Day trips from Catania by public transport

day trips from Catania by public transport - Syracuse Ortygia Piazza del Duomo

Sicily’s second city of Catania makes an ideal base for day trips by public transport to Taormina, Syracuse and Mount Etna. Here’s what to see and how to get there.

Catania day trip 1: Taormina – for ancient ruins and vertiginous viewpoints

Taormina is famed for its ruined Greek theatre, which dates back to the 3rd century BC. Teatro Greco may be hyped up, but it’s worth the visit – the relatively intact amphitheatre looks to the stage, and Mount Etna looms (or smokes!) as a backdrop.

day trips from Catania by public transport - Taormina Teatro Greco
The Teatro Greco in Taormina. Who wouldn’t want to take a day trip here?

The rest of Taormina is postcard pretty, but has the accompanying tourist factor. Prices are far higher than Catania and elsewhere in Sicily.

To escape the crowds, head up to the Monte Tauro viewpoint, a 20 minute signed schlep up from the bypass (Via Circonvallazione), which runs roughly parallel to the tourist drag of Corso Umberto. The views over Taormina are worth the effort.

day trips from Catania by public transport - view over Taormina
A steep hike, but well worth it!

How to get from Catania to Taormina on public transport

The Catania to Taormina bus departs from Catania’s main bus station. The main bus station (not to be confused with the bus stands and small lot in front of the train station) sits a block back from the main road that runs past the train station.

Buses between Catania and Taormina are run by Etna Trasporti. They’re every half hour or hour, depending on the time of day you depart, and take about an hour and ten minutes to make the journey. A return ticket is €8.50. You can find timetables at the Interbus website.

Buses arrive fairly centrally in Taormina in a small bus station. It’s about a 5-10 minute walk from here to the centre – just follow the line of gift shops! Catch the return bus from the same small bus station.

There is a Catania to Taormina train, but the station in Taormina is 2km downhill from the centre. It’s also infrequent. The bus is a better bet.

Catania day trip 2: Syracuse – for beautiful buildings and creepy catacombs

Syracuse’s historical centre is on the peninsula of Ortygia. You could spend hours wandering its alleyways and coastal lookouts.

day trips from Catania by public transport - Syracuse Ortygia
A photo-opp on every corner …

Despite the tourist-attracting UNESCO world heritage status, Syracuse feels a lot more real than Taormina, and prices – even in prime locations – are very reasonable.

The Piazza del Duomo (Cathedral Square) is the centre piece of it all. This picture gives a flavour for how spectacular it is, and speaks louder than my words.

day trips from Catania by public transport - Syracuse Ortygia Piazza del Duomo
Niiiiiice! Syracuse’s Piazza del Duomo doesn’t disappoint.

Underneath the square, and accessible from it, are the Catacombs of St John. Now set out as a museum, they have some pretty interesting exhibits down there!

day trips from Catania by public transport - Syracuse Ortygia catacombs
One of the original inhabitants of Syracuse’s catacombs.

Away from Ortygia, Syracuse is also home to ancient Greek ruins, spread out over the Parco Archeologico della Neapolis. The 5th century Greek theatre is impressive – but – in my opinion, not a patch on the one at Taormina. However, the scale of the park overall is larger, and it’s worth a visit if you have a couple of hours to spare.

How to get from Catania to Syracuse on public transport

You can reach Syracuse by bus or train from Catania.

The train takes between 1hr 5 minutes and 1hr 20 minutes and costs €6.90 each way. Trains are every hour or two hours, depending on the time of day. You can find timetables and buy tickets at the Trenitalia website (available in English as well as Italian). Syracuse is Siracusa in Italian. As with all Italian trains, validate your ticket before you board.

There are also regular (approximately hourly) Interbus buses between Catania and Syracuse. They take around 1 hr 25 minutes. Find the timetable on the Interbus website.

Buses leave from the bus station in Catania, located as described in the Taormina day trip. They arrive at Syracuse’s bus station, which is a couple of blocks from its train station.

It’s a walk from Syracuse’s train and bus stations to the attractions. At a decent pace, it takes about 20 minutes to walk to Ortygia and around 20 minutes to the ruins. They’re in opposite directions from one another.

Catania day trip 3: Mount Etna – for mild adventures at altitude

The summits and craters of Europe’s most active volcano boast an other-worldly atmosphere, alternating between a dark ashy hell and a red landscaped Mars. Both are incredibly photogenic, especially against a bright sky.

day trips from Catania - visiting Mount Etna
A volcano, or Mars? This pic was taken in late April, and the hat/jacket and sunscreen were most definitely needed 🙂

From Refugio Sapienza at 2000 metres above sea level, you can cable car and/or walk/jeep to the summit and craters at 3000 metres.

At this altitude, be prepared for a possible shortness of breath, intense sun, and all weathers. There’s loose ash everywhere, so beach flip flops are not recommended ☺

How to take a day trip from Catania to Mount Etna

There’s only one bus a day each way between Catania and Mount Etna, so don’t miss it ☺

The AST bus from Catania departs from the small lot near the stands outside the railway station (not the main bus station) at 8.15am. It takes 2 hours – with a stop en-route – to reach Refugio Sapienza, which is the closest you can get on public transport. The return bus is at 4.30pm, arriving back in Catania for around 6pm.

Buy your bus tickets in advance from the ticket office, and your cable car / jeep tickets for the summit at the Refugio. Check out my full and detailed post about Mount Etna logistics, timetables and pricing to find out more.

I stayed in an Airbnb apartment for most of my time in Catania, and also had a one-night stay in the slightly fancy and recommended Liberty Hotel. I used the Lonely Planet Guide to Sicily as an overview guide. Help the site by using these links, at no extra cost to you.

These are just three possible day trips from Catania by public transport. And there are more … you could also take day trips to Noto and Enna. Catania itself is also full of charms – sometimes of the shabby chic variety. Just writing this makes me want to go back!

Have you used Catania as a base for day trips? Where else would you recommend? Share your tips and ideas below.

Julie Sykes of The Gap Year Edit

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Hi, I'm Julie, a York (UK)-based travel blogger and comfort-zone pusher. Join me as I bring you pics and musings from my mildly adventurous travels around the globe. My mission is to hear you say, "I"m so glad I did it!" instead of, "I wish I could, BUT ..."

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10 Responses

  1. Been trying to find a site that tells me how to get around without a car – but all links come up as ‘self drive tours’!! So glad I stumbled across your site, all the information has been a massive help and will make sure these day trips go smoothly for us when we visit in October. Thanks for all the details!

    1. Thanks Jessica, really pleased it’s been helpful 🙂 Plus, the money saved by not hiring a car can be used on (a lot of) Sicilian ice-cream, which is a bonus! Have a brilliant trip, Julie

  2. Great info, thank you! We are travelling with a baby and trying to plan bus and train travel instead of a car. This is helpful!

  3. Hi Julie, many thanks for sharing, I’m heading to Catania on Sep 29th and will stay 5 days – plenty of time for the day trips you recommended! I’m actually heading to Sicily for pistaccio harvest at Bronte, but want to see around as well. Thanks again!
    Cheers,
    Danka

    1. Hi Danka,
      Your message has just promoted me to google Bronte pistachios 🙂 They look delicious … hope the harvesting / post-harvest celebrations go well and that you have a fabulous trip to Sicily!
      Happy travels, Julie

  4. You’ve really helped me plan my trip. Thanks. Going on 4th September and staying in Catania so your info is perfect. Theresa.

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Day trips from Catania by public transport
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