Hotel Ariston

Stayed here for seven nights during August. Whilst the main body of the hotel takes on a more traditional appearance, the bedrooms here appear nice, bright, and modern. We had a sea-view room with a small balcony which was nice, no complaints. The rooms were serviced everyday, towels replaced upon request due to the hotels commitment to providing eco-friendly service, which was a theme we saw throughout the hotel - i.e no straws in drinks unless you ask. The location of the hotel is very good, but perhaps not suitable for those with limited mobility due to various steep inclines. It's a stones throw away from the main bus terminal of Taormina which was handy for us as we ventured out on many day trips that left from this location. Whilst it could get busy in the day I did not feel like it was a disturbance to us, once you get inside the hotel it feels like a world away. The pool area is enjoyable, but can get very busy in the day so I would recommend securing your sunbeds when the pool opens, especially if you are a bigger party. The pool is very deep with no shallow area, but there were flotation aids scattered around the pool for less confident swimmers to hold onto. Only complaint was that it felt a little claustrophobic at times with sunbeds being very close to each other. Pool warmer than hot tub surprisingly! Oh, and the bar staff around the pool are lovely. I agree with another reviewer who said that while the staff were professional and efficient at providing good service throughout our stay, there was a lack of affable friendliness that one might come to expect, for example no small talk asking about how our day was or if we were enjoying our stay in Taormina. However, this is not so much a complaint but rather us agreeing with others observations. I do want to give props to the reception staff who were wonderful and helped us out on numerous occasions, including arranging tickets for us to attend a opera concert in the town one night. One of the highlights of our stay was the weekly gala dinner, which consisted of a buffet-style meal accompanied by some live folk music and dancing. It was a nice evening, I thoroughly recommend that if it isn't included in your package that you book for it as it was a nice authentic touch that allowed us to experience some true Sicilian culture. However, whilst I think this one night eating at the hotel was nice, I don't think I would recommend booking the half-board option as we did. It appeared as if we were one of the few couples staying at the hotel who had chosen this option and over the course of our stay it became clear why. The outdoor dining area while nice was awfully quiet some nights with little to no atmosphere. There was evening entertainment, but it mainly consisted of light ambient piano music, which would be nice if the dining area wasn't practically empty some nights. It seemed many people opted to take the short stroll into town for their evening meals, upon reflection if we returned we would probably do the same. The set menu is 22 euros for 4 courses, which on paper is a great bargain, especially if you like the look of the menu. I just don't think this option was suitable for our tastes. Overall I would say that we had an enjoyable time in Taormina, as well as at the Ariston, despite mixed feelings.

We stay at 3 nights. We could walk to teatro Antico (andrea bocelli concert) very Nice Staff, reception, breakfeast, pool and the wiev from our Room. We ære coming back. We could walk to everything. Lovely place.

I cant believe I forgot to do my review after returning from here in June. Think I must have written one for the company I booked with. Anyway, better late than never...... The property was in a good location to the town centre, a nice 10 minute stroll away with lots of shops and bars. Room was cleaned daily and fresh towels supplied. We were on the ground floor with outside table and chairs and a really high wall (cliff) but although we did not have any views it didnt affect our enjoyment. The pool area is very pretty and the water was a nice temperature, not freezing like others I have been in. The cable car is just a short way up the road which we used once to visit Isola Bella but didnt feel the need to visit there again, we much preferred the town. If going down to the beach area make sure you have jelly bean shoes as your feet will get cut to ribbons on the shingles. (This is what put me off) We also booked a Mafia v Godfather Tour and a half day Mt Etna tour through Trip Advisor and which I have reviewed separately. All in all I would recommend the Ariston.