither village is easy to reach independently without a car. The organised tour from Taormina handles all the transport, includes both villages, and is the practical solution for most visitors:

→ From Taormina: Savoca and Forza d’Agrò The Godfather Tour

If you have read the novel, the villages add a layer that the film alone cannot give you — Puzo’s Sicily was drawn from family memory and imagination, and standing in the actual landscape where it was brought to life on screen closes a loop that is difficult to describe to someone who has not had the same experience. Go with the book in your head and the film in your memory. It will make both feel different afterwards.

Practical Information

Best time to visit: May and June give you warm weather, manageable crowds, and the spring flowers still on the hillsides. September and October are equally good — slightly cooler, post-peak, and the light in autumn is exceptional. July and August are busy, hot, and expensive. The Teatro Antico film festival in July is worth planning around if you want to overlap with it deliberately.

Getting around: Within Taormina, you walk. The town is compact and almost entirely pedestrianised. For the beach, the cable car from Taormina centre down to Mazzarò runs roughly 8am to 8pm (later in summer) and costs around €3 one way — a few minutes’ ride with the bay opening below you. For Castelmola and wider day trips, the local Interbus network covers most destinations cheaply. For Etna and more remote sites, a guided tour or rental car makes more sense.

Dress and temperatures: June in Sicily is warm — high 20s to low 30s Celsius. Pack light clothing, sunscreen, and good walking shoes. The old town streets are cobbled and sometimes steep. If you plan to visit the churches (which are worth a look even if you are not religious), shoulders should be covered.

Safety: Taormina is very safe for tourists. The usual sensible precautions apply — be aware of your bag in crowded areas, particularly around the cable car and on Corso Umberto at peak times. The town has a small-city feel rather than a big-city anonymity.

FAQ: Visiting Taormina

How many days do I need in Taormina?

Two days covers the Teatro Antico, Corso Umberto, Isola Bella, and a trip to Castelmola. Three days lets you add Giardini Naxos properly and a day trip to Etna or the Alcantara Gorges. Four or five days gives you a genuinely relaxed pace.

Is Taormina worth it?

Yes. It is one of those places where the reputation is accurate. The combination of ancient history, dramatic scenery, good food, and the proximity of both a volcano and the sea makes it difficult to find fault with.

Is Taormina expensive?

By Sicilian standards, yes. By northern Italian standards, not particularly. Accommodation and restaurants on Corso Umberto carry a tourist premium. Budget down the hill in Giardini Naxos, or eat one street back from the main drag.

Can I visit Taormina as a day trip from Catania?

Yes. Catania to Taormina is about 1.5 hours by bus. A full day is enough to see the Teatro Antico, walk Corso Umberto, and visit Isola Bella by cable car. Castelmola and a sunset require an overnight.

What is the best view in Taormina?

From Castelmola at sunset, looking at Mount Etna silhouetted against an orange sky, with Taormina spread below. Nothing else in the area comes close.

Can I visit the Godfather filming locations from Taormina?

Yes — Savoca and Forza d’Agrò, the two villages used as filming locations for The Godfather, are about 15 kilometres north of Taormina. Bar Vitelli in Savoca, where Michael Corleone courts Apollonia, still looks almost exactly as it did in the 1972 film. The organised tour from Taormina is the most practical option as both villages are difficult to reach independently without a car: Savoca and Forza d’Agrò The Godfather Tour.

Is Taormina good for solo travel?

Very. It is compact, walkable, and well set up for independent visitors. The day trip options are all easily bookable solo. The evening atmosphere on Corso Umberto is lively without being overwhelming.

How do I get from Catania Airport to Taormina?

By Interbus coach — several times daily, around 1.5 hours, a few euros. Full details are in the Getting to Taormina section above.

What should I eat in Taormina?

Pistachio gelato, cannolo, arancini, pasta alla Norma (with aubergine), and fresh grilled fish. In that order, ideally on the same day.

Was The White Lotus filmed in Taormina?

Yes. Season 2 of the HBO series was filmed primarily at the San Domenico Palace Four Seasons Hotel in Taormina. Several scenes were also shot around the town and at the Teatro Antico. The hotel still operates as normal and is open to non-guests for dining and drinks.

Closing

I came to Sicily on a cheap flight and two free days. I left having spent three, having missed a flight I could have caught, and having photographed the same sunset from Castelmola twice because once was not enough.

Taormina is the kind of place that makes that kind of decision easy to justify. The Teatro Antico alone is worth the trip. The view from Castelmola at dusk makes you want to stay another night. The pistachio gelato on Corso Umberto is the best argument for arriving without a schedule and making decisions as you go.

Taormina was part of a longer Italy trip through Rome, Venice, Burano, and the Vatican. If you are building an Italy itinerary, all four posts are here: Rome in March | Venice Travel Guide | Day Trip to Burano | Visiting the Vatican

And if you are making the day trip inland from here — the Alcantara Gorges guide is ready: Alcantara Gorges: The Complete Guide to Sicily’s Volcanic Canyon

Climb to Castelmola before the sun goes down.

Go in May or September. Stay two nights minimum. Climb to Castelmola before the sun goes down.

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