We arrived in Noto, by chance, at the magic hour. On that cloudless summer day, the limestone capital of Sicilian Baroque architecture had begun to smolder with the setting sun. Earlier that day, my husband and I, along with our two young sons, decided to cut short our trip to the northeastern town of Taormina in favor of somewhere a little less raucous and touristy.

From everything we'd heard, the southeastern tip of Sicily, between Syracuse and Noto in the east and Ragusa and Modica to the west—with its concentration of sleepy hilltop towns, accessible Greek ruins, and unspoiled beaches all within a 17-mile radius—sounded like the right mix of high culture and much-needed Smashball time.

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Source: http://www.cntraveler.com/