Italy's Islands

If you are looking for a summer island getaway, why not one of Italy's spectacular islands?  My passion for Italian islands began when I was a teenager, when I was lucky enough to be invited to spend a week in Sardinia with a friend and her family.  The emerald and turquoise waters of the Mediterranean combined with fresh seafood and pasta made for a perfect week's vacation.  And from the north of Sardinia, a ferry took us to visit Corsica for a day, in less than an hour's trip each way.  We had a delicious French lunch at an outdoor cafe in Bonifacio, and wandered around the picturesque town that sits on top of seaside cliffs. I returned to Sardinia in 2018 with my husband, son and nephew, and can’t say enough good things about our three days at Valle d’Erica, a sprawling resort on the seaside with several beautiful pools, incredible restaurants, and gorgeous beaches. Make sure you stay on the newer side of the resort, La Licciola, which I think has the best pool, from which you can stroll the path to the resort’s biggest sandy beach. Eat lunch every day by this pool, as we will never forget its fresh seafood pastas. Be sure to take a half-day boat trip out to the Maddalena Islands, which boast water as clear as the Caribbean Sea. We also loved the resort’s meat restaurant. The only miss is the shuttle to Santa Teresa Gallura - not much to do in the town, unless you are taking the ferry to Corsica from there. If you are interested in the Thalasso Spa at Valle d’Erica, be aware that there is a minimum age so your kids may not be able to enter.

On a high school trip to Italy, our group joined thousands of others on a boat to Capri for the day.  Famous for its Blue Grotto and stunning, clifftop views, Capri is a little gem, but not the hidden kind.  Hoping to escape the tourists and discover the real Capri, my parents stayed for a few nights at the gorgeous JK Place, just above the harbor, which they loved, but I prefer Anacapri, at the top of the island. Anacapri is a quiet little town with a pedestrian zone that boasts lovely shops and restaurants. My husband, children and I stayed at Caesar Augustus, and our rooms had breathtaking views. The hotel itself and pool are lovely, but we had a few complaints. The rooms were a bit noisy, and the clientele was a little too trendy for us. Highly recommended activities on Capri are a private boat trip around the island with Camillo of Capri Star, the chair lift to the top of the island for views, ceramics shopping at Il Veliero, and the following meals:

• Dinner at Da Gelsomina, which has gorgeous views and even more gorgeous pastas and seafood. The restaurant will pick you up at your accommodations in the little open-air cars you will see all around the island, and bring you back afterward.

• Pizza at Pizzeria Aumm Aumm in Anacapri. A casual place with great pizzas - ask to sit outside in the garden.

• Buonocure Gelateria Pasticceria, in Capri Town, for gelato and pastries. Capri Crema Caffé in Anacapri also has good gelato.

• Salumeria da Aldo - before heading out on your boat ride with Camillo, get a Caprese sandwich from Aldo (the Caprese sandwich comes from Capri). It is inexpensive and incredible!

When I was living in Rome after college, my friend, Susan, and I took a weekend trip to Elba.  We took the train from Rome to Piombino Marittima (via Campiglia Marittima), where we took a one-hour ferry ride to Elba.  Before traveling to Elba, all I knew about the island was from a college history course:  Napoleon was banished to Elba after losing his megalomaniac campaign to take over Europe.  As our ferry approached Elba's rocky cliffs and white sand beaches, I thought Napoleon's punishment didn't look so bad. 

On our first evening in Elba's main town, Portoferraio, we were sitting outside at a trattoria enjoying our pasta when a group of a dozen young Italians sitting next to us struck up a conversation.  Delighted that we could speak Italian (Susan speaking much better than I), this friendly dozen adopted us for the weekend.  Over the next two days, the Italians took us around the island on the backs of their motorcycles, showing us beautiful beaches in off-the-beaten-path places we never would have found on our own.  Absent a dozen Italians to show you the island, click here for a Condé Nast Traveler article on the best of Elba. 

That same summer, my backpacking college friends visited me in Rome, and we went to Ischia for the weekend.  Ischia is near Capri, and much less crowded.  I’d like to visit Ischia again, especially after watching the television series “My Brilliant Friend,” based on the novel by Elena Ferrante. Procida was named Italy’s Capital of Culture in 2022, the same year I spent a day here with my Italian language group. It is a beautiful little island very close to Ischia, and easy to visit from the Sorrento coast.

My two trips to Sicily were both in the height of summer, but I love to spend hours in the sea so bearing the heat was easy to manage. On my first trip in my twenties, my friend, Jenn, and I visited Sicily for a week and loved virtually every minute of it.  After flying to Palermo, we immediately took a train about an hour east to Cefalù, a beautiful town on the sea.  We climbed up the mountain behind the town (La Rocca), stopping to check out ruins on the way, and took in this most gorgeous view of stone, terra cotta rooftops, and turquoise sea. When I returned to Sicily with my husband and two teenagers in 2022, we returned to Cefalù and hiked the same path. Regardless of what time of year it is, grab a bottle of water and your camera, and head up La Rocca.

