My husband and I spent 5 nights in Giovanna`s apartment. Giovanna was easy to contact and sent information before our arrival. We got a taxi from the airport to the apartment just to make our lives easy with bags, but it is possible to get the airport bus to the train station if you need your journey to be cheaper.
Giovanna`s brother, Roberto (who lives on the third floor of the apartment building) was there to greet us. He showed us round the apartment(on the first floor, not too many steps), gave us information on places to visit and answered all our questions about things we wanted to do during our stay. It was very nice to be totally independent and yet know that Giovanna or Roberto were so easy to get hold of ,if we needed anything.
The apartment is in the historic centre of Catania. It is very well appointed and has everything you need in a "home from home". We loved it`s corner location with windows and balconies letting the sunshine in at all times of the day. The bed was comfortable. There was lots of storage space in the bedrooms . The bathrooms are modern and clean. The kitchen is spacious and has modern appliances.
The area feels safe. There are lots of shops, bars and restaurants close by. All the tourist sites are an easy walk away. The train station takes less than 10 minutes to walk to.
Catania is a vibrant city with lots of events happening all the time. During our visit we saw the start of one of the stages of the Giro d`Italia cycle race one day in the main square. Another day there was a childrens festival in University square.
As well as exploring Catania, we used the apartment as a base to explore other places on the east cost of Sicily. We used the train to go to Taormina and Siracusa. Both lovely trips.
At the end of our time in Catania we got the train to Palermo ,a 3 hour trip across the island , a lovely way to see more of the magnificent Sicilian countryside. We had 3 nights in Palermo and flew back to the UK from there.
Sicily is wonderful. We love Catania. Thank you Giovanna