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Visit Messina

Messina is located at the north eastern tip of Sicily (the closest point of Sicily to mainland Italy), and is the third largest city of the island.

Messina, like Syracuse and many other Sicilian cities was once populated by the Greek.

In 1908, a devastating earthquake hit Messina, along with a tsunami, which destroyed much of the historical architecture of the city. Most of the city was rebuilt after the incident. One of the major landmarks lost to the earthquake was the 12th century Cathedral of the city which was rebuilt in 1919. The city was also victim to significant damage in bombing raids during the Second World War.

Messina has a rich historical and cultural tradition and offers a number of tourist attractions. Among the top attractions of Messina, the Cathedral of Messina, the Orologio Astronomico, which is the Bell Tower with the Astronomical Clock, in the main square, the Cappuccini Monastery, Annunziate dei Catalani Church, the 13th century structure that survived the 1908 earthquake and is reflective of inspiration from Arab architecture. See also the fine 16th century Fontaine de Orione at the Piazza del Duomo and the Palazzo Corvaia.

One of the most important attractions is the Regional Museum of Messina, which holds valuable works of art by artists such as Antonella de Messina and Caravaggio.

Since Messina is a coastal city, it features proximity to a number of beaches. The Capo Calava, Brolo, Mortelle and Capo d’Orlando are beaches near the city. Cape Calva is the right beach for those who would like to relax themselves on an isolated beach.

Not far south along the coast from Messina is Taormina, which is another Sicilian coastal city and offers beautiful beaches of Giardini and Letojanni.

Messina is unique from the rest of the Sicilian cities, as it is linked to the Italian mainland. Messina is separated just by 5 kilometers of the waters of the Strait of Messina from the Italian mainland province of Calabria. Villa San Giovanni, an important landmark in Calabria, is just across the Messina straits from the town.