Hello everyone,

We will be on the Carnival Freedom and stopping in Messina. Want to know if anyone has taken the train to Taormina, cruise excursion, or hired a private tourguide.

Thanks in advance,
susan

Hi Susan. You should go to cruisecritic.com and check the Roll Call for your cruise. Many of the Roll Calls are setting up tours to Taormina. Some are hiring their own buses that hold about 50 people to take them to Taormina - the cost works out to just over 10 Euros per person.

We stayed in Taormina with friends last fall who own a villa on the Corso Umberto, the main shopping street. We were there 9 days and still didn't see everything. Take a bus to Taormina for sure as it is lovely. Cruise excursion is very expensive! Train will drop you near the sea, which you can do, and then take the funicular UP to Taormina. It is way above the sea.

www.sicilylife.com are highly recommended in Messina

We went with Sicily Life in summer of 2006 and were pleased.

Carole