Atlantis Bay - The Leading Hotel of the World

The Ashbee villa sits at the eastern edge of Taormina, where the ancient hillside town dissolves into terraced gardens and the cobalt expanse of the Ionian Sea. Below, the pebble beaches of Mazzaro and Spisone curve around limestone headlands, their turquoise water cool even in August. Above, Taormina's historic centre climbs in tiers of honey-coloured stone, its Greek theatre framing Mount Etna's smoking cone against an endless sky. This is Sicily at its most theatrical: a landscape shaped by millennia of volcanic fire and Mediterranean light, where Phoenician traders, Greek colonists, and Norman conquerors each left their mark on the island's architecture and soul.

The neighbourhood of Spisone and Mazzeo stretches along the coast below the clifftop town, connected by winding roads that cut through citrus groves and bougainvillea-draped villas. Taormina itself is a ten-minute drive up the hill, its narrow streets opening onto piazzas where gelato melts faster than you can eat it. The Riserva naturale orientata Isola Bella, less than a kilometre south, is a protected island connected to the mainland by a slender sandbar at low tide, its scrubby vegetation sheltering rare bird species.

Catania-Fontanarossa Airport lies 48 kilometres south, reachable in under an hour along the coastal autostrada. Reggio Calabria Airport, across the Strait of Messina, is 39 kilometres north.

On-property dining centres on St. George by Heinz Beck, a two-Michelin-starred table where creative contemporary cooking unfolds on a palm-shaded terrace with sweeping bay views. Just up the hill, La Capinera (one star, 800 metres away) builds tasting menus around sea, air, earth, and fire, its Benjamin Button dish layering fresh pasta buttons with veal ragout and rosemary oil. Otto Geleng (one star, a kilometre inland) occupies a terrace draped in bougainvillea, serving Mediterranean and Sicilian plates beneath views of Etna's silhouette. Book a table at any of these before arrival; summer reservations vanish weeks in advance. The sand-and-pebble beaches below, Mazzaro and Spiaggetta delle Sirene, are immediate, their shallow waters crystalline over volcanic rock.

Beyond the property, the dive sites at Canyon di Angelo and Canyon del Diablo reveal underwater lava formations less than a kilometre offshore. Mount Etna, a UNESCO World Heritage Site 29 kilometres west, offers guided crater walks and lava cave explorations; its vineyards at Cantine Vivera and Gambino Vini, 15 to 17 kilometres upslope, produce nerello mascalese reds grown in mineral-rich volcanic soil. The Gole dell'Alcantara, 11 kilometres northwest, is a basalt gorge where spring-fed water runs ice-cold through narrow canyons carved by ancient lava flows.

Summer stretches from June through September, with temperatures climbing to 30°C in July and August, the air dry and haze-softened by afternoon. The sea warms to its peak in August, making dawn and dusk the best hours for exploring Taormina's sun-baked streets. Rain is nearly absent; the light is relentless and white.

Spring and autumn bring cooler days, mid-teens to low twenties, and more frequent showers that turn the hillsides green. October sees the heaviest rainfall, but between storms the light turns golden, the crowds thin, and the terrace dining feels more intimate.

Winter is mild, rarely dropping below eight degrees, with the most precipitation between November and February. Etna's summit wears snow, the beaches empty, and the fishing villages along the coast return to their off-season rhythms. The clarity of the air in winter makes the volcano's plume visible from greater distances.