From Cefalù, Jenn and I went to Taormina, the most well-known resort town on Sicily.  Taormina is touristy, but for a good reason - it is a gorgeous town with beautiful beaches. My family and I also spent two days in Taormina, but first we took the ferry from Milazzo to the Aeolian Islands. We chose to stay on Salina, the “Green Island”, and visited other islands on a superb private boat trip that we booked through BluSalina. We had several swimming stops and viewed most of the Aeolian Islands from the boat. Our favorite stop was on Stromboli, an inhabited island that is also an active volcano. We strolled around town, where we ate delicious pizza at Da Giovanni, and swam off of a black sand beach called Spiaggia Lunga. Then we climbed back on the boat, from where we watched the volcano spew and send lava pouring down the mountainside at sunset. Spectacular!

On our second day on Salina, we rented electric motorbikes to explore the island. We loved exploring the town, fort and swimming spots, but my husband and I felt uncomfortable driving on Salina’s windy, mountainous roads with our kids behind us. More relaxing was our sunset boat ride to Pollara, the spot where Il Postino was filmed. We had cocktails and jumped off the boat into the clear sea.

Next, on our way to Taormina, my family and I stopped in Savoca, where some scenes in The Godfather I were filmed, such as Michael and Apollinia’s wedding stroll, and the bar where Michael visited Apollinia’s father to ask for permission to marry her. It’s a pretty countryside town, but nothing special if you are not a Godfather fan. From Taormina, we drove to Siracusa, and stayed in the countryside nearby. Siracusa is a beautiful town, as is nearby Noto. We had a beach day, first visiting isolated Cala Mosche, which requires an hour’s hike from the car, and then to the more popular Fontane Bianche to rent chairs and umbrellas.

Another fun activity in the Sircacusa/Noto area is to hike/swim through the clear green water in the gorges at Nature Reserve Orientata Cavagrande del Cassibile. We enjoyed this activity, and it was a fun way to cool off. We saw some people doing a group tour, but we found it easy to navigate on our own. Bring water shoes!

Along the southern coast, Jenn and I stayed in Agrigento.  We were not fond of the town, but were amazed by the ruins.  We were the only visitors.  In fact, we were the only sign of life at the ruins - there was no ticket collector, no guards ensuring we kept our Sisley sneakers off the ancient stone structures, no tourists.  We loved our peaceful visit to this historic site.  I wonder if the ruins are still empty today?  

My family and I opted for an overnight in Sciacca, an authentic seaside town with few tourists. Our stay here broke up our long drive to Trapani, from where we caught the ferry to Favignana for a 3-night stay. Being on Favignana felt a little bit like going back in time, with Italian families taking their passeggiata in the adorable pedestrian zone of the main town. Finding a spot on the rocks and jumping into the sea. Riding bikes around the island and stopping at swimming spots, finishing the day with an ice cream cone. Favignana is not a fancy island. But it is a perfect island in which to vacation, especially if you want to be among Italian families.

We spent a full day at sea with Captain Eduardo Carriglio, a Favignana native. His American girlfriend joined us. We had an incredible day. We stopped to swim in the clear aqua sea, we circumnavigated the island and Eduardo showed my kids where it was safe to jump off of the rocks, and we dined on a lunch made by Eduardo’s mother. Eduardo was so much fun, and we loved every minute of our day. The next day, we rented e-bikes and rode around the island, stopping to jump in the sea at Cala Azzurro, Cala Rossa and Blu Marino.

After returning from Favignana, my family and I drove to Scopello, which we used as a gateway for exploring the Zingaro Nature Reserve. I had seen a photo of this beach in the reserve in a travel magazine years ago, and decided that regardless of how hot it might be, we were hiking through the park to reach it. 75% of my family agreed it was well worth it. (For us, this is about as close to 100% we ever get.)

Beach seekers can continue to hike the path through the park to reach more swimming spots, but we spent all of our time on Cala Tonnarella. The water is perfectly clear and warm in August.

Going back in time to the days when I was in Agrigento with Jenn, I recall wanting to head next to Corleone.  I know it is cheesy, but I watched The Godfather movies dozens of times with my father, and thought it would be fun to stop in Corleone.  Jenn makes a good traveling companion because she is totally up for senseless stops like this one.  Sadly, there was no train to Corleone, we had no car, and the bus service was spotty.  We abandoned my silly little dream, briefly considered a detour to coastal Trapani, but ended up just taking the train to Palermo.  My self-guided Godfather tour would have to be limited to a visit to the steps of the opera house, featured in The Godfather III.  I took a photo of the steps for my dad.  Palermo is gritty, but interesting.  There was a religious shrine around virtually every corner, which looked as though they were placed by residents, and varying from simple to opulent.  There was the impressive opera house.  And, Palermo has a pretty seafront. But, I don’t feel the need to visit Palermo again. Out of all of the places I have visited in Sicily, it is the Egadi Islands to which I would return. We loved Favignana, and I would also like to explore Levanzo and Marettimo, the other two Egadi Islands.

