Catania from Taormina: Market, Baroque Centre and Benedictine Monastery

The fish market is a morning place, while the Benedictine Monastery requires a timed guided visit. Its official tours currently run daily from 10:00 to 17:00 and places are limited.

The short answer. The guided Benedictine Monastery visit is the bookable anchor of the day: 75 minutes, 4.7 stars from 620 reviews. Its title lists it as an English-language tour; check the language for your date.

What the tour covers

The listing describes the cloisters, the kitchen, the Roman houses, the academic library on the sixteenth-century floor and the cellar built on the lava. The monastery is the part of Catania that really needs a guide; visit the fish market and Piazza Duomo on your own beforehand.

A day in Catania, in order

Fish and street market first, then the cathedral square with its dark lava-stone baroque façades, then the monastery tour. Booking the 75 minutes for a later slot leaves room for lunch. The listing gives no timetable for getting from Taormina to Catania and back, so settle that yourself before choosing a slot.

Guided or independent?

Choose the guided visit if the monastery matters more to you than a photo of its façade. The drawbacks are the fixed slot and the limited places. If you prefer long meals or museums at your own pace, skip the tour and see the monastery at most from outside.

More trips are listed under day trips from Taormina.