Malta/Sicily Day 8: Taormina, Sicily

Sunday, June 21, 2026

This morning the Sea Cloud II passed through the Strait of Messina separating Sicily with the Italy mainland. We disembarked nearby at Messina, and took a one-hour bus ride to the town of Taormina.

Like Erice, Taormina is another city situated well above the coast for defensive reasons. We were given a guided tour of the town, culminating in a large and well-preserved Greek theatre that had since repurposed by the Romans. Behind the stage was a wonderful view of Mount Etna. We were given an hour or so to explore the theatre and walk back through town (shopping) to our bus.

The bus next took us to Castello degli Schiavi, an estate that was the site for some of the filming of The Godfather and its sequels. We were met with appetizers, then visited the main house and viewed an excerpt showing the estate in the movie. This was followed by an elaborate lunch, accompanied by a trio of musicians who walked among the tables playing appropriate music (a little too loudly, in my personal opinion). The lunch consisted of several courses and was delicious.

Following lunch, we had an opportunity to see more of the house and many period furnishings that were located inside, and many of us had pictures taken on the balcony featured in The Godfather.

The bus then brought us to the port of Giardini Naxos where we were transferred to the Sea Cloud II via tenders (actually, the ship’s lifeboats). Upon our return, we had the usual cocktail hour, recap of the day and plan for tomorrow, and a smaller dinner than usual on account of the size of our lunch.

This article is part of a series about our recent trip to Malta and Sicily. To see the introductory article in the series, click here.