Sicily: Aeolian Islands
- Ramona N
- May 4
- 6 min read
Although the title of this blog is "Aeolian Islands" it's really only about one of the islands -- one that Harris and I have spent the last year gatekeeping. Any time we've posted on our social media, or referred to this part of our Sicily trip to friends, it's always just been "Aeolian islands." We made an agreement not to drop the name of the island, as if speaking it out loud will disrupt the unmatched serenity we found there. However, I would be remiss as a storyteller to skip over one of my favorite adventures. I'm ready to tell you about the magical and quaint.... Isola di Salina.
Salina
If you're looking for an island vacation, but are more interested in an island off the beaten path rather than a classic touristy spot like Santorini, Majorca, or Capri -- then Salina is just the right island for you. Although Salina is the second largest island of the archipelago, it's only around 10 square miles. This makes it small enough to where you can feel like you can tangibly get a lay of the land while also being large enough for you not to get too bored over the course of a week. Ultimately the purpose of this trip is for when you're looking for absolute peace and quiet, something we don't get much of living in NYC. However, it's important to note that we went during the third week of June which generally is before the peak travel season in Europe. We were told that many local Sicilians frequent Salina in the summer peak season, and it does get very crowded later in the summer.
Where to Stay?
If you're going to visit Salina, staying at Hotel Ravesi is a no brainer. The hotel is family-run, as the Ravesi family restored their generational property to welcome guests from around the world, and this connection is what makes this one of the best hotels I've ever stayed at. Carla, the current owner, infuses familial love into every aspect of her hotel's operations. From the way she has restored yet maintained the charming antiquities of her property, to the love she puts into cooking breakfast and apertivo from scratch each day for her guests, you truly feel part of the Ravesi family when you are here. We enjoyed our time so much, that we ended up moving around our trip just so we could extend our stay by one more day.
The property feels like a little mini village or settlement, with several buildings scattered across the layout. Harris and I stayed in one of these small buildings, it was our "hotel room" as you would have it. And we even had a little outdoor shaded seating area where we would sit and read with a view of the water. I wish I had taken photos inside our little building, but it was setup like a studio apartment with a couch, sink/kitchen area, bedroom and bathroom.
The property also has an infinity pool, a fully operating bar from a restored fermentation tank, different outdoor seating areas where you can dine for breakfast, lunch or apertivo, and a library with books and games. During the day, you can relax poolside and order lunch of apertivo, and at night the staff is happy to bring you a glass of wine just about anywhere on the property. Harris and I enjoyed some drinks in the library one night, and apertivo in the garden on another.
Things to do?
E-bike around the island: while you stay at Hotel Ravesi, you're able to rent an e-bike for the day to explore the island. The cost ranges from €25-€40 per person depending on if you rent for a half or full day, and I'm sure this is something you can book once you get there but Harris and I pre-booked everything we did at Hotel Ravesi. They provide a map and recommendations of where to go, Harris and I went to Rinella to have lunch and hang around the beach and made stops along the way.
Have a relaxing spa treatment: Practically next door to Hotel Ravesi is Hotel Signum, which is a more luxury boutique hotel that has a full spa with different services. I had seen this when doing my research but it seemed excessive, however once it was highly recommended to us by the Hotel Ravesi staff, we decided to walk over and learn more about the treatments. They have a full menu of massages, facials, etc. but we decided to splurge on their Couples Wellness Package. It was €530 total, so €265 per person and included a 50-min massage, 50-min facial, and 50-min bath treatment. Because we were able to spread this out over the course of three days, it ended up really being worth it for us and making our stay even more relaxing. There's also an option to spend several hours at the spa as an add on, but since we had an infinity pool at Hotel Ravesi, we didn't feel it was necessary for this additional cost.
50-minute copper bath treatment at Hotel Signum Go to the beach: There are several beaches around the island, but we only visited the beach in Rinella. We didn't spend too much time laying out here because it was rocky and frankly I was enjoying my time laying out at the pool hotel much more, but it was a good place to chill after having lunch.
Beach at Rinella Sunset Boat Ride: Another activity offered by the hotel that I highly recommend is the private sunset boat ride. They have different boat rides like half a day, sunset, private or group tours that all range in price of course. We splurged here (again, clearly splurging was the theme of Salina) and went with the private sunset tour for €350 total. We were transported in a golf cart, to the port where we met our captain. He was really nice, making sure we learned a bit about the island and offering to take pictures of us so we could capture the memory. He gave us time to swim, and to also enjoy the homemade apertivo (made by Carla). I would say this was definitely the highlight of our time in Salina.
Lay by the pool: I was deep into reading ACOTAR during this trip, and found that most of my serenity came from just reading and laying by the hotel pool. Definitely bring a page turner with you, and grab your pool chair right after breakfast if you want to get a good spot for the day.
Explore other islands: I'm putting this on here as an activity, even though we truthfully only toured Salina. We didn't have enough time, but in the future I would go on a day trip to another island or I would do the Panarea/Stromboli nighttime boat ride where you can watch the volcano erupt in Stromboli. This was also something highly recommended to us by another guest at the hotel.
Where to Eat?
Hotel Ravesi: Breakfast was included in our stay, and they always had a delicious assortment of homemade pastries, cheese, eggs, jams, bread, etc. We also had lunch one day here and it was absolutely spectacular, very fresh. They don't offer dinner, but they have a robust arrangement of Apertivo that should not be missed a single night of your stay.
Aeolian Salad and charcuterie at Hotel Ravesi Pa.Pe.Rò: Salina is all about capers (I hated capers before this trip, but loved Salina's capers to where I still think about it) and nothing is more on brand than granita with capers in it. Harris and I e-biked here for lunch and had stuffed anchovies (again I hated anchovies before this trip but couldn't get enough of them in Salina), and an eggplant lasagna. Really make sure you don't miss the granita.
Lunch at Pa.Pe.Ro La Pinnata del Monsù: We went here for a nicer dinner, there wasn't too much of a view but you could see the water in the distance. The food was really delicious, I especially liked a shrimp/potato appetizer they had while we were there but I think with a lot of the restaurants on the island, what they have on the menu on any given night is pretty dependent on what they were able to catch earlier that day.
Ristorante & Pizzeria U Cucunciu: I have no recollection what we even ate here, I think we got pasta and I remember enjoying our meal. This was a good option for a more casual and affordable dinner, especially if you're tired from a long day as it's right next door to Hotel Ravesi.
I am not the type of person to be very eager about re-visiting destinations I've traveled to, but Salina is one of those charming and romantic places that I see Harris and I going to many more times in this life. It's our special little not-so-secret-anymore (sorry Harris!) place that I often think back on with happiness and feelings of home. I hope you are able to visit with your loved ones too.
After we checked out of the hotel, we hopped onboard a ferry back to mainland Sicily to pick up our rental car from the parking garage and make our way onto the last leg of the trip: Catania.
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