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Excursion and Tour
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| TAORMINA
AND GOLE DELL'ALCANTARA TOUR |
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Over the wonders of the biggest active volcano
of Europe, you will have the possibiliy to visit
the Alcantara river, which did its bed on the lavical
ground, made wonderful narrow gorge, a real natural
sanctuary.
More Information about Taormina e Gole dell'Alacantara»»
INFORMATION ABOUT TAORMINA
It lays down on a rocky plateau, 200 metres of altitude.
Its position is amazing, between the sea and the mountain
It was a travel aim since the 18th century, with its warm temperature, the beautiful landscape and peacefulness made Taormina famous all over the world.
Some greek refugees from Naxos,in 358 b.C., gave the name of Tauromenion.
A part from the name even the aspect is greek, they built the agora, and the acropoli on the top of the hill..
The ancient Theatre belongs to this period, the symbol of the city is of the III century b.C.is surrounded by a wonderful landscape.
INFORMATION ABOUT GOLE DELL'ALCANTARA
A long time ago, a small volcano in the north of Etna , woke up and erupted a huge mass of lava that went til the sea forming capo Schiṣ.
Then the tortuous route of the lava river was plough by a water stream that cleaned and smoothed the rocks from the tapping slag.
At the end of its route, maybe the water met a mass of rag and continued its route and liberated two walls of strong basalt, peculiar for their prism shapes.
They are the throats, of which today is possible to admire just a part.
The Throats (le gole) are viable just when the waters are shallow in a area between 50 and 200 meters.
At the entrance it is possible to have boots (fisherman like) to wear in order to avoid getting wet, because the waters of the river are always cold.
Normally the riverbed is viable from May to September.
For the rest of the year you can arrive at the entrance of the throats. About 50 kilometres of river boom, with naturalistic sides which are unique and unusual. .
Geological and geometrical events of remarkable intensity determined the structure of the present basalt.
It seems that in a pre-historic period a river used to flow on a clayey sediments; then huge volcanic eruption brought fluid magma in the river bed, which sunk in the most clayey tracts, and determined the present colonnade of basalt.
There is also a legend which tells that once upon a time the Alcantara river flowed quiet in a calm riverbed, with no shock or jump and made the valley rank.
But people was mean, they did not respect nature and they damaged it.
In the valley there were two brothers that grew a wheat field.
One of them was blind. When sharing the crop, the healthy one took the biggest part.
An eagle, that was flying above the field saw it and told everything to the Lord, who throw a lightning against the cheap one, who died.
The lightning also hit the mound of wheat and transformed it in a red mountain, by fuming, a lava river sprang out which arrived till the sea.
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| USEFUL INFORMATION |
A car will pick you up from your hotel.
A skilled escort will be at your disposal during the tour, making the tour both
extensive and easy.
During the lunch break you can taste some typical local dishes.
At the end of the tour you will be driven back to your hotel.
The itinerary may be changed without notice, due to traffic, overcrowding, temporary
closure of some places, atmospheric troubles, snow storms and other similar reasons.
A minimum number of two people is necessary. Otherwise, the price may vary. |
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| TARIFFS |
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| € 95,00 to
person / 6 or more persone € 85,00 each |
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| For children from
0 to 12 years old , the price is 65,00 euros
each. |
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| Frequently Asked Questions? click here |
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| SPECIAL
PRICE FOR GREAT GOUPS |
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| WHAT SEE TAORMINA |
The ancient theatre which
at the beginning was Greek (hellenistic period)
has been transformed and enlarged during
the Roman period.
The Greek theatre obeys to the classic designs, with a semi-circular
space for the musicians, the choir and dancers. The Romans removed the first
line of steps to transform the orchestra in arena, and added a hallway
for the entrance of gladiators and ferocious beasts. From the cavea we can sea
the stunning Etna landscape.
Umberto I Avenue is pleasant for walking, a bit uphill, very
quiet, full of restaurants, cafès and fashionable shops. Sideways tiny
streets where you can feel the fragrances of bread and almonds.
Communal villa gardens. A large range of flowers and plants
are grown in this park, which once was private and where the owners built exotic
buildings.
