4 Days in TAORMINA, THE PEARL OF SICILY/ ancient history, vineyards, things to do, guide & vlog

A veritable island paradise with crystal clear waters, impossibly beautiful architecture and lying in the shadow of Mount Etna, the most active volcano in Europe. There's no shortage of attractions in Taormina, the pearl of Sicily. The closest international airport to Taormina is Catania which is around an hour away. I personally opted to take the bus between the two cities which costs less than 10 euros and will take you straight to the town centre of Taormina. Most people only opt to stay a single day in Taormina. Up until the arrival of the Four Seasons Hotel and the subsequent filming of the White Lotus series, the town was seen as somewhere to stop off as part of a cruise tour. However, opting to stay in town for less than a day would be your first mistake. After all, wandering the cobbled lanes, being amazed by the ancient theatre and shopping for lemon themed products are just a few of the many things to do in town. We didn't have a great deal of exploration time on the first day and so we just had time to go out for dinner. We actually went to this really luxurious restaurant called the Ristorante Sant'Andrea which is in Mazzaro at the bottom of the hill. This is what I was wearing and this is the food that we had. It was literally amazing, it was this risotto concoction. I don't know why I didn't film it, probably a glass too many of wine but we then made our way back up the hill before going to Bedali for the first activity of our second day, which was our fast food day. We went to a pasta making class which we booked well in advance. I recommend booking at least one to two weeks in advance because the spaces for these kind of classes fill up very fast and there isn't a great amount of options in Taormina. I'm surprised at how much I ended up loving this class but basically we arrived in a local's home and it was a mother-son duo and they taught us how to make three different kinds of pasta. The most difficult type was definitely ravioli but I think they turned out pretty well probably because we were in the hands of a professional and then we learned how to make linguine which was equally as hard. The funniest part to me was kind of hanging on your arm to move it around. We then learned how to make a bechamel sauce before we sat down to enjoy all of the food that we had made and I have to say that the best part of a pasta making class is definitely sitting down to eat everything afterwards. My favourite one was personally the lemon pistachio pasta, it was honestly so delicious. If you are going to be spending a few days in Taormina then one of the best things you can do for yourself is dedicate an entire afternoon to just exploring the town. One of my favourite hidden gems that we discovered quite by accident when strolling the streets was the Odeon. This dates back to 21 BCE and is free to visit though I probably wouldn't recommend visiting during the high heat of the day because it can get pretty hot between the stones. Nevertheless it's worth checking out. One of the favourite pastimes for many people visiting Taormina is to go shopping. The main shopping street is Corso Umberto and this is where you'll find the majority of the shops. There are also a lot of luxury shops now though one of the most popular souvenirs remains ceramics which can be purchased in many shops across town. When wandering around town you will soon find that there's loads of little side streets which are honestly very gorgeous so do bring your camera along because you want to snap lots of photos. If you want to take photos without people in them I do recommend going earlier in the day because it gets very very busy, this is especially the case on weekends. Another spot that I really enjoyed that I'm not gonna try and say in Italian because my Italian is awful was the Piazza 9 Aprile and this offered a very beautiful view of Mount Etna, the Ionian Sea and we even saw a couple getting married in the church on the square so that was just There are a few ways to get down to the point where boats depart from but I personally don't recommend taking the Scalinata per il Mare as it's not very well maintained and can be a bit dangerous in places. This is the walking route so I would recommend either taking a taxi or getting a bus. You can also take the cable car down to the sea. It was pretty cool to get to see the shore from the water as we got to see Grottos, Isola Bella which is the most famous island off of the coast of Sicily and just in general enjoyed snacks and drinks on the Ionian Sea. On day three or every day if you like, start your day the right way by indulging in a traditional Sicilian classic, a granita. This shaved ice dessert is served up in various flavors including almond, strawberry, lemon, peach and more. In fact there's a changing daily menu of the flavors that are available. One of the most beautiful surviving amphitheaters from antiquity is located in Taormina. The Greek theatre boasts unrivaled views of Mount Etna as well as of the beautiful azure waters of the Ionian Sea below. Construction of the theatre probably began in the 3rd century BCE and over a hundred thousand cubic meters of rock had to be removed from the mountain in order to allow for its new construction. In Roman times the theatre likely held gladiator battles. If I could give you just one tip to visit the amphitheater it would be to make sure to buy your tickets online. You can normally do this on the same day as your visit and we literally did it four minutes before our entry time. You'll save so much time as you won't have to queue up over half an hour to buy physical tickets. I would also suggest to not be like us and visit the amphitheater in the morning or late afternoon. We partially went at midday and honestly the sun was so hot that it was definitely less enjoyable than it could have been. If I'm honest the gardens of Taormina are among one of the most beautiful public green spaces I've ever been to. Completely free to visit they lie on a terrace overlooking the impossibly green Mount Etna and on a clear day offer a beautiful view onto the azure blue waters of the Ionian Sea below. Even if you've been to wine tastings in Europe before then I can bet you've not tried very many Sicilian wines. Indeed there are over 65 native wine varieties from Sicily though since they've not been greatly exported until the last decade or so a lot of people haven't had the chance to try them. Reaching Gambino is not the easiest feat as it is literally perched on the foothills of Mount Etna. We opted to book a taxi to take us there and back from Taormina so that we could enjoy the wine tasting without having to worry about driving. Gambino winery itself was founded in 1978 and today you can pay for a tasting of the most popular wines. We tried four wines in total alongside some food though the most unusual thing that we were served had to be a boiled egg to go with the wine tasting. Surprisingly it was kind of tasty. The charming village of Castel Mola is widely regarded to be one of the most beautiful villages in Sicily and is perched precariously at the top of the mountain overlooking Taormina and the sea beyond. Those who enjoy hiking and don't mind the heat can walk the hundreds of steps from Taormina up to Castel Mola though obviously you don't want to do this in the middle of the day and so you should wait until the early evening or alternatively head out right early in the morning. The other option to reach Castel Mola is to take the bus though this is also not for the faint of heart because for just under two euros you'll pay to go on a windy road up a mountain pass that feels more like it was made for a Fiat 500 than an entire coach. Castel Mola doesn't have a great deal by way of attractions and the real charm of the village is simply to wander around and allow the settlement to reveal itself to you. If you enjoy sightseeing then note that there are a few gift shops and souvenir stores in town as well as some incredible viewpoints thanks to Castel Mola's strategic vantage point. Indeed the village was built around a Norman castle the ruins of which can still be visited today. They were constructed to protect the surrounding countryside. Today though the only danger in town is getting too full on pasta after all this is probably the spot in Sicily where we encountered some of the best restaurants. Though not necessarily a must if you have a final day in Taormina then I recommend going down to sea level to admire the islands soak up the Sun and enjoy a traditional Lido which is an Italian beach club. The easiest way to get down to sea level is by taking the cable car. The cable car actually wasn't working until the last day of our visit and we still don't know why it was apparently closed for months but fortuitously it was working and was definitely handy for reaching sea level on the final day. We then headed back into Taormina for our final evening where we enjoyed exploring the town. We stayed out really late just to see everything. I definitely recommend doing this during your time in the city because you'll just get to see Taormina without the crowd which is obviously quite a rare occurrence.