Must-see attractions in Ionian Coast

  • Museo Regionale Interdisciplinare

    Messina

    Messina's redeveloped regional museum is one of Sicily's lesser-known highlights, with an extensive collection of fascinating art and archaeology. Its…

  • Greek theatre in Taormina

    Teatro Greco

    Taormina

    Taormina's premier sight is this perfect horseshoe-shaped theatre, suspended between sea and sky, with Mt Etna looming on the southern horizon. Built in…

  • Monastero delle Benedettine

    Catania

    The Monastero delle Benedettine covers two adjacent sites: a Benedictine convent and the Chiesa di San Benedetto. Top billing goes to the church, built…

  • Teatro Massimo Bellini

    Catania

    Completed in 1890 and made for homegrown composer Vincenzo Bellini, Catania's opera house is suitably lavish, from the stucco-and-marble extravagance of…

  • La Pescheria

    Catania

    Catania's raucous fish market, which takes over the streets behind Piazza del Duomo every workday morning, is pure street theatre. Tables groan under the…

  • Church of St. Joseph at Piazza IX Aprile on Corso Umberto, the main street in Taormina, Sicily, Italy, Europe

    Corso Umberto I

    Taormina

    Taormina's chief delight is wandering this pedestrian-friendly, boutique-lined thoroughfare. Start at the tourist office in Palazzo Corvaja, which dates…

  • Fontana dell'Elefante and Saint Agatha cathedral, Piazza del Duomo, Catania, Sicily, Italy

    Piazza del Duomo

    Catania

    A Unesco World Heritage Site, Catania's central piazza is a set piece of contrasting lava and limestone, surrounded by buildings in the unique local…

  • Castello Sarazeno, Monte Tauro, Taormina, Sicily, Italy

    Monte Tauro

    Taormina

    The short climb to the top of Monte Tauro (378m) is not exactly Himalayan, but it is steep and the final steps are quite hard work. Your reward is a…

  • Funivia del Etna cable railway to Etna volcano. Sicily, Italy

    Funivia dell'Etna

    Mount Etna

    Funivia dell'Etna runs a cable car from Rifugio Sapienza (1920m) up the mountain to 2500m. Once out of the cable car you can attempt the long walk (3½ to…

  • date: 2006/09/06 | release status: NR

    Fontana dell'Elefante

    Catania

    Taking centre stage on Catania's showpiece Piazze del Duomo is the city's most memorable monument, the smiling Fontana dell'Elefante (Fountain of the…

  • Vila Comunale park in Taormina, Sicily island, Italy. Old ruins in the park.
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villa comunale

    Villa Comunale

    Taormina

    Created by Englishwoman Florence Trevelyan in the late 19th century, these stunningly sited public gardens offer breathtaking views of the coast and Mt…

  • Via Etnea

    Catania

    It's not difficult to see how Catania's main shopping street got its name – on a clear day you can see Mt Etna rising majestically at the end of it. Via…

  • Cattedrale di Sant'Agata

    Catania

    Inside the vaulted interior of this cathedral, beyond its impressive marble facade sporting two orders of columns taken from the Roman amphitheatre, lie…

  • Piazza del Duomo

    Messina

    Piazza del Duomo is home to Messina's cathedral and its curious campanile (bell tower). Soaring 60m into the sky, the tower incorporates an astronomical…

  • Duomo di Messina

    Messina

    Messina's one great sight is the Norman Duomo (or at least a faithful replica of it). One of Sicily's finest cathedrals, its treasures include an…

  • Castelmola

    Taormina

    For eye-popping views of the coastline and Mt Etna, head for this cute hilltop village above Taormina, crowned by a ruined castle. If you're reasonably…

  • Chiesa di San Giuliano

    Catania

    Attributed to Sicilian baroque maestro Vaccarini and built between 1739 and 1751, the Chiesa di San Giuliano features an elegant convex facade and, above…

  • Museo Civico

    Catania

    Housed in the brooding 13th-century Castello Ursino, Catania's civic museum holds the valuable Biscari archaeological collection, an extensive collection…

