Taormina: Confused....
 

Hi,
We are planning a trip to Taormina and looking for accommodations (mostly apartments). In some logding sites, when I do a search in "Taormina", it brings up some accommodations that doesn't seem like it is in Taormina. Some accommodations, will says it's a 10 minute drive from "Taormina" We will not have a car so we want to walking distance to the main attractions or near a bus. We will be traveling in winter time (Nov - Feb) so we probably don't need to be right on the beach. We are also traveling with children, so pushing a strollar. We would like to be within walking distance from all the main attractions (or near a bus).

Are all these areas in Taormina? Which one should I consider?
- Giardini Naxos
- Capo Taormina
- Taormina Mare
- Taormina City
- Porta Messina
- Porta Catania

Giardini Naxos, Capo Taormina and Taormina Mare are all *below* the actual town of Taormina. Porta Messina and Porta Catania are the main gates of the town, but on www.venere.com the areas with those names include the areas below the town. Taormina City *ought* to be the actual town.

I suggest you use maps.google.com to locate each hotel individually; it's the only sure way to know whether they are actually in the town or below (or above) it.

The local buses, as well as the buses which connect Taormina to Catania (and the Catania airport), and Messina, also make a couple of stops in the populated area "below" Taormina proper. You need to ask each hotel the exact distance to the bus stop. If you end up staying in Taormina proper, there is the bus depot on Via Pirandello, from where you can walk to just about anywhere in the old town. I believe that the closest hotel to the bus depot is the Pensione Svizzera, on Via Pirandello, a 3-star property which closes for part of the winter.

Taormina is "uppa da hill" but you can get there by bus from Giardini Naxos or Letojanni in 20 min, the center blocked to non-residents so you must park in the pricy parking garage and walk to town if you come by car! Taormina has fake old store fronts, snooty shop girls, and everything double the price you will find elsewhere. If you are impressed with fakery and snobbery, you’ll love it! If not stay at the beach (the best one is in Giardini) and enjoy the "real Sicily".

I agree with sea2Sicily on the general character of Taormina.

You might check out staying in Castelmora, which is just above Taormina with gorgeous views and a regular shuttle bus to the main part of Taormina. I've never stayed at the Villa Sonia, but it looks appealing.

All that said, if you have a stroller, getting on and of Italian buses with a stroller is not much fun. You might find efficiency apartments in some hotels directly inside Taormina.

I doubt that you are going to want to spend more than a day touring Taormina, and if you are thinking of using it as a base for day trips, it is not a fun town to drive in and out of at all. You would be much better basing yourself in a good agriturismo in the neighboring hills, preferably one that will cook dinner for you every night, and that will rent you with an apartment with a kitchen. I don't know what the rest of your itinerary is, but a countryside location anywhere around Messina, Taormina, Catania or Adrano usually makes for a convenient base for touristing most of that side of Sicily.

You say that "We will be traveling in winter time (Nov - Feb) so we probably don't need to be right on the beach." You might want to keep in mind that I was there in March and it was cold, rainy, and windy.

You might also consider staying in Ortigia (Siracusa) rather than Taormina if you're going to be there for more than a couple of days. It's much less touristy and more interesting.

Ortigia has the added advantage of being very flat.