Grand Hotel Miramare - Taormina

My friend & I stayed their w/c 8th Oct for 8 nights, on arrival we were upgraded to a sea view suite, which had a great view over the bay, including the isola bella. The walk to the town is about 5 or so minutes, just past the Cable car down to the beach. In relation to the hotel, the rooms are a bit dated, and in all honesty could do with an update, and a few more plug sockets. The Bath Towels are not the usual postage stamps you get in Europe, which is was a welcome surprise. They have fleece Blankets, which I took advantage of (I am a col soul) as well as kettle, tea & coffee... If you want to watch TV then you will be hard pushed, the English channels are far & few between. The bar area is modern and there is a great veranda where you can take in the view. Breakfast was good, however there wasn't much in the way of Gluten free (my friend), however I think this is more about Sicily than the hotel. For me there was enough choice, the ladies in the morning got used to our coffee order and were very friendly. We had a car and you need to pay 20 euros a day, however if you don't want to drive the Bus station is literally across the road, and is 7 euros from the Airport, from the BS you can get anywhere, so definitely worth it. The swimming pool is great, however for those of us that are slightly unfit :) then the 180 steps down is fine - however not so great on the way back. Whilst we didn't use the Bar/restaurant down there, people we spoke to said the food was really good and again the staff were lovely. I will be reviewing the restaurants we visited, however if you want to go for a special treat, go to Ristorante La Tavernetta - we had the best food there and the service was impeccable. I would definitely recommend this hotel, for location, friendliness, value for money.

This was our first visit to Taormina and while on arrival the hotel looks fairly unassuming, you cannot fail to be in awe of the breathtaking views - it is called Miramare for a reason, with beautiful views of the beach below, including part of Isola Bella. We stayed in one of the sea view suites and waking up to that view every morning was more than worth it. In terms of location, it really isn't that far out of town. If you go left out of the hotel, you get to walk past the iconic viewpoint and some lovely Byzantine tombs, as well as past the communal gardens, which are lovely to walk through. It takes about 10-15 minutes to get onto the main street. If you go right, it's a bit quicker - maybe 5 minutes or so and you are at Porta Messina right in the centre of town. In terms of the interior, yes it is dated but all perfectly clean and functional - I thought it gave it a nice vintage feel, but I am an archaeologist so naturally like older things. If you are after a fancy boutique hotel, this is not the place for you - its main attraction is the glorious view. Breakfast was fine, but the staff could do with being a little more courteous. We felt like we had done something wrong as many of the older guests (we are in our early 30s) were treated like royalty while we had to fight every morning to get our coffee order taken. Reception were very helpful, on the other hand. All in all, it was a lovely stay and I will treasure those views for as long as I live.