MESSINA TO TAORMINA need help

[ALBOB330]

We will be arriving messina on the Galaxy and would like to get to Taormina on our own--

I see there is a train that connects to a bus or taxi that seems to work out well . The only problem is I have no idea where the train station is . There seems to be 4 options when I write the word Messina on the train site.

I 'm not sure but I think we need the central station. Has anyone done this ? I would appreciate any help or ideas about doing this on our own instead of the ship tour

 

Thanks in advance

 

Bobbie

[maggiekam]

We were in Messina and went to Taormina. We took the ship's tour because it was a holiday and a Sunday and most things were closed. Taormina is a good distance from Messina and we were in port only till 3 pm. A driver might be a good solution but with the Euro exchange rate, check out how much it will cost. The old city of Taormina is way up on the hill. Buses and cars park at one end and you walk around the city. The resorts of Taormina are quite a distance below on the beach. I do not recall a train station in the old town, but I was not looking for it either. Make sure you know where the train is going or you may have to make additional taxi arrangements. That said, it is a beautiful place and well worth a visit. It is small and gets quite crowded so go early. We enjoyed it very much.

[jcjbloca]

The train station is a ten minute walk from the pier, to the left side as you exit the cruiseship terminal. You can buy a R/T train ticket at the train terminal - trains are quite frequent to Taormina. At Toarmina train station there is a connecting bus that takes you up to the town (cost extra, but cheap). Return is the reverse. There is a cablecar that takes you down to the beach from the town. Side-by-side to the Messina Train Station is the bus depot. You can also take a bus directly to the town of Taormina, just as fast (maybe faster since you do not need to wait for the busride up after the train.)

[ALBOB330]

jcjbloca

 

thanks so much for the great info.

 

A few more questions please--if we prefer to take the bus do you happen to know if the bus terminal is walking distance to the ship. Also I tried getting the fare and time schedule for interbus but couldn"t find it. Do you happen to know the link for that info in english

 

I checked out the price for the train and if I am checking it correctly it is more money then our ship is offering for the transportation. We would prefer doing it on our own so we can come and go at our own pace but $56 p.p. train plus the price of the bus from the train station seemed high.

 

Thanks again to all who reply

 

Bobbie

[OCTravelerGene]

Hi Bobbie:

 

We did the above on our own, for far less than Princess was offering. We took the train to Taormina (very inexpensive) and a taxi up the hill from the Taormina train station to the town itself. It's a beautiful little town. Then we walked down a zigzag walking trail from the town back to the train station. Enjoy!! Gene

[ALBOB330]

thanks Gene

 

I got the origional train trip price from Eurorail-- (55Euros return trip)

what a ripoff

I just checked with the Italian rail co. Trenitalia and it was very inexpensive as you said (6.30 Euros return trip.) You learn something new every day and this was my lesson for the day. Hope this message saves someone else from making the mistake of using Eurorail for buying point to point tickets .

 

Bobbie

[jcjbloca]

Bobbie

I see you've now got the correct price for the train. The bus depot is just side-by-side to the train station. When you get there, check both train & bus schedule and take whichever is leaving first, the price is very comparable.

[Lorian]

How about a taxi to Taormina? Has anyone done that and was it expensive?We will be there on a Sunday. Are Things closed down?

[GrammaZ]

We are doing Messina to Taormina and Etna in September on the Liberty. We have rented a car from Hertz for the day for 58 Euros including 100 kilometres and all the taxes etc. We figure about another 150 kilometres (which I am being very generous) at .17 each should do the trip, an additional 26 Euros, plus petrol & tolls, which Via Michelin estimates at 9 Euros for a total of 93 Euros. Divide that in two and that's about 46 Euros per couple, far cheaper than Carnival excursions. The driving seems not too crazy in this part of Italy and pretty straightforward. This might not suit your circumstances but I am presenting it as information for others.

[jeno]

Which train station is the one close to the port? It sounds doable on our own, but there is a choice of 4 stations. Thanks!

[gsb]

any new info >??

[bon voyage!]

We were in Messina last year and took the ships tour to Taormina in the am. We had friends who decided to go on their own with the train. They left the ship the same time we did and arrived in Taormina about 1 hr after we did, then had to leave the same time (around 12:00) because of the train schedule. Apparantly the train did not run as often as the online schedule they had seen at home. So unfortuntely, they ended up with more hassle and less time in Taormina than we did with only a half day ship tour. If we had to do it over again we would rent a car and spend some time in the town, then go down to the beach below. Not too much to see and do in Messina, so it is best to find alternatives. Good luck

[cougfan]

We were in Messina last October. We did the ships tour to Taormina in the afternoon. In the morning we walked to the Regional Museum which was a nice 2 mile walk along the water. We were the only people in the museum. We than went to the Cathedral and saw the astromomical clock do its display at noon. I really enjoyed this port.

