We enjoyed a lovely 5-day stay at Cristina's apartment in Taormina in February. Her place is spacious, clean, and has a beautiful terrace overlooking the picturesque seaside town with views of Etna. Taormina's main shopping street is only five minutes walk away down the steep steps, and it doesn't take more than 20 minutes to walk to all the major sights in town - a great location. The best restaurant in town (Tiramisu) is located about 10 minutes walks down Via Leornardo da Vinci. The apartment is also accessed from Via Leonardo da Vinci and involves walking up around two flights of stairs from the road to get to the front door. For those not used to the stairs, you may find yourself puffing by the time you reach the top, but the climb is worth it for the views! Inside the apartment you'll find a spacious living room, a well-appointed kitchen, a clean compact bathroom, comfortable bedroom, and large terrace. We visited in February when temperatures were a little low, but there are several heaters in the apartment (a gas cylinder, radiator and warm air conditioning unit) to keep you warm.

Cristina also makes you feel very welcome when you arrive with lots of little treats around the apartment. Although Cristina herself wasn't available to meet us when we arrived, her friend Claudio (who lives next door) kindly met us (even though we showed up late in the evening - past 11pm) and showed us around the apartment.

On a separate note: one bit of advice I would offer to new visitors to Taormina (and Sicily more generally) is to be aware of the driving conditions. Apparently one sixth of all hire cars are returned with damage to them. One major reason for this is the narrow streets in town (the other reason is the somewhat unusual traffic conditions). Taormina is no exception and virtually all cars have dents in them. So if you are driving and want to avoid denting your car, I would recommend arranging garage parking. Cristina kindly offered us use of her garage, which is situated just below the apartment, and costs an extra €20 euros per night. That may seem expensive, but it is par for the course in Taormina and we found it convenient having the car safe, secure and close by. Be aware though - it's quite a tight fit, so you'd be best off hiring a small car!

Overall, a fun relaxing stay. A little cooler than we would have liked, but that meant the town was quiet and not overrun with tourists. Taormina is a pleasant, picturesque town and Cristina was an excellent host. I would recommend the apartment as a relaxing pad and great base for your holiday.