Taormina And Etna With The Gold Of The Gods
From Messina you will begin your exciting day and travel in comfort towards Taormina, approximately 1-hour away. Taormina's genesis and early history began with the Greeks who founded and named the town in 358 B.C. The climate is a dream, its position, perfect panoramas, monuments and luxurious flora and fauna render Taormina a location admired by all who visit it. The city lies on a terrace, with a view of the ancient Amphitheater against a backdrop of citrus groves with Mount Etna engulfed in the glory of the Ionian Sea beyond.
Once in Taormina, you will be guided for just over 1-hour with your local, knowledgeable and friendly guide where you will discover some of the treasures this medieval village keeps. Known as the Pearl of the Ionian Sea, view the ancient churches, palaces, unique squares with astonishing views, architecture, cafes and exclusive boutiques.
From here, continue to Mt. Etna where you will stop for a short visit at 1900m high. This is Europe's highest volcano and one of the most active in the world. Towering above the city of Catania on the island of Sicily, it has been growing for about 500,000 years and is amid a series of eruptions that began in 2001. It has experienced a variety of eruption styles, including violent explosions and voluminous lava flows. More than 25% of Sicily's population lives on Etna's slopes, and it is the main source of income for the island, both from agriculture (due to its rich volcanic soil) and tourism.
Leave Etna behind and begin to make your way back to Messina and make your last stop of the day at a local farm to discover what is known as the "Gold of the Gods", the local honey. The quaint, local village of Zafferana Etnea lies at the base of the volcano. At approximately 500m above sea level, the commune provides a cooler climate during the oppressive heat of summer. Nestled between mountain and sea, the green hills rise to the heights of Mt. Etna but is minutes to the Ionian Sea. Here you will indulge in a delicious tasting of local products to savor the true flavor of Sicily. Enjoy olive oil, bread, dried tomatoes, wine and honey that will give you a reason to never forget this destination.
About Shore Excursions Group
About Us
Shore Excursions Group is the market leading and world's largest shore excursion company. Since 2008, we've provided cruise passengers with higher-quality, lower-priced, and smaller group shore excursions from a portfolio of nearly 4,000 tours in over 300 ports. Over the last 16 years, we've delivered more than 4.6M excursions with a 4.7 out of 5 star rating from more than 47k reviews.
Exceptional travel experiences are created by exceptional people. Our incredible team of cruise and travel experts has more than 100 years of combined industry experience, and we work in close collaboration with a network of exceptional tour operator partners dedicated to providing personalized and immersive excursions to cruise passengers in the ports they visit around the world.
Our excursions are higher quality, lower priced, and travel in smaller groups averaging just 12 guests per departure, allowing our guests to truly connect with the local culture and enjoy a more enriching travel experience. Our website provides a personalized shopping experience highlighting the top-rated and most popular excursions in each port of call with authentic photos, videos, and reviews from other guests.
Our proprietary itinerary search technology makes booking easy by displaying the excursions guaranteed to work for your ship's scheduled arrival and departure into each port of call. We also feature hand-curated multi-port packages with the top-rated excursion for each port bundled together at an additional discount.
Our Unique Approach
While the cruise lines and other companies also offer excursions, we are the experts and our experience and approach set us apart. Our exceptional excursions travel in smaller groups and visit more interesting and authentic locations, using more personalized tour guides.
Our team uses a comprehensive approach to select the leading guides and best tour providers around the world. Every excursion is carefully curated and closely monitored through quality control and customer feedback.
In today's fast paced world, vacations are an important way to relax, reconnect with family and friends, and discover new and interesting places - and our portfolio of the highest quality tours was created to provide authentic and rewarding travel experiences on your next trip.
High quality service is very important to travelers and leads to better experiences with higher satisfaction. We encourage you to call us, so our experts can answer your questions and help you select the best excursions for your cruise.
Our Exceptional Tours
Our priority is providing cruise guests with exciting and enriching tours with personalized service and smaller groups.
Our small group tours range from 2-12 people - far less than other tour companies with larger tours up to 50 people. We also offer outstanding private excursions - exclusive experiences for only you and your group with options to fully customize your tour.
