Hotels near Catania Fontanarossa Airport - CTA, Catania

Catania was a bit surprising, and not in the best way. Compared to other Italian cities I’ve visited, the city lacks cleanliness and in some places has an unpleasant smell. In many cafés, the waiters speak English poorly, but everything can be worked out. People are friendly. If you choose a good place to stay, you can walk to many spots. There are both paid and free beaches; we chose a paid one for comfort (sunbeds). It’s convenient to travel to Syracuse or Taormina by bus. I would recommend staying for 1–2 days and then continuing to explore other parts of Sicily.

At the first glance, the streets and the buildings seem dark and dirty, but I would say that Catania is just not as photogenic as many other cities.The feeling changes once you get used to the dark (volcanic) stone it was built with; I am from Dalmatia (Croatia) and I am used to the white marble we have so Catania seemed weird and even ugly at first. But give it time! My plan was to use Catania just as a base for my visit to Etna craters (I strongly recommend), so I did not expect anything from the city itself, I stayed for a very short time and missed a chance to visit everything it offers, but I think that was a mistake and that I might come back! Visited both Greek and Roman theatre, had some cannoli. The airport is very close to the city, don't miss visiting gorgeous Taormina while you are in Catania!!! (And far less gorgeous and messy Siracusa and its stunning Greek theatre and Archeological museum).

Catania is conveniently placed, you can visit very interesting places by public transport - Taormina, Siracuse, Messina,Noto, Ragusa and other places. The weather in November was fantastic, sunny, warn but not hot, ideal for walking and exploring.

Catania is the capital of "Dark" baroque immersed in history with a plethora of churches and historical palazzi. The coffee and sweet pastries are second to none. Try a raviola with sweet ricotta baked or fried and your palate will never be the same. Due to over fishing and global warming the variety of the fish displayed at the historical fish market has unfortunately noticeably declined. The administration should consider going the full mile and plan an underground/overground frequent connection from the airport to the city centre (sesticoro metro).

Catania is a different than any other city in Sicily. You either love or hate it . Give a chance walk around visit flee markets, antic theatre some churches has amazing views from some on whole Catania and Etna . Go to Theatre Bellini for an opera. Seat in front of cathedral have a coffee and Minne di Sant’Agata

2 days in Catania were just enough, unless you start visiting the places around the town. The city is very interesting , from the history point of view, but unfortunately most of its beautiful architecture is in a dire need of renovation+ streets are dirty - almost everywhere. Tour guides and stuff in restaurants are very nice, just be prepared that their 10 minutes is about 3 times longer than on your clock or more:-)