Belmond Grand Hotel Timeo

TripAdvisor reviewers have long eulogised the location, buildings and gardens of the lovely Grand Hotel Timeo together with its impeccable service standards of an earlier age. The sweeping views over the Bay of Taormina far below with Mount Etna in the background are stunning and quite beautiful. The hotel and its annex Villa Flora are close to the Greek Theatre and off the pedestrianized shopping street, Corso Umberto. Once through the gates and out of the bustling crowds the reception area is a tranquil oasis of calm. The hotel is immaculate with polished wooden floors, gleaming furniture and lovely flower arrangements. Our check-in was speedily completed, and we were shown to our room, a double deluxe on the second floor of the old hotel. The room was beautifully decorated and furnished with a marbled bathroom and good wardrobe space. Good, unobtrusive air conditioning. The high quality bed linens were changed daily and the bathroom had fluffy towels and expensive toiletries. Evening turn down and bathroom refreshed with replacement towels. Breakfasts, taken on the terrace, consisted of an extensive continental buffet comprising fresh fruit, juices, cooked meats, smoked salmon, preserves, local cheeses and pastries. There is also a good range of dishes cooked to order. The summer restaurant is set in the terraced gardens and close to the pool has a comprehensive light menu ideal for lunch time. Light snacks as well as drinks are available poolside. The large pool has attentive staff and is well furnished with comfortable beds and sun shades. Early evening drinks and then dinner on the terrace overlooking the Bay and towards Mount Etna was a delightfully atmospheric experience. The restaurant features Sicilian specialties from local fresh ingredients. The staff were helpful and informative. We also enjoyed the inspired cooking of chef Roberto Toro in the pop-up restaurant ???Otto Geleng??? also positioned on the terrace away from the main restaurant and terrace bars. The hotel runs a complimentary hourly shuttle bus down to their sister hotel Villa S'Andrea which was very convenient if a little dizzying on the decent to on the beach. We walked through the hotel and spent time by the pool but returned to our hotel for lunch and an afternoon shopping on Corso Umberto. We noted that there is a complimentary boat trip in the summer months and the excellent concierge will arrange local tours including an exciting tour of Etna by road or viewed by helicopter

My husband and I chose to have a destination wedding and got married there in June 2018. We chose the place because we have a positive experience with the Belmond group and Taormina for its spectacular views over mount Etna. Hotel Timeo is also a stunning location with the lovely gardens and luxurious hotel grounds. We were also confident that Timeo could deliver and cater for our wedding as they are highly experienced with these type of venues. We dealt mostly with Domenico, events manager and Alessandra, events coordinator. In the early months of the wedding planning we did feel that the response from the hotel was a bit slow and we did not get the information we asked for as fast as expected, which was a bit stressful for a couple planning their big day. I am guessing this is because they are very experienced at executing these kind of events and are know what they are doing however it sometimes left us feeling a bit forgotten. Perhaps also a bit of cultural differences as well :D Closer to date to date this improved and we were very well looked after. We visited the hotel a month prior to the wedding to do the menu tasting and go over details. This was a very pleasant experience and although we had pre selected the dishes to taste they offered to prepare other alternatives when me and my husband did not agree on our selections. On the actual wedding day they were faultless. Meticulous attention to every single detail. There was a risk for rain during dinner and they had actually done the dinner set up both outside on the terrace and inside as a back up. Our guests told us afterwards how impressed they were with the service during the aperitif and dinner as they knew which of the guests that had dietary requirements etc and had prepared special meals for each one of them. The food was amazing and Domenico showed flexibility to the time schedule and let us have fun a bit longer than agreed! I have not covered as much details as I would like but on behalf of David and myself I would like to say a huge thank you to Domenico, Alessandra and the team for making our day unforgettable. We can't wait to visit you again soon. Thank you! Sara

This place was absolutely incredible in every way especially the great staff on every level!!!! Rooms were immaculate views are great and restaurant service top notch. Would definitely come again and highly recommend.