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Giardini-Naxos: what to know before buying a home

A municipality in the province of Messina, Sicilia. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Giardini-Naxos

The report looks at the exact point: landslide and flood risk, seismic zone, price per square metre for the area, services and nearby stops.

For example: Corso Umberto Primo 1, Giardini-Naxos.

Giardini-Naxos, the bay below Taormina

This is where the Greeks founded Naxos, their first colony in Sicily, and the archaeological park on Capo Schisò preserves what is left of it. Today Giardini-Naxos is the seaside town below Taormina: a long bay on the Ionian coast, closed to the south by the cape, lined with a promenade, hotels and holiday flats. A little further south the Alcantara reaches the sea, the river that runs through the well-known gorges further inland. The A18 motorway junction links the town with Catania and Messina.

Tourism shapes the property market. A large part of the housing is second homes and flats let for short stays, and in summer traffic, parking and noise change daily life for year-round residents. If you plan to live here, visit in August as well as in winter. The climate is zone B, among the mildest in Italy, so heating costs are low.

At the end of 2023 there were 9,363 residents, up 1.0% on 2011. The average age of 46.6 is close to that of the province of Messina (46.7); people over 65 make up 23.7% and foreign residents 7.1%, a high share for Sicily. Declared incomes are below the provincial average.

The whole province of Messina has high earthquake hazard, with 17 municipalities in seismic zone 1 and 91 in zone 2 under the Civil Protection Department's classification. Giardini-Naxos is in zone 2, and expected ground acceleration in the built-up area is about 0.207 g. For a flat in a building put up before the current seismic rules, ask for the year of construction, the final structural inspection and any work done on the structure, and check balconies and façades exposed to sea air.

The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes the cadastral maps, so the report finds the land parcel from the address. Near the mouth of the Alcantara and the streams coming down from the hills, it also checks the official flood maps.

Key points

  • On the bay below Taormina, site of the Greek colony of Naxos.
  • Many holiday lets and second homes: visit in summer too.
  • Seismic zone 2, expected acceleration about 0.207 g.
  • 9,363 residents, 7.1% of them foreign nationals.

Overview

Giardini-Naxos is a municipality in the province of Messina, in Sicilia. At the end of 2023 it had 9,363 residents, among the most populous in the province (9 of 108).

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Giardini-Naxos is in seismic zone 2, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible. Most municipalities in the province (91 of 108) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.207 g, a medium-high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

For anyone buying in Giardini-Naxos, the building matters a great deal: ask for the design year, whether it met the 2008 seismic standards, and whether any seismic retrofit has been carried out.

Population

Compared with the 2011 census, the resident population has grown by 1.0%. The estimated average age is 47 years, in line with the province. 24% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 23%). Foreign residents make up 7.1% of the population. On average, a household has 1.9 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Giardini-Naxos declared an average taxable income of 19,046 euros, below the provincial average (20,687 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Giardini-Naxos is in climate zone B, with 635 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 1 December to 31 March, for up to 8 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 5 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Giardini-Naxos has 11 schools and 4 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 7 grocery shops and supermarkets, 10 healthcare facilities, 20 sports facilities and 2 parks and green areas.

There are 1.1 healthcare facilities per 1,000 residents, more than the province average (0.8).

Public transport

We do not yet have open public transport timetables for this municipality: the report says so explicitly, without inventing distances.

How built-up it is

Buildings, roads, car parks and other sealed surfaces cover 35.4% of the land in Giardini-Naxos, compared with 6.0% in the province and 6.6% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.

Radon and contaminated sites

Official databases list no contaminated sites in Giardini-Naxos.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Giardini-Naxos: the report checks the address against the ISPRA maps.

House prices

The Revenue Agency's price ranges per square metre (OMI) apply to zones, not to whole municipalities: the report gives the range for the address's zone.

Land registry

The cadastral maps for Giardini-Naxos are public: from the address the report finds the sheet and parcel number.

Liveability area by area

The Vicinalia liveability index runs from 0 to 100 and looks at the place, not the people who live there: services within walking distance, transport, green space, natural hazards, air, quiet, buildings and connection. Here it is worked out at the centre of each of the 50 inhabited census areas in Giardini-Naxos. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 66 or more.

Residents by band

  • fair 33.4%
  • good 66.4%
  • very good 0.2%

Vicinalia index by census area, licence CC BY-SA 4.0. Data: IdroGEO ISPRA (2026), Istat, INGV, EEA, AGCOM, Overture Maps and OpenStreetMap.

The colour is the value at the centre of the area. For an exact address, search for it above: the free check looks at that exact point. How the index is worked out

Data sources

ISTAT code 083032. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.