Walk Corso Umberto from Porta Messina to Porta Catania, stopping at Piazza IX Aprile for the view. Give the Teatro Antico its own early-morning slot, before the tour groups. Take the cable car down to Mazzarò and wade across to Isola Bella. Keep a full day for Etna, and a half-day for Castelmola or the Alcantara gorge.
Taormina sits on a ledge 200 metres above the Ionian, with Etna filling the southern sky. The Greeks built a theatre to frame that view and everything since has been arranged around it. The centre is one pedestrian street long, and the beaches are a cable car ride down.
Greek in origin and rebuilt by the Romans, it frames Etna and the coast through its broken stage wall, and no theatre in Sicily has a better backdrop. Arrive at opening, before the coach groups, or book a summer concert and see it lit.
The pedestrian spine runs between two medieval gates, Porta Messina and Porta Catania, on the line of the old road from Messina to Catania. Walk it end to end early or after dinner, and duck into the side stairways for the quieter half of town.
The town's terrace: a chequered square open to the bay and Etna, closed off by the clock tower gate into the medieval quarter. It is the best free view in Taormina, and it is best at dusk, when the coast lights up below.
A wooded islet tied to the shore by a sandbar you can usually wade, now a nature reserve with a small museum in the old villa. The beach is free; the island itself is ticketed. Go early, before the bay fills with day boats.
Florence Trevelyan's terraced garden, now the public park, with brick follies, shaded paths and a balcony over the coast. It is free and it is the answer to the midday heat when the Corso is at its most crowded.
A village on the rock above Taormina, with a ruined castle and a view that takes in the town, the coast and Etna at once. Walk up past the Madonna della Rocca chapel and take the bus back down.
The cable car drops from Via Pirandello to the bay of Mazzarò in a few minutes and saves a steep walk or a parking hunt. Below are pebble coves, beach clubs and the path along the shore to Isola Bella.
Europe's tallest active volcano is a day trip from town. Roads end at Rifugio Sapienza, around 1,900 metres, and a cable car climbs to about 2,500. The summit zones open only with authorised guides, and only as activity allows.
A gorge cut through basalt columns by the Alcantara river, inland from Giardini Naxos. You can walk down by the public stairway or take the lift in the private park, then wade the icy water in waders hired on site.
A medieval palace with Arab, Norman and Gothic work layered on one façade, at the top of the Corso. The tourist office sits in its courtyard, so start here for maps and bus times before you set off.
Large rocks breaking the water make it the bay of sirens; good snorkelling off the boulders.
A long, easygoing town beach a short train or bus ride north, with fish restaurants on the front.
A broad curve of beach under the Capo Sant'Alessio headland, quieter than anything nearer town.
Pietro D'Agostino's Michelin-starred kitchen on the sea at Spisone, with tasting menus and à la carte.
Roberto Toro's Michelin-starred terrace at the Grand Hotel Timeo, looking straight at Etna.
A seafood osteria cooking the day's catch, with spaghetti alle vongole the dish to order.
A pizzeria on the road to Castelmola whose terrace looks over the town, the sea and Etna.
The town's granita address: almond, mulberry and a dozen more, with warm brioche for breakfast.
The old café on Piazza IX Aprile. You pay for the terrace, and the terrace is the reason.
The cathedral of San Nicola, crenellated like a fortress, at the south end of the Corso.
The patron saint's church outside Porta Messina, raised on the ruins of a Greek temple.
A chapel built into the rock above town, reached by a stepped path with wide views.
Piano Provenzana, above Linguaglossa, is the nearer and quieter base for the volcano.
Black volcanic soils on the north slope grow Etna DOC reds and whites; book a tasting.
Boats from Mazzarò round Capo Sant'Andrea, its sea caves and Isola Bella, with a swim stop.
The stepped path between Taormina and Castelmola, through dense Mediterranean scrub.
The flat resort town on the bay, with a long beach, lower prices and the railway station.
The hill village where The Godfather was filmed; Bar Vitelli still pours its lemon granita.
The film festival takes over the Teatro Antico for its evening screenings; 10–14 June in 2026.
The international book festival, with a gala in the ancient theatre; 18–22 June in 2026.
Concerts, opera and dance in the Greek theatre on summer nights. Book early.
The patron's statue is carried through town to Piazza IX Aprile, then fireworks.
Fashion week with shows around town; 14–18 July in 2026.
Every October Sunday, Zafferana Etnea on Etna's slope holds food fairs: grapes, honey, apples.
A late-October wine and food fair with tastings and cooking shows.
A living nativity, the tree on the Corso and a countdown in Piazza Duomo.
The nearest airport, about 65 km south. Interbus coaches run direct to Taormina in about an hour and a half; a taxi is quicker and far dearer.
On the coast line between Messina and Catania, below the town. Buses and taxis climb to the centre.
The cable car links the centre to Mazzarò. Interbus coaches serve Castelmola, Giardini Naxos and the coast from the terminal on Via Pirandello.
Almond or mulberry granita with a soft brioche to dunk. Breakfast.
A fried rice ball, pointed in the east of Sicily, filled with ragù or butter and ham.
Catania's pasta: tomato, fried aubergine and salted ricotta.
Swordfish rolled around breadcrumbs, pine nuts and raisins, then grilled.
Swordfish stewed with tomato, capers and olives, Messina style.
A fried shell filled to order with sweet sheep's ricotta.
Castelmola's sweet almond wine, served cold in small glasses.
Deep focaccia topped with escarole, anchovy, tomato and tuma cheese.
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