Messina is renowned for its granita, and you'll devour one of the very best at this polished cafe-pasticceria. To order like a local, ask for a mezza con panna e brioche, which will get you a glass of coffee-flavoured granita topped with cream and served with a brioche bun for dipping. Other granita flavours are available, and it also sells decent cakes and pastries.
Irrera 1910
Messina
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
27.1 MILES
Taormina's premier sight is this perfect horseshoe-shaped theatre, suspended between sea and sky, with Mt Etna looming on the southern horizon. Built in…
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Museo Regionale Interdisciplinare
2.18 MILES
Messina's redeveloped regional museum is one of Sicily's lesser-known highlights, with an extensive collection of fascinating art and archaeology. Its…
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Museo Nazionale di Reggio Calabria
7.18 MILES
Over several floors in Southern Italy's finest museum you'll descend through millennia of local history, from Neolithic and Palaeolithic times through…
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18.5 MILES
If you have a car, don't miss the scenic drive north along Strada Panoramica to see the gorgeous, rugged coastline of Capo Milazzo. At the end of the…
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Parco Nazionale dell'Aspromonte
19.06 MILES
Most Italians think of the Parco Nazionale dell’Aspromonte as a hiding place used by Calabrian kidnappers in the 1970s and ’80s. It’s still rumoured to…
27.3 MILES
Taormina's chief delight is wandering this pedestrian-friendly, boutique-lined thoroughfare. Start at the tourist office in Palazzo Corvaja, which dates…
27.18 MILES
The short climb to the top of Monte Tauro (378m) is not exactly Himalayan, but it is steep and the final steps are quite hard work. Your reward is a…
27.26 MILES
Created by Englishwoman Florence Trevelyan in the late 19th century, these stunningly sited public gardens offer breathtaking views of the coast and Mt…
Nearby Messina attractions
1. Chiesa della Santissima Annunziata dei Catalani
0.38 MILES
This 12th-century church is a fine example of Arab-Norman architecture.
0.42 MILES
Piazza del Duomo is home to Messina's cathedral and its curious campanile (bell tower). Soaring 60m into the sky, the tower incorporates an astronomical…
0.44 MILES
The pale marble Fontana di Orione (1553) depicts a lounging Orion, the mythical founder of Messina. The fountain was constructed by Giovanni Angelo…
0.44 MILES
Messina's one great sight is the Norman Duomo (or at least a faithful replica of it). One of Sicily's finest cathedrals, its treasures include an…
0.84 MILES
Guarding Messina's harbour is the soaring golden statue of the Madonna della Lettera. A good spot to admire it and the harbour is from the seafront…
0.9 MILES
Located where Via Garibaldi spills into Piazza dell'Unità d'Italia, the 16th-century Fontana del Nettuno (Neptune's Fountain) is one of Messina's great…
7. Museo Regionale Interdisciplinare
2.18 MILES
Messina's redeveloped regional museum is one of Sicily's lesser-known highlights, with an extensive collection of fascinating art and archaeology. Its…
8. Museo Nazionale di Reggio Calabria
7.18 MILES
Over several floors in Southern Italy's finest museum you'll descend through millennia of local history, from Neolithic and Palaeolithic times through…