Our first three days in Sicily were spent in Giardini Naxos. After arriving by Ryanair in Palermo and picking up our hire car, we drove the 200 miles or so along the north and then east coast, following the A20 and A18. This was a bad choice, as it turned out. The road from Palermo to Cefalu is pleasant enough, but the 50-mile stretch of Autostrasse beyond Cefalu is not yet complete (as of September 2004), and the existing single carriage route, heavy with freight, is a very tortuous affair as it rises, falls, twists, and turns along the steep coast line. When the Autostrasse appears, it’s heavy with tolls. Our return journey to Palermo via the A19 through the interior was much more rapid and very light on tolls.
Anyway, Giardini Naxos is relatively laid back for Sicily. It appears to have no other real function than as a resort, so it has less of the work-a-day hustle, bustle, and grime of some other towns. Arriving by car gives you two immediate problems. Firstly, the resort is predominantly one-way, and locating your hotel can be difficult, despite the town's relatively small size. Then there is the parking. Parking is not particularly difficult, but it is expensive, and trying to find free parking is a futile exercise. All parking is subject to a one-euro-per-hour charge from 9am to 9pm, payable to the patrolling blue-vested Poliza Municipale. FIND ONE BEFORE THEY FIND YOU. Fines are stiff and dished out with glee. If you find a parking spot that appears to be free, it probably isn't. If you plan on staying in the resort for any number of days, it will be cheaper to use one of the commercial car parks on the edge of town. The Hotel Villa Mora put us in touch with Franco 0942 52606, who charges €7 per day for secure parking and pick-up/drop-off services.
So, the merits of the resort? First, a very nice, long beach along a shallow bay with warm, safe waters. Much of the beach is given over to private hire; that is, you must pay about €7 per day to use a two-sun-lounge/one-umbrella pitch, but the pitches are clean and well-kept, so the charge is not unreasonable. Most have changing cubicles and a toilet, as well, so you can set yourself for the day. The resort’s second merit is its good choice of reasonably priced restaurants and bars. Business along the front is quite competitive, and you may well find that there is little to be gained by shopping around, with quality and value consistently good. The third merit is its handy location for a visit to Taormina (about four miles along the coast - take the public bus and save yourself the hassle of getting parked in Taormina) and Mount Etna (about 40 miles). There are several organised tours to Mount Etna departing from the resort; prices seem to come in at about €30 per person. Driving there yourself, if you have a car, is easy and takes about 70 minutes.
I've recommended some accomodations, eating and drinking options in my other journals. Many bars and restaurants offer lovely evening views over the bay, and the arrival of the occasional cruise ship moored in the bay only adds to the romance. On the whole, we wish we'd stayed here a bit longer.