Place to visit when in Taormina
Place to visit when in Taormina
Taormina Attractions: Map
Main Monuments in Taormina
Greek Roman Theatre | Roman Odeon
Santa Caterina Church | Corso Umberto Street
Museum in Taormina
Taormina attractions nearby
Castelmola | Isola Bella | Mt Etna Volcano
Restaurants in Taormina
Baronessa Restaurant | Casa Grugno Restaurant
Licchio's Restaurant | Il Barcaiolo Restaurant
Nightlife in Taormina
Main Monuments in Taormina
ENG: Greek-Roman Theatre
ITA: Teatro Greco-Romano
Via del Teatro Greco
Tel.: (+39) 094223605
This is
Taormina's most visited monument, offering a view of rare
beauty
of the seacoast and Mount Etna. In the Hellenistic period, the Greeks hewed the
theater out of the rocky slope of Mount
Tauro; the Romans
remodeled and modified it greatly. What remains today dates from the 2nd century
A.D. The conquering Arabs, who seemed intent on devastating the town, slashed
away at it in the 10th century. That leaves us with a rather sparse and dusty
ruin, less evocative than the Greek theater in Catania. On the premises is a
display of artifacts from the classical and early Christian periods. Today, the
Greek Amphitheater is the site of the annual Taormina film festival. The ruins
lie on the upper reaches of Taormina, few steps from the Grand Hotel Timeo.
Taormina Greek-Roman Theatre open:
Mon-Sun: 09:00 to 1 hour before sunset
Taormina Greek-Roman Theatre admission: charge
Main Monuments in Taormina
ENG: Roman Odeon
ITA: Odeon Romano
Behind the tourist office, on the
other side of Piazza Vittorio
Emanuele,
is the Roman Odeon, a small theater partly covered by the church of Santa
Caterina next door. The Romans constructed
this theater around A.D. 21. Much
smaller than the Greek theater and with similar architecture, it was discovered
in 1892 by a blacksmith digging in the area. A peristyle (colonnade) was also
discovered here, perhaps all that was left of a Greek temple dedicated to
Aphrodite.
Taormina Roman Odeon open: always
Taormina Roman Odeon admission: free
Main Monuments in Taormina
ENG: Saint Caterina Church
ITA: Chiesa di Santa Caterina
Chiesa Santa Caterina is located in
Piazza Santa Caterina, off
Corso
Umberto I (tel. +39 0942-23123), was consecrated to St. Catherine of Alexandria
(exact consecration date unknown); it may have been built in the mid-17th
century. It sits on a piazza that abuts the highest point of the town's main
street, Corso Umberto I.
Within its severely dignified exterior are baroque detailing and a trussed
wood-beamed ceiling. Chiesa Santa Caterina is the temporary replacement for
Taormina's cathedral, which will be closed for some time.
Taormina Santa Caterina Church open: daily
9am to noon and 4pm to 7pm
Taormina Santa Caterina Church admission: tips
Main Monuments in Taormina
ENG: Corso Umberto Street
ITA: Corso Umberto
Corso Umberto, Taormina’s main
street, draws a semicircle in the old city and links Porta Catania in the
south with Porta Messina in the north. The street is narrow and has a
medieval appearance; it is lined with buildings, many of which are quite
ancient.
Numerous doorways and windows are typical of the architecture of the fifteenth
century which splendid Gothic forms. From the Corso many lanes and alleys, some
spanned by arches, lead to other lanes above and below, giving picturesque
glimpses of the luxuriant hillside. Occasionally one finds small squares or
landings with bars or cafes. Every little nook or cranny seems to have a few
tables and chairs and offers meals to the tourists.
Corso Umberto opens up to create Piazza IX aprile, a huge square with a blue
checkered tile floor and a banister directly overlooking the ravine and the
arbor. Because of its strategic position the piazza is the main focus of social
gatherings. Looking out over the iron balustrade surrounding the square we can
admire Mount Etna: the sight of the snowy mountain right above the blue sea is
one of the most beautiful I have seen.
Taormina Corso Umberto Street open: always
Taormina Corso Umberto Street admission: none
Main Monuments in Taormina
ENG/ITA: Villa Comunale
A local sightseeing oddity here is
Villa Comunale, sometimes
called
Parco Duca di Cesarò, Via Bagnoli Croce, off Corso Umberto
I. One of the most beautiful little
parks in all of Sicily, the gardens were the creation of Lady Florence Trevelyan
in the late 19th century. This Scottish lady was "invited" to leave Britain
after a well-publicized romance with the future king, Edward VII, son of
Victoria. She built various amusements in the gardens, including a fanciful
stone-and-brick pavilion that might have been conceived as a teahouse.
Taormina Garden open: daily
8:30am to 7pm (6pm in winter)
Taormina Garden admission:
none
Archaeological Museum
Museum in Taormina
ENG: Archaeological Museum
ITA: Museo Archeologico
Museo
Archeologico di Taormina, in the Palazzo Badia Vecchia, on
Via Circonvallazione (tel. +39
0942-620112), is set on the site of the ancient Roman baths. It is a repository
for the hundreds of archaeological remnants discovered during excavations in and
around the city. Expect pottery shards and lingering artifacts of the ancient
Roman world.
