Taormina & the Ionian Coast
A 2,000-year-old Greek theatre with Etna smoking on one side and the Ionian Sea glittering on the other, Taormina has been showing off since antiquity.
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4.9/5 (1007 reviews)

Set high on Sicily’s jagged cliffs and peering out over the Mediterranean Sea, Taormina is an adored hillside town, chock-full of history and with a charm that has been thousands of years in the making. The Greco-Roman amphitheatre is the town’s showpiece, its stone tiers framing the sea and Mount Etna in one of Italy’s most irresistible views. Along Corso Umberto, boutiques, gelaterie and chic aperitivo bars spill out, while narrow lanes lead towards Chiesa Madonna della Rocca for even wider and more wonderful vistas. Below is teeny-tiny Isola Bella, a nature reserve once home to English conservationist Florence Trevelyan and now reached by a ribbon of sand (walk, swim or cable car across) that appears and disappears with the tide. Head south and the scenery shifts again, as the Ionian Coast tumbles towards Catania in a string of fishing villages and lava-black headlands, all born of Etna's historic eruptions. At the end of the day, grab a seat on a sunset terrace and watch the sky turn apricot, a perfectly chilled martini by your side...
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The views here could elicit a tear or two from a stone: Etna smoking in the distance, the Ionian gleaming beneath, and Sicily sprawling beyond.
Ditch the crowds and hike up to the castle ruins of Castelmola for even more spectacular vistas and a glass of local almond wine.
High season brings cruise ship crowds that can transform the town's narrow lanes into a human traffic jam – timing is everything.
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Wet Season — a good time to visit
Wet Season — a good time to visit
Wet Season — a good time to visit
Dry Season — one of the best times to visit
Dry Season — one of the best times to visit
Dry Season — one of the best times to visit
Dry Season — a good time to visit
Dry Season — a quieter time to visit
Dry Season — one of the best times to visit
Dry Season — one of the best times to visit
Wet Season — a good time to visit
Wet Season — a good time to visit
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