 

Julie

[vacationaddict]

We are doing Messina to Taormina and Etna in September on the Liberty. We have rented a car from Hertz for the day for 58 Euros including 100 kilometres and all the taxes etc. We figure about another 150 kilometres (which I am being very generous) at .17 each should do the trip, an additional 26 Euros, plus petrol & tolls, which Via Michelin estimates at 9 Euros for a total of 93 Euros. Divide that in two and that's about 46 Euros per couple, far cheaper than Carnival excursions. The driving seems not too crazy in this part of Italy and pretty straightforward. This might not suit your circumstances but I am presenting it as information for others.

 

How did your drive work out? We are going in May 2006 and thinking about renting a car.

[bonnieg]

I am also leaning towards renting a car for my July cruise. Is the parking lot a close walk to the town? Is there parking at the beach below town or do I need to take the tram? Thanks for upping this post.

[GrammaZ]

The car worked really well in Messina. We used Hertz, which is just across and down a little bit from where the ship docks. The staff we encountered didn't speak much English but we managed fine. It also doesn't open until 9:00 so getting off the ship early isn't any real advantage. The roads are totally manageable, comparable to country driving here in North America. You have to contend with the tour buses, they don't move too fast.

 

The only suggestion I could give is do Taormina first. It is a beautiful little town, no traffic allowed. The parking lot is only about a two or three minute shuttle ride from town. A substantial amount of parking in a two or three floor parking structure. We did Etna first and it took about an hour and a half to get up there. By the time we walked around a bit and then got back down to Taormina it was well after 1:00. Most stores started shutting down for siesta around 1:30. Some remained open but not the ones we were interested in. Didn't have time to go over to the open theatre which was a disappointment as many said there were beautiful views from there. Our ship required us back on board by 4:00 or 4:30. If we had to do it over again, we might even miss Etna. Later that night our captain detoured to Stromboli which was an amazing light show. If you don't take a private tour of Etna you are just walking around volcanic rock and looking at small craters. So to each his own.

[vacationaddict]

Thanks so much for the information. We contacted a private tour company and they wanted 320 Euros to go see Mt. Etna and Taormina. Seemed expensive to me. Do you think it is worth renting a car and driving to Taormina and then driving around the area. Our ship is there from 7am to 2. Which we will need to be back by 1pm.

Thanks

[tom_uk]

GramaZ said:

The only suggestion I could give is do Taormina first. It is a beautiful little town, no traffic allowed. The parking lot is only about a two or three minute shuttle ride from town.

 

I'm watching this thread with interest - I'm on Galaxy in June with a call at Messina, and a trip to Taormina is very much on my agenda.

 

Can you remember how the shuttles work? Do they just run between the carpark & the town? Any cost?

[GrammaZ]

Yes, the shuttle is free but you have to pay for parking. The shuttles run about every 10 to 15 minutes.

[24butterfly]

Thanks so much for the information. We contacted a private tour company and they wanted 320 Euros to go see Mt. Etna and Taormina. Seemed expensive to me. Do you think it is worth renting a car and driving to Taormina and then driving around the area. Our ship is there from 7am to 2. Which we will need to be back by 1pm.

Thanks

 

You will be cutting it awfully close. IMO it would be best 4U to take the ship's tour--no hassles--no worries. Taormina doesn't really "open" until 10-11am. It's also at least 1 hour or so to Taormina. Also, for you to go to MT Etna AND Taormina in that short of time is literally impossible--esp. since you don't know where you are going exactly. No cars are allowed in Taormina--i.e.--it's not a drivers town. You will also have to park down below and take some sort of ride to the top where the town is. To save a few bucks and try and outsmart the cruiselines when you have so little time in port--you'll miss it all.

[bestdent]

We will be on the NCL jewel 8/06/06 and we are wondering if we should take the chip tour in Messina to Taormina, or should we hire a private guide?

[bonnieg]

I will be on the NCL Jewel on 7/30. We will be renting a car from Argusrentals.com which was recommended from Hank on these boards. The rates start at $40US inc insurance. They open at 8:30am and was told that they will meet you at the ship. I did a mapquest between Messina and Taormina and it's a very easy drive. We plan on spending the morning and then lunch in Taormina and after that we will spend time at the beach. This seems to be one port which is very easy to do on your own. I would save the private drivers and ship excursions for other ports.

[happy1]

Thank you for the tip on car rentals. I hadn't considered it but it will be much cheaper for our family of 4 and provide some flexibility too.

[elaineagogo]

Has anyone hired a taxi? We are 8 persons on the Noordam July 10 and really not sure we want to take the ship tour but our time to be back is 2:00pm so what if we had a problem? What about just staying in the town of Messina? What to so and see?

[Bob7]

We'll be in Messina in July and also want to do Taormina again. We did the ship tour a couple years ago and it was too rushed and too expensive, but lovely 1 hour drive up the coast by Greyhound. The ship tour is now $142US. (choke). The train is only 6 euros but the times are inconvenient. The bus would be great but we can't find departure/return times. Apparently the bus station is right beside the train station, wherever that is. A car rental from ArgusRentals.com sounds interesting, the highway was easy, and $40 incl insurance is terrific.

And more advice or ideas?

-Bob