In The Know: Italian Islands Everyone Will Be Talking About

Listen, we’re all still heading to Capri, Sicily and Ischia this year. The hottest islands of the Mediterranean are pride of place on our bucket list. That doesn’t mean we should be resting on our vacation laurels, though. Italy plays host to so many gorgeous islands, some of which oscillate in and out of zeitgeist (Sardinia, we see you) and many of which you might not have heard of at all, making them all the more exciting to explore.

“Italy’s islands are re-entering the spotlight,” says Natasha Shafi, CEO of luxury travel service Mr & Mrs Smith, “guided by a renewed focus on substance over spectacle.” For those who could be tempted to do a little island-hopping this summer, let us pull back the curtain on a few new places to try, plus the odd old favorite that’s had a fresh burnish.

“Pantelleria, in particular, feels newly compelling,” says Shafi. “Raw, wind-shaped and elemental.” The island in the Strait of Sicily is known as the ‘Black Pearl’ of the Mediterranean for its striking, volcanic rock landscapes. Importantly, it is actually closer to Tunisia than mainland Sicily, making temperatures that little fraction toastier, though the trans-Saharan winds complicate things a touch.

The heat, plus richly dark volcanic soil, hasn’t stunted its natural beauty. High-quality capers grow in abundance – Anthony Bourdain raved about a caper-heavy pranzo (lunch) on his TV show No Reservations – and sweet zibibbo grapes are ripe for making the hugely popular passito wine. And if you need another cultural reference, this is the island on which A Bigger Splash, starring Tilda Swinton, Ralph Fiennes and Dakota Johnson, was filmed.

In terms of what to visit and where to stay, your choices are among mostly petite boutique hotels, which take inspiration from the domed ceilings of the island’s unique dammuso stone architecture. “At Sikelia, the island’s volcanic gravity is channeled into something restorative,” says Shafi. “Terraced gardens, lava-stone architecture and a sense of retreat that feels profoundly modern in its restraint.”

Parco Dei Sesi is also well worth a visit. A family home reimagined as a vacation retreat and nestled inside an archeological park that’s next to 5,000-year-old ruins, it’s a location of ritual and significance. It’s also a perfectly secluded, mystical wedding venue if you happen to be in the market for one.

Without a doubt, Panarea is one of the chicest, if still ultra-secretive, of the Aeolian Islands. The whitewashed terraces, blooming bougainvillea and distant shape of yachts on the horizon are all there, as you’d expect, but culturally, this place has delightfully hidden little corners. In the 1960s, boho revelers from Milan used to hop across to Panarea, heading mostly to Hotel Raya, which at first occupied a rather louche space in Italian consciousness. Think nicotine puffs under the moonlight and a hot, sticky makeshift dance floor.

Since then, Hotel Raya has gone up in the world. The ‘disco club’, as it calls itself, is still open, with a much-expanded repertoire of guest DJs. A sunset on the roof terrace is a must-do, at least once, if you’re popping your head in.

For a more relaxed and luxurious stay, the Therasia Resort has things quite sewn up, with a Michelin-starred restaurant and comprehensive spa.

Nobody is accusing Sardinia of being ‘up and coming’. The Costa Smeralda jet-set has long been a distinctive club. With a ruggedly mountainous interior, Nuragic Bronze Age relics for the culturally aware, sapphire waters and oodles of sunshine, the second-largest island in the Mediterranean has always had a draw.

Sardinia, though, is heaving its way into new domains, reputationally. “The clients coming to us now aren’t asking for the Costa Smeralda”, says Luca Podi, who runs the Italian arm of high-end travel company Abercrombie & Kent.

“They want the island underneath it. The south, around Chia and Villasimius, has some of the most breathtaking coastline in the Mediterranean and almost none of the scene,” she adds. “The interior is another world entirely: cork forests, ancient ruins, estates producing wine and cheese that rarely leaves the island.”

The sprawling luxuriousness of the Aethos resort is hard to turn your nose up at, but if you want more ease and simplicity, Le Dune Piscinas is also a good place to stay.

“What also makes Sardinia truly singular is its people,” says Podi. “This is one of the world’s five Blue Zones – those rare places where people routinely live past 100 – and the reasons are bound up in everything the island does: the food, the pace, the extraordinarily intact cultural traditions.”

Procida feels a bit like a foil to the ubiquitous, lemon-emblemed awareness of Capri. The smallest island in the Bay of Naples, it has long attracted artists, writers and a more discerning under-the-radar crowd, who prefer authenticity and secluded local charm to anything too picture-postcard.

Pastel houses tumble towards the harbor at Marina Corricella, while fishermen mend nets in the afternoon heat. Life is slower here, and more salt-stained. It was, however, named 2022’s Italian Capital of Culture, which should reassure you that it’s a little more on the map than you might suspect.

The boutique hotels are rustic but lovely, including the Calacala Rooms, La Suite and San Michele Procida.

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