We will like to visit Taormina, Etna, Siracusa and Noto, we will arrive and leave from Catania and we are looking for advice regarding where to base, also we will rent a car. We are staying for 6 nights, these are our options:
1 - 4 nights in taormina and 2 nights in catania
2- 5 nights in Taormina and 1 night in Catania
3- 3 nights in Taormina, 2 nights in Siracuse and 1 night in Catania
Would any of this sounds right or would you suggest something different?
I would opt for 2 nights in Taormina, 3 nights in Siracusa, and 1 night in Catania (if you're flying out early - if not, then add a night to Siracusa or even Ragusa, which I highly recommend seeing especially if you have a car with you). I base my allocation on the amount of things to do in each location - basically Taormina is very, very small so I wouldn't have more time there than Siracusa.
What Agnes said.
I’m not a fan of Catania and would not stay there at all, unless you need to stay at the airport for a very early flight (although the drive from either Taormina or Siracusa area to the airport is not that long).
If you want to visit Mt. Etna, the excursion up there will take the best part of a day. You probably want a day to relax in Taormina and Giardini Naxos as well. So I’d stay 3 nights in Taormina if you plan a day excursion to Mt. Etna, otherwise a couple of nights are enough for Taormina.
With a car you might consider staying in Giardini Naxos, down the hill from Taormina on the beach. Find a hotel with parking. The drive up to Taormina takes minutes. Few hotels in Taormina have parking, but there is a multistory parking structure inside the mountain.
Siracusa and Noto are a-bit too far from Taormina for day tripping from there.
I’d stay there another 3 nights. With one day max devoted to Noto, and the rest to Siracusa.
If you stay only 2 nights in Taormina, maybe you can add one night here in Siracusa.
You could even stay in between the two at this Agriturismo. I enjoyed it. It’s just minutes by car from either Noto or Siracusa.
http://www.masseriasulmare.com
I think we ran out of your 6 nights. Buon viaggio.
This summer we're doing 7 nights in Sicily (in and out of Catania) with a car. Two nights in Siracusa then drive to
Ragusa for the day and on to Agrigento for two nights. Then drive to Cefalu for one night. Next day
boat to Aeolian Islands and into Taormina for two nights. Rather full week but I think it's doable and a good
"taste" of Sicily in a short time.
Thanks for all your great suggestions, another question i have is if you believe skipping palermo is the right way to go, I was planning on skip because is far from the other places we want to go but I will like to know what you think
We are looking at Sicily, too but were planning a few nights in Syracusa area and a few night in Palermo with flight in and out of that airport. Very curious about people's opinion of Palermo.
Palermo was nicer than we had expected. We never felt unsafe walking around the city.
A highlight is a visit to Monreale, one of the most beautiful cathedrals in the world.
With six nights it would be a mistake to try to cover great distances. I think sticking to the stretch between Taormina and Siracusa is a very good decision.
There are many thing to see in Palermo, but that is also true of the interior, Trapani/Erice and the Greek sights like Agrigento. Not all will fit into a short trip.
If all you have is the 6 nights you mentioned in the post, you should concentrate on the Eastern portion of the island and skip Palermo and the west.
If you want to see Palermo and Monreale you need 3 additional nights there (2 full days) or at the very least 2 nights for just some of Palermo highlights. If you want to add a day trip to Cefalû or elsewhere (like Segesta), then you might need a 4th night in Palermo.
I think Palermo is worth a mass.
2n in Taormina
2n in Siracusa
2n in Catania
