Our cruising shipmates booked this small group tour and we are glad they did. Sabrina was an excellent tour guide and Jacko was an excellent driver. We saw the highlights in both Taormina and Castelmola. I enjoyed seeing Mt. Etna and the village of Castelmola. I fell in love with the people and chocolates at Nino's & Friends in Taormina, and appreciated learning so much about the historic sites we saw here.
Since we did not book the tour, we did not know that we would miss the noon show at the Messina clock at Piazza Duomo. We left the port at 7:30 and returned at 2:30. If this is something you want to see, double check to see if your tour is in Messina at noon for the astronomical clock show with Ava Maria playing. It was our fault for not checking.
In Castelmola, we did not need a lot of time on our own, so we sat and waited for the rest of our group to finish shopping and exploring. Taormina has many beautiful sights - church, clock tower, fountains, Greek Theatre and more. BUT it is a commercial area with many shops and restaurants. When you book your tour, check to see if this is what you want for 3 hours of your excursion. I DID want to see the Greek Theatre, but the 3 others in my group were exhausted from walking & they were hungry. I did not know we paid for it, so I went with them to find food and a place to rest before the ride back to the ship. Again, my fault for not checking.
Looking back over the last 7 hours, I was VERY impressed with our guide - her knowledge and enthusiasm. Our driver was also amazing at navigating streets and making our ride as smooth and as comfortable as possible. The air conditioning was appreciated on this warm day & I was glad to have a charging cable for the charging port next to my seat for my phone!! All in all, this was a very good tour. read more