10 things to see and do in Taormina, Sicily
In the late 19th century Taormina was a forgotten medieval hill town, sitting on a rocky outcrop of Mount Tauro, dominating the twin bays on the Ionian Sea far below and gazing across to the enormous sweep of Mount Etna which not so much dominates as fills the horizon. In antiquity its importance had been as a staging post between the powerful cities of Syracuse (a capital of Magna Grecia) to the south and Messina (which guarded the narrow channel between Sicily and the mainland) to the north. But then the village was ‘discovered’ by visitors from the north, who were beguiled by its unarguable beauty and superb location … and the rest is history. Notable early visitors included Goethe during the late 1700s.
During the 19th century German photographer Wilhelm von Gloeden came here to take his pastoral studies of nude Sicilian boys, and the German painter Otto Geleng came to work. And during the early 1900s Taormina became something of a colony for expat artists and writers. DH Lawrence liked the place so much he lived here from 1920-23. Taormina today is a long way from that medieval hill village, but is still a beguilingly pretty town, with its Greek Theatre and the funicular railway diving to the sea below.
1) The Teatro Greco, one of Sicily’s most spectacular Classical relics is slightly misnamed, as though Greek in origin, the amphitheatre in which concerts still take place today is almost entirely Roman in build. Just 2000 years old then, and still hosting concerts of Classical music and opera, rock concerts and theatre. This is a spectacular setting as you sit and watch a performance with the sun sinking into the Ionian Sea far below.
2) The Summer Arts Festival. Held in the Teatro Greco, with film, theatre and music.
* The Torre d’Orlogio, or clock tower, dates from the twelfth century and sits on the Piazza IX Aprile, which has spectacular views across to Etna. This writer sampled a cappuccino at the Caffe Wunderbar, where Tennessee Williams used to begin his evenings on his yearly trips to Taormina, and where Richard Burton and Liz Taylor used to pop up for cocktails, leaving their yacht in the bay below. We ordered a cappuccino here once. Apart from being breathtakingly expensive it was a first for us in Italy … a genuinely undrinkable cup of coffee. We suggest you drink in the view instead and move on.
3) The cable car, funicular railway, sunshine ski lift, call it what you will, the carriage swoops swiftly down from Taormina town to the most popular beach in Taormina, Lido Mazzaro in a minute or two (and very reasonably priced too. Take a boat trip from here (there are boatmen touting for business out past the headland at Capo Sant’Andrea to the Isola Bella. Other beaches are the sandy stretches of Spisone, Giardini and Letojanni.
4) The Duomo (cathedral) sits on the Piazza del Duomo (cathedral square) along Taormina’s main street. It dates from around 1400 on the ruins of an earlier church. A three aisle layout, pink marble columns supporting the nave and the fish-scale patterning on the capitals reflecting Taormina’s seafaring tradition.
5) Chiesa Santa Caterina sits at the highest point of Corso Umberto I (Taormina’s main, pedestrianised street). This 17th century church is an intriguing mix of stark exterior and lavish baroque interior, with a wood-beamed ceiling.
6) The Odeon: Taormina’s other Roman relic, sits next to the tourist office,the little theatre partly covered by its neighbour, the Chiesa Santa Caterina. It dates from 21 AD and lay concealed until discovered by a blacksmith in 1892.
7) The Archeological Museum (Museo Archeologico di Taormina in the Palazzo Badia Vecchia (site of the old Roman baths).
8) Museo Siciliano di Arte e Tradizioni Popolari in the Palazzo Corvajo, also on Corso Umberto I. Full of local folk art from the 19th century, with painted glass, embroidery and animal figures - not so different from the stuff you’ll find on sale in the gift shops on the Corso today in fact. Which leads us to…
9) The shops on Corso Umberto I. A fair share of tack and tat to be sure, but under the blazing Sicilian sun and with a glass or two of prosecco onboard it’s easy to be seduced by the ceramic lemons and donkeys, and Taormina does do ornately painted plates like nowhere else.
10) The parks of the Villa Comunale and the Giardino Pubblico. The first was something of a folly created by Lady Florence Trevelyan, who was more or less exiled here after an affair with the future Edward VII. The latter is a lovely spot, shaded and overlooking the ocean … and it has a bar.
A handy local website published by people living in Taormina.
The website of Taormina’s comune.
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