Sicily · TAORMINA TOURS
The town is small, steep and expensive in the middle, so the money goes on the view and on getting out. The 15 below cover the theatre, the boat under Isola Bella, the wine on the Etna slope and the runs to Castelmola.
Enter Taormina’s Ancient Theater with a skip-the-line ticket and explore at your own pace for one day. Your multilingual audio guide explains the Greek and Roman stages, gladiator arena, and later history. Expect security screening, a single entry, and broad views toward the sea.
“Tickets helps us skip the long queues and the audio guide was helpful.”
Meet Chef Mimmo and his family in Taormina, visit a small local producer, then cook pasta, caponata, and fresh fish at Ahoy Bistrò Siciliano. You will share a seaside lunch with wine, cannoli, and Limoncello. Transport between Taormina and Giardini Naxos is included.
“So worth it! Best cooking class experience yet, and to have the food we prepared for lunch with a seaview…amazing!”
Spend 90 minutes with soprano Marianna Capellani, tenor Federico Parisi, and a professional pianist in Taormina’s small Nazarena Theater. Hear familiar arias and duets by Mozart, Verdi, Puccini, Donizetti, Rossini, and others, with Prosecco, water, and a terrace overlooking the Bay of Taormina.
“Excellent show, felt really close up with the fantastic singers and maestro.”
Set out from Giardini Naxos on a two-hour Sicilian boat ride with an English or Italian-speaking skipper. See Taormina’s bays, the Blue Grotto, Isola Bella, and the marine reserve, with time to swim and snorkel. Guides such as Nunzio, Dario, and Delphino are known for lively commentary.
“We enjoyed very much, our guide was very nice and friendly and the tour was very stunning”
Walk across Etna’s old craters at Monti Sartorius, enter a lava cave with a helmet and flashlight, then enjoy a Sicilian snack and Etna wine. Guides such as Saro, Tony, Ugo, Roberto, and Daniele lead small groups of up to 15 from Taormina and nearby towns.
“We had a great tour guide. His name was Daniele. He was very knowledgable and friendly! The tour started visiting a cave. Interesting. Great photo opportunity! The walk up the mountain was not that bad! Challenging at times. I would recommend the walking stick provided. We got a lot of great pictures!! Lunch was good at the winery. The wine was great!! Great day!!!”
Travel from Taormina, Naxos, or Letojanni with guide Marcello to Savoca and Forza d’Agrò, two hill towns used in The Godfather films. Visit Bar Vitelli, Santa Lucia Church, and other locations, with hotel pickup, admissions, English or Italian guiding, and about five hours on the road.
“Marcello was really helpful and kind. We took our 3 year-old son with us and he made sure que was OK every step of the way. The towns we visited are beautiful and a must-see if you’re a true Godfather fan. I recommend it.”
Meet Chef Massimo at Porta Messina at 9:30 a.m. Shop for seasonal produce, fish, and meat before walking to his sea-view home for a hands-on Sicilian cooking class. Prepare pasta, appetizers, and main courses, then eat together with local wine. Recipes and an apron are included.
“We had so much fun at our cooking class. Massimo is very entertaining but all the while was teaching us so much selecting fresh food and preparing it. This is a must do tour!!”
Travel from Taormina or Giardini Naxos to Etna with a multilingual guide such as Salvatore, Alessandro, or Giuseppe. Walk among extinct craters, enter a helmeted lava cave, then taste honey, olive oil, wine, and other local foods at a farm. Optional cable-car and 4x4 rides cost extra.
“The Etna tour was surreal! Like walking on another planet! Alessandro our guide was super and was so passionate about travel and authentic experiences. We learnt lots about Etna, its history and its geography. The tasting was a cute local place where you had a small tasting included, but could pay for a full wine and food tasting experience, but you could also buy things from a large menu. We had a great time on this excursion and it definitely was the highlight of our trip.”
Travel from Taormina to Mount Etna by coach, cable car, and 4x4 jeep, reaching authorized upper crater zones around 2,800 meters. An Alpine guide explains the volcano in English, Italian, or German. Expect ash, loose rock, steep walking, cold wind, and changing weather.
“This is a good trip to Etna. You got to see the upper craters with the guides from the four-wheel-drive. Like all these trips, you only have a limited amount of time and also the guides are ushering up hundreds of people so you get your half an hour of fame then down you go, If you don’t do it yourself this is the best way to do it.”
Travel from Taormina to Mount Etna with a trained English or Italian guide such as Tony, Roberto, Ricardo, or Ugo. Walk around extinct craters at 2,000 meters, enter a lava cave, then enjoy sandwiches, dessert, wine, and almond wine at an Etna winery.
“Where do I begin? Roberto was the most perfect guide. He was funny, knowledgeable and so interactive with the group. We started out as strangers but quickly became a group. Roberto was expert at making that happen.”
Join Enzo, Tindaro, or another local captain for a lively two-hour cruise from Giardini Naxos. You’ll pass White Lotus filming spots, visit sea caves, stop to swim or snorkel near Isola Bella, and enjoy fruit, snacks, drinks, music, and possible dolphin sightings.
“We had the best time!! Highly recommend this tour! Our guide was amazing and gave us so much information and showed us the best time!”
Travel from Palermo to Mount Etna and Taormina in an air-conditioned minivan or coach with an Italian, English, or Spanish-speaking guide. Expect about six hours on the road, two hours at each main stop, and an extra fee for the Etna funicular and mountain transport.
“Absolutely brilliant, had lots of free time to explore”
Join Graziella and Captain Saro for a small-group sunset cruise from Giardini Naxos. You’ll pass Taormina’s caves and bays, look for bottlenose dolphins, swim near Isola Bella, and enjoy fruit, snacks, and drinks aboard the Blue Diamond.
“The whole experience was amazing from start to finish! The boat was amazing and Graziella was amazing and her husband was also great! Highly recommend”
Join Antonio and Mariella for a three-hour shared boat cruise from Giardini Naxos. You’ll see Taormina’s bays, Isola Bella, caves, and Etna, stop to swim, enjoy pizza or arancini with prosecco, and search open water for dolphins.
“We had the most fantastic time from the check in at the office till the end of our boat ride. We saw dolphins swimming and jumping right in front of us. Antonio, our captain, Mariella and Sonia were delightful, courteous and super attentive. The views of the Etna, Taormina, Isola Bella, the caves, well... everything!! were wonderful. They served us pizza and prosecco while we stopped to jump in the water. Amazing experience for the whole family. Even our 3-year-old boy dared to jump and swim with the fish. We loved it and will definitely recommend it to everyone. We hope to come back soon. Grazie mille e arrivederci!”
Join a multilingual guide such as Isabella, Simona, or Franco for a half-day ride from Taormina to Gambino Winery on Mount Etna. Taste four Sicilian wines with cheeses, olives, bread, and preserved vegetables, tour the cellar, and enjoy wide views toward the coast.
“Great tour! Bus ride with a lot of info about the sites we passed. And winerie was beautiful, with great view over Catania, taoromina and the ocean. Was given a glass of whine at arrival, and plenty of whine in the tasting (4 glasses, but good amount of whine in the glass), as a Norwegian we like to get a good amount😂. Nice shop where you can by wine, gin or t-shirts from the winery. Absolutely recommend!!”
Pick a coast, a volcano or a kitchen.
