Things To Do in Giardini Naxos

If you want more than just a meal and a stroll along the promenade, Giardini Naxos should have enough pubs and karaoke joints to show you a good time. And if you want more, head over to Recanati for open-air discos and piano bars. On Via Lanuzzo, you’ve got mega club Marabu – which has played host to DJs Carl Cox and David Morales.

Giardini Naxos has 4 seafront lidos. These gated areas are set back from the shore, with their own super-clean pools, sunloungers and cafés serving pizza, pasta and chips. There are a few kids’ play areas, too. You’ll pay 5 or 6 euros to get in but you’ve got use of the complex all day.

Giardini Naxos has four seafront lidos. These gated areas are set back from the shore, with their own pools, loungers and cafés serving pizza, pasta and chips. There are a few children’s play areas, too. It costs around five or six euros to get in, but you’ll be able to stick around all day.

Giardini Naxos’ waterfront is home to upmarket open-air trattorias. Dinners here easily run to five courses, with dishes like sardines with fennel and fresh, homemade linguine. Be sure to leave room for Sicilian cannoli and a glass of the local limoncello.

The waterfront in Giardini Naxos is home to the resort’s swankiest open-air trattorias. Dinners often run to five courses, with dishes like sardines with fenneland homemade tagliatelle. Make sure you leave room for cannoli – Sicily’s trademark take on a cream horn – and a glass of the local limoncello.

You’ll find this waterfront restaurant at the end of a private footpath next to the Hellenia Yacht Club. The place specialises in seafood, and the delicious antipasti comes with smoked tuna rolls and vine leaves stuffed with swordfish. For mains, you might want to try the seafood spaghetti – but be sure to leave plenty of room for the heavenly tiramisu.

Retail-wise, you can browse the weekly market for bags and clothes, or shop for souvenirs and shoes in Recanati. If you’re looking for Prada, Gucci and Armani, head for Corso Umberto 1 in Taormina. Along with the high-end designers, this famous street also does a good line in jewellery, antiques and pottery.

Sicily's renowned for its fish dishes, and there’s a big celebration of seafood in Giardini Naxos between the second week of June and early July. Naturally, there are plenty of fish-themed feasts, so it’s a good time to come and tuck into swordfish, octopus and crayfish – all freshly netted from the sea.

The ruins of Naxos are nestled on a hilltop, 10 minutes’ walk from Giardini Naxos, on the headland of Cape Schiso. There’s not much left of the old city walls, but the views over the bay make great photography fodder. When you’re done Instagramming, make tracks for the nearby museum, where you can swot up on the site’s history by looking at ancient coins, bowls and painted pottery.

This isn’t so much a bar, more of a 21st-century multi-platform drinking experience. You can browse the iPad menu for cocktails like the Puccini and White Colada, then play games and music videos on the app-powered touch-screen tables. You could even plan your next day’s activities while you sip, using the interactive map.

Giardini Naxos has a good selection of pubs and karaoke bars. For a really late night, though, head for Recanati, where there are open-air discos and piano bars that play music into the early hours. You’ll find superclub Marabu on Via Lanuzzo. This place has welcomed big-name DJs like Carl Cox and David Morales.