Taormina Archaeological Museum open: Tue-Sun
9am to 1pm and 4 to 8pm
Taormina Garden admission: charge
Taormina attractions nearby
Castelmola
It's
worth a trip to the nearby village of Castelmola, 3km (2 miles)
northwest of Taormina. This is one
of the most beautiful places in eastern Sicily, with a panoramic view of Mount
Etna on clear days. You might also visit the ruined castello (castle) on the
summit of Mount Tauro (390m/1,280 ft.), about 3km (2 miles) northwest of
Taormina along the Castelmola road. Hikers can follow a footpath here. Ruins of
a former acropolis are visible, but most people come simply for the panoramas.
To get to Castelmola it's quite
simple. If you come through the motorway the road 114 the leads you in Taormina
and after two kilometers you'll see Taormina's main car park. Carry on towards
Castelmola as the signs on the way clearly explain.
After 6 kilometers of steep but easily driving road you will see the parkings of
the town, where is possible leave the car and start the walking towards the town.
If you don't use the motorway, follow the provincial road 114 towards Taormina.
If you are in Castelmola you cannot
forget to go to visit the Bar Turrisi: it is a bar that is passed from
generation to generation.
The age of the Cavalier ended in the
mid seventies and the age of the Cavalier's son Peppino began. An extravagant
character, Peppino almost left the bar to be an actor, but he realised he had to
build his life in Castelmola and so he stayed. In 1975 Peppino married his wife
Rosa and together they refurbished the bar as it stands today, particularly
concentrating on enhancing the interior. They recognised that their era was
particularly happy and prolific. Having had three sons within five years, there
was one particular symbol that could represent it all: the penis, vulgarly. The
idea of the penis has definitely had a big impact on the population, especially
on the priest. However, in the following years the symbol was accepted by
everyone and became a important part of the bar. In fact, it is present in
different shapes, lengths and materials, in wood, ceramics, terracotta, worked
iron, pasta and marzipan. The Penis sets the tempo of the bar and the moods of
all those within it. The penis is not a vulgar symbol and finds his roots in
Greek culture, where the god Priapous represented fertility, freedom, fortune,
life and beauty. Greek culture has influenced our own for centuries. Anyway ...
we recommend to visit this Bar and in the same time to taste typical Almond
Wine very famous in this town.
Isola Bella
Taormina
attractions nearby
Isola Bella
Many visitors to Taormina come for
the beach, although the
sands
aren't exactly at the resort. To reach the best and most popular beach, Lido
Mazzarò, you have to go south of town via a cable car (tel. +39 0942-23605) that
leaves from Via Pirandello every 15 minutes. A one-way ticket is really cheap.
This beach is one of the best equipped in Sicily, with bars, restaurants, and
hotels. You can rent beach chairs, umbrellas, and watersports equipment at
various kiosks from May to September. To the right of Lido Mazzarò, past the
Capo Sant'Andrea headland, is the region's prettiest cove, where twin crescents
of beach sweep from a sand spit out to the minuscule Isola Bella islet. You can
walk here from the cable car in a minute, but it's more fun to paddle a boat
from Mazzarò around Capo Sant'Andrea, which hides a few grottoes with excellent
light effects on the seaward side.
Mt Etna Volcano
Taormina attractions nearby
Mt Etna Volcano
23km (14 miles) SW of Taormina, 31km
(19 miles) N of Catania, 60km (37 miles) S of Messina
Looming menacingly over the coast of eastern Sicily, Mount Etna
is
the highest and largest active volcano in Europe -- and we do mean active.
The peak has changed in size over the years, but is currently in the
neighborhood of 3,292m (10,801 ft.). Etna has been active in modern times (in
1928, the little village of Mascali was buried under its lava), and eruptions in
2001 and 2002 rekindled Sicilian fears.
Etna has figured in history and in Greek mythology. Empedocles, the 5th-century B.C. Greek philosopher, is said to have jumped into its crater as a sign that he was being delivered directly to Mount Olympus to take his seat among the gods. It was under Etna that Zeus crushed the multiheaded dragon Typhoeus, thereby securing domination over Olympus. Hephaestus, the god of fire and blacksmiths, made his headquarters in Etna, aided by the single-eyed Cyclops (go to admire the Cyclops area in Acitrezza far from Taormina just 30 minutes by car. In Acitrezza you can stop also in some Bar to enjoy a delicious ice-cream)
Visitors will have to decide
whether to ascend Mount Etna from the northern or southern approach. We
prefer the north-facing side, partly because it's cooler, more beautiful, and
much richer in wildflowers that thrive in the volcanic soil. The north side is
also more heavily forested. The south side, because of the eruptions during the
last decade, is mostly covered with barren-looking lava flows. Its access routes
are more crowded, and its views less appealing. Nonetheless, many visitors to
Catania
come up Etna's south side.