Our "Scenic" tours provide up close and personal access to some of the most spectacular natural environments on Earth from majestic glaciers in Alaska to spectacular reefs in the Caribbean.
Our "Cultural" tours allow customers to experience local customs, entertainment and culinary delights ranging from tribal dances in Alaska to an outstanding local meal in Santorini, Greece.
Our "Active" tours offer a multitude of exciting and adventurous ways to experience our destinations. Kayak the turquoise waters of the Caribbean, hike to a spectacular waterfall in Hawaii, or bicycle through quaint villages in France.
Our "City" tours allow travelers to see the highlights of great cities around the world with unique insights provided by our expert tour guides.
Our Guarantee
We stand by our excursions, and we're committed to meeting your expectations. Our team and our guides are dedicated to delivering exceptional experiences, which we've achieved consistently over many years and millions of tours. To the extent you are in any way dissatisfied with the experience we deliver, we will work to resolve your concerns - up to and including a full refund of your tour price. For more information visit the Shore Excursions Group website.
About Shore Excursions Group
About Us
Shore Excursions Group is the market leading and world's largest shore excursion company. Since 2008, we've provided cruise passengers with higher-quality, lower-priced, and smaller group shore excursions from a portfolio of nearly 4,000 tours in over 300 ports. Over the last 16 years, we've delivered more than 4.6M excursions with a 4.7 out of 5 star rating from more than 47k reviews.
Exceptional travel experiences are created by exceptional people. Our incredible team of cruise and travel experts has more than 100 years of combined industry experience, and we work in close collaboration with a network of exceptional tour operator partners dedicated to providing personalized and immersive excursions to cruise passengers in the ports they visit around the world.
Our excursions are higher quality, lower priced, and travel in smaller groups averaging just 12 guests per departure, allowing our guests to truly connect with the local culture and enjoy a more enriching travel experience. Our website provides a personalized shopping experience highlighting the top-rated and most popular excursions in each port of call with authentic photos, videos, and reviews from other guests.
Our proprietary itinerary search technology makes booking easy by displaying the excursions guaranteed to work for your ship's scheduled arrival and departure into each port of call. We also feature hand-curated multi-port packages with the top-rated excursion for each port bundled together at an additional discount.
Our Unique Approach
While the cruise lines and other companies also offer excursions, we are the experts and our experience and approach set us apart. Our exceptional excursions travel in smaller groups and visit more interesting and authentic locations, using more personalized tour guides.
Our team uses a comprehensive approach to select the leading guides and best tour providers around the world. Every excursion is carefully curated and closely monitored through quality control and customer feedback.
In today's fast paced world, vacations are an important way to relax, reconnect with family and friends, and discover new and interesting places - and our portfolio of the highest quality tours was created to provide authentic and rewarding travel experiences on your next trip.
High quality service is very important to travelers and leads to better experiences with higher satisfaction. We encourage you to call us, so our experts can answer your questions and help you select the best excursions for your cruise.
Our Exceptional Tours
Our priority is providing cruise guests with exciting and enriching tours with personalized service and smaller groups.
Our small group tours range from 2-12 people - far less than other tour companies with larger tours up to 50 people. We also offer outstanding private excursions - exclusive experiences for only you and your group with options to fully customize your tour.
Our "Scenic" tours provide up close and personal access to some of the most spectacular natural environments on Earth from majestic glaciers in Alaska to spectacular reefs in the Caribbean.
Our "Cultural" tours allow customers to experience local customs, entertainment and culinary delights ranging from tribal dances in Alaska to an outstanding local meal in Santorini, Greece.
Our "Active" tours offer a multitude of exciting and adventurous ways to experience our destinations. Kayak the turquoise waters of the Caribbean, hike to a spectacular waterfall in Hawaii, or bicycle through quaint villages in France.
Our "City" tours allow travelers to see the highlights of great cities around the world with unique insights provided by our expert tour guides.
Our Guarantee
We stand by our excursions, and we're committed to meeting your expectations. Our team and our guides are dedicated to delivering exceptional experiences, which we've achieved consistently over many years and millions of tours. To the extent you are in any way dissatisfied with the experience we deliver, we will work to resolve your concerns - up to and including a full refund of your tour price. For more information visit the Shore Excursions Group website.
