Hello, We will be in Catania Sicily at the end of November and plan a day trip by bus to Castelmola and/or Taormina .
We are mainly interested in the panoramic views. Which has the best views, Taormina or Castelmola. At this point of our vacation we have already been to Rome and seen the other ruins of Sicily. Any suggestions would be very helpful. Thanks, Suzanne Swanson
Posted by
Washington DC
27136 posts
I haven't been to Castelmola, so I can't give you a comparison.
I found a TripAdvisor thread about transportation to Castelmola, which may be helpful if you haven't already encountered it.
Posted by
Washington DC Region, USA
7049 posts
Castelmola is higher, it's right above Taormina. But Taormina has unique attractions that are not comparable, like the ancient Greek Theater. And it's much more touristy.
Posted by
Pacific Northwest
2624 posts
They both have spectacular views. Castelmola's is just a bit higher up. I would do Taormina. I know people say it's touristy...but it's touristy because it's lovely. It shouldn't be that crowded in November, either. It's very nice to stroll through and you can also visit the ancient theatre.
You'd have no problem doing both, though, if you're willing to pay a small cab fare. Bus yourself to Taormina and, while you're there, take a cab up to Castelmola for an hour. It's only about a 7 minute drive. Castelmola is easy to see in an hour. There's some ruins at the top you can walk to in about 5 minutes. The only other thing of note that was different than Taormina was uhm...the phallic-symbol restaurant (https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g945966-d5035101-Reviews-Bar_Turrisi-Castelmola_Province_of_Messina_Sicily.html).
We used a car service between these cities so I can't speak to the bus time but you could spend 3 hours in Taormina and 1 in Castelmola and see most of what there is there.