If you decide to come up the north side, simply take the highway to its
end, Piano Provenzana, which stops at a complex of Alpine-inspired chalets
selling souvenirs. During the heat of a Sicilian summer, they appear visibly out
of place, but in winter, because of the high altitude (2,700m/8,858 ft.), they
function as the centerpiece of a small-scale but thriving ski colony. The ski
facilities include five downhill ski lifts and a network of cross-country ski
trails.
It
is from this artificial-looking alpine hamlet of Piano Provenzana that
you buy tickets for bus excursions to the top of Mount Etna. The round-trip
lasts 2 hours. Departures are whenever business merits, but in summer, buses
leave usually every hour.
At the top, the bus parks near a seismic exploration station, and
visitors walk a bit farther to a point near the top, across gravel-covered
landscapes of great brutality. There's no fire and brimstone to see -- if there
is, and if the crater is active, all bus trips are immediately discontinued.
Note that visibility is poor on cloudy days; it's also generally clearer in the
mornings....so plan your Etna excursion in the morning and not during afternoon.
If you want a really unforgettable excursion to Etna Volcano you MUST use our Jeep (maximum 4/6 seats) .. only in this case you can have a jeep-driver at your disposal showing you the Best of Etna Volcano. We usually organize some stop for lunch in typical shops or in some farmhouse to taste the real and typical local dishes. Read more on www.taorminaexcursions.com
Restaurants in
Taormina
SDG
Sicily Driver Guide suggest:
Baronessa
Restaurant,
a great restaurant, charming,
delicious meals, romantic atmosphere. The restaurant is located in
Corso Umberto 148 and in the hearth of the
Taormina shopping center.
If you need to contact them by phone
the number is +39 0942620163 or by
E-mail.
Restaurants in
Taormina
SDG
Sicily Driver Guide suggest:
Casa Grugno
Restaurant,
the
most
exciting restaurant in Taormina is making a bold statement about modern Sicilian
cuisine. Austrian-born chef Andreas Zangerl presides over this increasingly
famous place, where the snows of the Austrian Tyrol seem to mingle with the
torrid Sicilian scrublands. The setting is a stone-sided house that contains a
bar, an ocher dining room outfitted like a trompe l'oeil rendition of Carnevale
in Venice, and a walled-in terrace ringed with plants. The hip and alert young
staff gets excellent supervision from the town's most successful maître d'hôtel,
Stephano Lo Guidice.
The sublime food here is reinvented Sicilian cuisine at its finest, a haute
cuisine that draws from a Pan-European sensibility. The fixed-price menus might
include tuna steak with sweet-and-sour onion and mint sauce; pasta alla
Trapanese (with almonds, tomatoes, and chile peppers); roasted pigeon with
lentils from the offshore island of Pantelleria; and an impeccable version of
Parmesan eggplant that might be the most deliciously fragrant dish in this part
of town. If you need to find this restaurant it is located few minutes walk from
the San Domenico Palace Hotel, and exactly in Via Santa Maria de Greci. If you
need to contact them by phone the number is +39 094221208.
Restaurants in
Taormina
SDG
Sicily Driver Guide suggest:
Licchio's
Restaurant, located in an extraordinary
location and few minutes walk from Porta Messina (one of the main door to
Corso Umberto Street).The restaurant offers
traditional menù, local food with fish, meat and great vegetables. The
atmosphere is nice, friendly staff and moderate rate. Great also the wines list.
If you need to find this restaurant go in Via Patricio number 10 (looking Porta
Messina in front of you, go on the right side. 200 metres and you will find the
restaurant) or telephone them at the Tel. +39 0942625327.
Restaurants in
Taormina
SDG
Sicily Driver Guide suggest:
Il
Barcaiolo
Restaurant,
for a quintessential casual and
authentic experience, visit Il Barcaiolo
in
Mazzaro – delicious dishes, family cooking, and amazing seafood! To reach this
restaurant use a private transportation or a taxi because the location is not in
the city centre but in Mazzarò. IMPORTANT to know is the steps ... there's a lot
of steps to join the restaurant but when you will arrive there ... is so lovely
... because is located in a small and characteristic bay. Here you can eat a
really fresh fish and also a delicious pepper-meat. If you need to go there the
address is Via Castelluccio-Spiaggia Mazzarò. The Tel. is +39 0942625633.
Nightlife in Taormina
SDG Sicily Driver Guide suggest: La Giara Restaurant Piano-Bar.
Glossy, airy, and reminiscent of
Rome during the heyday of Gina Lollobrigida, La Giara evokes a
warmed-over la dolce vita. The restaurant is almost excessively formal, and it
has remained predictably stable since its founding in 1953. Views sweep from the
veranda's outdoor tables over the bay of Taormina. The Art Deco ambience is also
inviting, with marble floors and columns shaped from stone quarried in the
fields outside Syracuse. The pastas are meals in themselves; we're especially
fond of the ricotta-stuffed cannelloni and the ravioli stuffed with
pesto-flavored eggplant. The fresh fish of the day is grilled to perfection, and
meats are cooked equally well. Reservation is Required. You can find this
restaurant-piano bar in Vico La Floresta, a narrow street and steps in the
middle of Corso Umberto Street. If you need to book a seat please be so kind as
to call the Tel. +39 094223360.