  • Museo Belliniano

    Catania

    One of Italy's great opera composers, Vincenzo Bellini was born in Catania in 1801. The house he grew up in has since been converted into this museum,…

  • Santa Maria la Scala

    Ionian Coast

    There are two reasons to make the 2km downhill walk to this minute fishing village. One is the walk itself, which, once you've crossed the main road, is a…

  • Le Ciminiere

    Catania

    Le Ciminiere is a modern museum complex housed in a converted sulphur refinery. The most interesting of its museums is the Museo Storico dello Sbarco in…

  • Catacomb

    Ionian Coast

    Located beneath a 17th-century Capuchin monastery, Savoca's small catacomb is considered one of Sicily's most significant. Its mummified corpses date back…

  • Parco Archeologico Greco Romano

    Catania

    West of Piazza del Duomo lie Catania's most impressive ancient ruins: the remains of a 2nd-century Roman Theatre and its small rehearsal theatre, the…

  • Museo Diocesano

    Catania

    The most obvious reason to visit this museum, adjacent to Catania's duomo, is to see the Fercolo, the famous silver reliquary bust of Saint Agata that's…

  • Chiesa Badia di Sant'Agata

    Catania

    With an elegant concave-convex facade reminiscent of Borromini, this 18th-century church was designed by Palermitan architect Giovanni Battista Vaccarini…

  • Castello Ursino

    Catania

    Catania's forbidding 13th-century castle once guarded the city from atop a seafront cliff. However, the 1669 eruption of Mt Etna changed the landscape and…

  • Museo Emilio Greco

    Catania

    The Museo Emilio Greco hosts a large collection of sketches by renowned Italian artist Emilio Greco (1913–1995), whose work is marked by a sensual, erotic…

  • Via Crociferi

    Catania

    A lovely, tranquil spot for a morning stroll, Via Crociferi is one of Catania's most attractive streets, famous for its exuberant baroque churches and…

  • Teatro-Museo dell'Opera dei Pupi

    Ionian Coast

    Acireale has a long tradition of puppet theatre, and you can learn all about it here. One-hour guided tours of the museum are available in English, albeit…

  • Chiesa di San Giuseppe

    Taormina

    Overlooking Piazza IX Aprile, this jewel-box church was completed in the early 18th century. The central portal is made of local marble while the portals…

  • Museo Storico dello Sbarco in Sicilia

    Catania

    The most interesting museum at Le Ciminiere museum complex, Museo Storico dello Sbarco in Sicilia sheds light on the WWII Allied landings in Sicily…

  • Castello Normanno

    Ionian Coast

    Built in the 13th century, this dark, brooding Norman castle sits over an earlier Arab fortification. It's in surprisingly good shape considering its age,…

  • Fontana del Nettuno

    Messina

    Located where Via Garibaldi spills into Piazza dell'Unità d'Italia, the 16th-century Fontana del Nettuno (Neptune's Fountain) is one of Messina's great…

  • Chiesa di Sant'Agata al Carcere

    Catania

    The young virgin Agata resisted the advances of the nefarious Quintian (AD 250) and was horribly mutilated (her breasts were hacked off and her body…

  • Beach

    Giardini-Naxos

    Giardini's long beach (mainly sand and coarse grey pebbles) curves around the crescent-shaped bay between Capo Taormina and Capo Schisò, a lick of…

  • Museo Arte Contemporanea Sicilia

    Catania

    Old and new conspire at MACS, a compact, contemporary-art museum inside an 18th-century abbey of the Monastery of St Benedict. Occupying two floors, the…

  • Fontana di Orione

    Messina

    The pale marble Fontana di Orione (1553) depicts a lounging Orion, the mythical founder of Messina. The fountain was constructed by Giovanni Angelo…

  • Arco di San Benedetto

    Catania

    The Arco di San Benedetto is an arch built by the Benedictines in 1704. According to legend, it was built in one night to defy a city ordnance against its…

  • Santuario Madonna della Rocca

    Taormina

    Built inside a grotto on Monte Tauro, this small church was founded by the abbot Francesco Raineri in around 1640. According to legend, the Virgin Mary…

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