Sicily with 1 year old baby - Taormina? Scopello? Cefalu?

I am planning a trip to Sicily for this spring. I have never been so take anything I say with a grain of salt! I've looked at photos of Scopello and also on the other side of Zingaro on Calampiso. There are some beautiful resorts in that area. Also, I don't know about Scopello or other cities around Zingaro, but supposedly, the beaches in san Vito lo Capo are the best or among the best in Italy. I read that the sand is lovely.

I do a lot of research for trips and I do plan to spend a day in Taormina, but I am much more enthused about other cities in Sicily. We will be in Cefalu a few days and looking forward to that.

You may want to take a look at Lipari, one of the Aeolian islands. It's just a ferry ride away from Messina. There are a lot of places with kitchens to stay at. It looks gorgeous!

Have been to both Taormina and Cefalu and my experience in Cefalu had everything that you are looking for. Besides, you can take a direct train to Palermo for the day. Make sure you eat a cannoli in Cefalu. The food was amazing with fantastic views.

One thing to keep in mind is that the part of Taormina that folks like for its fab views is clinging to the side of the hill. The beach, of course, is not up on the hill. There are buses and some sort of lift to get down to the beach, but you might end up with some walking to get to whichever form of transportation you chose to use. You could, of course, stay down at beach level. That would be Giardini Naxos.

I'd suggest Googling for photos of beaches in the towns you're considering to be sure they look like places suitable for a "relaxed " stay. The population density in Europe is a lot higher than ours in the US, so beaches can be covered with row after row of beach chairs.

Sicily is very hot in July. That's not the direction I'd head after a week in Tuscany (also likely to be very hot, but not as bad as Sicily).

Edited to add: I should clarify that I did go to Sicily in the summer, which is why I'm suggesting that you not do it. It's such a great place to visit, and it's so terribly hot in the summer.

Of the three places you mentioned, I too would choose Cefalù. Each will be busy in the summer. Scopello and that area have nice beaches, but there’s not much else there with regard to other things to see. Taormina is up on a hill and one takes a cable car to get down to the beach. At the bottom of the cable car site is a small beach and a couple hotels. The hotels have most of that beach reserved for theirs patrons. Better to go to the town acraven mentioned for a better experience. Cefalù is a smallish town with a small beach. It is right beside the town so it would be easy to pack up to go get something the eat or drink, then return. The town is easily walkable and maintains its charm even with the tourists. When we were there we stayed at Hotel Alberi del Paradiso. It’s a mile from the beach but had a free shuttle to and from downtown. If you didn’t want to go to the beach, it has its own pool. Our room rate came with a very good buffet breakfast. Since I was nursing a sprained ankle, we also are dinner at the hotel that was very good. If you had a rental car, parking was free. The town has a church and above the town are some walking trails. Nearby, is Caccamo castle that is worth visiting if you can get to it if you don’t have a rental car.

I guess I would recommend Cefalu as well. Good proximity to Palermo, so some things to do (Cefalu is nice for chilling, but short on sights after a couple days), the restaurants are excellent to standard "resort" town fare, couple good grocery stores for picnics.

I think staying in the Old Town is best, but with a one year old and the stroller and baby items (depending how you travel) you need to watch where to stay in Old Town, many of the rooms are up narrow winding stairs.

Cefalu might be the best choice for reasons listed - I visited briefly but didn't stay there, so I don't have a detailed opinion. My experience was pleasant and I would not hesitate to stay there in the future.

I did stay in Scopello which I absolutely loved. However, I don't know if hiking the Zingaro is reasonable with a baby. It's not hard hiking, my sons were in elementary school when we went and did just fine. If you or your husband enjoy hiking with a baby carrier/baby backpack then it would be fine. The beaches on the reserve are down long flights of stairs or fairly steep paths, and the main walking trail is a regular dirt trail - easy walking but not for strollers. Of course, there are all sorts of other beaches you can drive and park at. They are nice, but the Zingaro is the highlight.
The village of Scopello is very small but has some good restaurants and a pleasant vibe.
You can also drive to the temple of Segesta - under an hour - if you want to add a visit to a Greek temple to your visit. Or to Erice if you want a hill town. We did both as day trips while staying in Scopello.

Thank you all so much for taking the time to reply. This forum and the generosity (of time) of the members continues to amaze me. Cefalu it is!