Where to stay, eat and play in Sicily and its islands:

• Cefalù: we loved our hotel Le Calette, set on the outskirts of the city, but it was too expensive. Beautiful seaside lounging decks and a pool. Our dinner at Le Chat Noir was one of our better meals in Sicily. We found most restaurant menus to be small and repetitive. Climb up La Rocca to see ruins and insane views. Le Calette will shuttle you to its beach club.

• Aeolian Islands: Hotel Ravesi on Salina was a great value with an extremely friendly and helpful staff. Ask for an upstairs room, as our kids’ downstairs room smelled musty. Beautiful pool. The hotel will rent you electric scooters and take you on a sunset boat ride to Pollara. To get to Salina, take the Liberty Line hydrofoil from Milazzo. If you need to stash your rental car in Milazzo, you can check out Adige Car Center, which will also shuttle you to the ferry. We were not thrilled with any of our Salina meals, but we enjoyed our pizza on Stromboli at Da Giovanni. On Stromboli, you can hire a mini-taxi to take you to Spiaggia Lunga for a swim off the black sand beach (no facilities). I recommend Blu Salina for a private boat trip to see Stromboli and spend the day at sea.

• Taormina: Hotel Belvedere was fine, and the staff was very friendly, but it was nothing special. There is not enough seating at breakfast and the pool lacks shade and sufficient seating. We chose it for its more reasonable prices than the more upscale hotels. My parents stayed at the San Domenico Palace and loved it, decades before White Lotus used it for a filming location. It is now a Four Seasons property. We loved our dinner at Osteria Pizzeria Tre Vie. Taormina is made for strolling. You can take the funicular down to the sea for some beach time, and you should visit Teatro Antico, a ruin of a Greek theater built in the 3rd century B.C. that has spectacular views.

• Siracusa: Our favorite hotel of the trip was the Donna Coraly Country Boutique Hotel, set in the countryside. Bartender Alex creates extraordinary concoctions, and the service is incredible. I was observed swatting one bug away and staff immediately rushed to my side to offer bug repellant. We dined here one evening and loved it. Gorgeous rooms. Warm swimming pool. Peaceful. Highly recommend! We enjoyed wandering around Ortigia in Siracusa. Our meal here was not worth recommending, but definitely get gelato at Gelateria Gusto! I think Cala Mosche is well worth the one-hour hike from the parking area, as the beach is gorgeous and the water is crystal clear. My teens disagreed, but they are cranky and judgmental. My husband disagreed, because he does not like sand and there were no chairs to rent. I tried not to let their pessimism ruin my gorgeous swim in the Mediterranean Sea. Afterward, we went to Fontane Bianche, a beautiful beach 30 minutes away where we rented chairs and umbrellas. With everyone in a better mood, we had a lovely swim and lunch here. We also enjoyed our water hike in the gorges at Nature Reserve Orientata Cavagrade del Cassibile.

• Noto: We stopped here after the beach to try the granita and gelato in brioche at Caffè Sicilia, because we had seen it on Stanley Tucci’s Searching for Italy. What a disappointment. Tasteless granita. The gelato was good but not worth making a special trip to try. Service looked a lot friendlier to Stanley Tucci than it was to us! Noto is a beautiful town.

• Sciacca: We spent a night at Domus Maris, a modern, comfortable hotel with a beautiful view from our terrace, but our room smelled faintly of a toilet. This is a great town in which to buy ceramics, as it is not touristy so prices are lower.

• Favignana: Our #1 spot in Sicily, Favignana is the largest of the Egadi Islands, located off of the northwest coast of Sicily. Easily reachable by a 1-hour ferry ride from Trapani, either through Liberty Lines or Siremar, Favignana is a perfect spot for a summer Italian island vacation. We rented an apartment through vrbo, which is no longer listed. We loved our boat excursion with Eduardo Carriglio. Cala Rossa, Cala Azzurro and Blu Marino were our favorite beaches/swimming spots. Mama has the island’s best gelato, and Pasticceria FC, the best granita. Our meals on Favignana were not noteworthy, but were fine.

• Scopello & Zingaro Nature Reserve: We stayed at Hotel La Tavernetta in Scopello. The town is tiny and cute. The hotel had its pros and cons. Pros: good value, clean rooms, great dinner in the hotel restaurant, nice pool. Cons: weak A-C, service was spotty and unfriendly at times, bordering on feeling like the staff was suspicious that guests were going to steal pool towels and sneak someone into the mediocre breakfast. The Zingaro Nature Reserve was one of my favorite spots in Sicily. Cala Tonnarella was virtually deserted on a sunny August afternoon, and three of our four family members had a blast playing in the clear blue sea (a fourth sulked in a shady corner complaining of a forced hike in the heat).

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