Hotel Villa Diodoro

The location is lovely, next to the communal gardens with beautiful views over the sea and towards the hills /mountains and it is quiet. Access from the street is down a sleep slope or steps so not good for those with mobility problems. Taxis can usually drop you off at the door. You need to walk up to the centre of the town and you have to negotiate some steep steps and/or slopes to get to Via Umberto the main shopping street. There are some restaurants, bars, and gift shops before you start the climb. The staff are pleasant, helpful, professional and courteous. The hotel is a little faded with a traditional elegance but lacks atmosphere. There are 2 slowish lifts (elevators). Reception is on level 0, the restaurant and bar are down on -1 and there are steps to get into the restaurant from the lift. We only had breakfast which is buffet style, although you can ask for a cappuccino or expresso from the bar rather than the self service machine. The continental breakfast options were fine - rolls, bread, croissants, cakes, ham, cheese, salami, hard boiled eggs, cereal, yogurt and some fruit. The hot breakfast choice was poor - bacon was fatty and greasy and the scrambled eggs were sloppy and usually cold. I spoke to people who had half-board and most seemed ok with the food at dinner. The bar has inside and outside seating. They serve a good range of alcoholic drinks, as well as coffee and tea. However if you wanted only a snack, rather than eat in the hotel restaurant, the only thing available was a ham and cheese toastie. The pool is further down the hillside so you need to take the lift down to -2 and then walk through the gardens with about 50 steps in sections to negotiate to get the pool so not suitable for anyone with a wheelchair and difficult for anyone with walking or respiratory challenges. However the pool area is lovely. It is a good size and there are plenty of loungers. Towels are available at the snack bar area (drinks, salads and filled rolls available). Our bedroom was fairly large, quiet and overlooked the gardens. The bed was comfortable, firmish but not rock hard. Pillows were a bit bouncy for me,. The bathroom was a good size with a shower over the bath and there was plenty of hot water. The towels were somewhat thin. Housekeeping was good and our room was serviced every day. Can’t comment on the air conditioning as it wasn’t hot enough. Overall, the hotel is ok, but not great. My partner wasn’t keen on it at all, otherwise I would have given 3*. If I was visiting Taormina again on the shoulder season, I would book somewhere on Corso Umberto. However if you are there in high season and want some tranquility, could be worth considering the Villa Diadoro as the town centre gets really crowded and it is an oasis. Avoid if you have mobility challenges.

Not worth the money!! The rooms do not match the photos, they are very small, cramped bathroom, we could sit on the toilet and wash our hands in the sink at the same time!! Charged 3 Euros for bottled water in the room, and paper cups provided. The Breakfast was awful, not what you would expect from a 4 star hotel. The number of times we had to ask for the Scrambled egg dish to be refilled. When it was, it was cold, the bacon was half cooked, also cold. If you like cake for breakfast, then you can get plenty, Very old style, feels like a nursing home without the nurses. Not all staff are friendly! When we checked out, we were not even asked if we had enjoyed our stay...Front desk staff need some training how to treat guests. Don't waste your money!!

Just returned from a week at Diodoro and it was a mixed experience. Firstly the positives. Location is unbeatable. 5 min walk to town, next door to the public gardens and opposite the ancient amphitheatre. Room was clean and spacious with a lovely balcony and breathtaking views of Mount Etna and Naxos bay. The pool terrace was the jewel in the hotels crown. Excellent service from Salvo and the team. Lovely food and drink and the pool, whilst quite cold was large and inviting. The views from the terrace are probably some of the best in Taormina. Now the negatives. The hotel would have been very glamorous in its heyday but is now jaded and dated. Needs some serious investment. Breakfast was disappointing sadly. Terrible coffee, slow service, poor selection of breakfast items and not great quality. After the first day, we walked into Taormina every morning and had breakfast out. Apart from the pool staff, the service seemed formal and stuffy, and in stark contrast to everywhere else in Taormina. Overall we have had a great week but don't feel it deserves more than 3 stars. However, as a base to explore this beautiful area, I would recommend.