From this coast the sea is a road. The Aeolian islands are a hydrofoil ride away and each one is a different holiday — one still smokes, one is a black beach, one has almost nothing on it, which is the reason to go. Further south, Ortigia is an island you reach on foot across a bridge.
Timetables are seasonal and the sea has the last word: an August crossing and a February crossing are not the same journey.
A day trip works, but the islands change completely after the last boat leaves — that is when they are worth staying for.
Getting there is the part nobody plans properly: ferries, hydrofoils, and the drive to the port all have to line up.
The catalogue is open but still being filled, one business at a time, by hand. If you run something around Etna, this is the moment to be among the first.