The Duomo square. At the
middle of the square a baroque fountain
made of Taormina rocks, with a circular
base, opens to east. On it the emblem of
the city, a centauro, designed in a female
version, which has instead of four
feet, two arms holding a ball and a wand,
symbols of the power.
Fortezza cathedral, the name given to the cathedral dome, built
around 400 on the wrecks of a middle age small church dedicated to Saint
Nicola of Bari.
The gothic architecture of the old abbey belongs to the 4th
century. It is supposed that the name of the building is Old Abbey, because in
the past it was an abbey.
Corvaja palace. The name comes from the Corvajas, one
of the most patrician and old families in Taormina, who owned it from 1538 to
1945. It has a combined arabian, gothic and norman style, as a result of many
transformations brought by the various rules.
S. Stefano dukedome. Built at the end of 1300 and at the begining
of 1400, it was an included part of the second surrounding wall of the city.
It’s a masterpiece of the sicilian gothic art, but part of the arabian-norman
experience.
The clock tower is the entrance to that part of the city used
as a 4th century suburb.
San Giuseppe church, built during the second part of the 17th
century, is the only baroque church of Taormina.
Santa Caterina church , built during 1600 on a place that was once a
little Roman theatre, the Odeon. On the portal, made of pink marble, there is
an architrave reproducing a triangle gable of a Greek temple.
Piazza IX Aprile. It is the elegant parlour of Taormina, full
of bars and with “the most charming landscape of the world”.
The Odeon. It is smaller than the ancient Theatre. It is thought
that Odeon was a place for plays and musicals reserved for very important persons.
The Naumachie are the most important Roman monuments of
the island.
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| GOLE DELL'ALCANTARA |
The Alcantara river flows, tortuous and inaccessible,
1200 metres on Etna sides.
A Thousands of years ago a strong lava flow, aroused from a crater of Mojo, invaded
the valley and covered the riverbed.
Getting cold the incandescent magma formed high walls of basaltic prisms
geometrically perfect.
During the following millenniums, the cold and inaccessible waters of Alcantra
river eroded the lava flow drawing a landscape similar to a canyon, le gole dell'Alcantra.
The descent on foot permits to see the whole view of the opening part of the “Gole”.
Once you arrive at the riverbed, the walls more than 50 metres high, press in
the middle a tongue of water showing their ambiguous beauty: black geometrical
structures that raise one in front of the other and chasing each other toward
the sky.
The lines intersect, forming pentagonal and hexagonal prisms or irregular figures
that play with the light drawing monstrous or graceful shapes.
The contrast is strong and seems getting stronger by seeping in the interior,
when just three elements remain: the rock, the water and the sky.It is the sun
that draws the black outlines of the shaded parts and the clear ones, it refracts
in thousands of little mirrors the drops of the falls that sometimes go along
the walls. |
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1. How long does the escursion last?
The excursion will start at 09:00 and it will finish around 18:00.
2. How far is Taormina from Catania? And how long does it take?
The distance is around 50 km, on motorway. It takes around 1 hour.
The “Gole dell’Alcantara” is 25 km far away from Taormina, it takes 30 minutes.
3. In which type of vehicle will the excursion be led?
By jeeps with 6/8 seats or minibus with 8 seats. All vehicles are comfortable and air-conditioned.
4. Do we visit on foot or by car?
We will arrive by car, but the places will be visited on foot for a better appreciation of their beauty. You will not walk too much, in fact the longest walk takes 15 minutes.
5. Is it possible to decide wether doing the excursion on foot or by car?
It is possible only if you book an individual tour (the price varies).
6. Will you pick us up at the hotel or another place if requested?
Yes, but if you are in a place outside of Catania, you must pay an additional price.
7. In which language will the tour be?
There will always be a driver/escort speaking fluent English. Other languages must be requested.
8. Do I need to wear any specific clothing?
We suggest you wear comfortable shoes (for trekking) and clothes. We also suggest you wear different sorts of clothing together because of the temperature changes. It is important to wear a coat during winter and to bring a light jacket during summer.
9. Will we have lunch? And is the lunch price included?
A lunch break will take place to taste the food specialities. The lunch is not included in the price.
10. Archaelogical ticket entrances are included in the price?
No, they aren’t included in the price.
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