Snippets of Sicily (part three) – The Aeolian Islands

There are seven significant Aeolian Islands (also known as the Lipari Islands) and several smaller rocky outcrops. Unfortunately, I could only manage to squeeze in one of them this time around. I decided to avoid the busiest island of Lipari and also the celebrity hideout island of Panarea – a decision I later regretted as I’ve since learned it’s the most stunning of them all. I chose to visit Salina mainly because it’s the greenest and the air is not contaminated by the sulphuric smelling fumes that impact Vulcano and Stromboli islands, both of which endure daily volcanic activity. Filicudi and Alicudi islands are both tiny and are not serviced by the public ferry so that counted them out for me too although you can enjoy any of them for a day by joining a guided boat trip.

Note – You will find detailed tips for travelling in and around Sicily in Snippets of Sicily part one and part two . I recommend digging into these post before finalising your travel plans. But now back to part three – the lovely Aeolian Islands.

The best way to explore and enjoy all of the diversity and beauty of this archipelago is by boat – my preference of course would be a luxury charter with a handsome captain. There are several excellent companies offering varied experiences ranging from day trips, to multi-day luxury sailing excursions, to shared quarters on water based yoga retreats. I met a lovely American traveller who had just disembarked from an eight day ‘self organised’ flotilla of five boatloads of friends. It sounded like riotous fun and something similar is now added to my ever lengthening wish list. They used Turística il Gabbiano as their charter company and were very satisfied with the standard of the boats and the support they received. Another reliable friend has recommended chartering through Helm just completed a family sailing trip with KON-Tiki Sailing (it’s the worst website I’ve ever seen, but I’m assured they offer a great experience)

Additional noteworthy tips;

• The main ferry port for departures to the Aeolian Islands is in Milazzo. It is possible to ferry from Catania, Palermo or Messina but this takes much longer.
• The best time to explore the Aeolians is June, July and September. The August heat is crippling.
• Sundays are considered a day of rest and many good restaurants and wineries are closed to visitors.
• Many of the best guides also rest on Sundays unless you organise a private tour in advance.
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Salina, Aeolian island

If you’re staying here, I’d suggest basing yourself in Malfa although the island is small enough that your location is not of great importance. I chose Hotel Ravesi with its beautiful garden, organic veggie patch and infinity pool, but the Hotel Signum Spa down the road with gorgeous rooms, luxurious spa, Michelin 1 restaurant, and spacious outdoor terrace is a superb alternative. The Hotel Santa Isabel is great for a sunset drink before dining nearby at Pinnata del Monsù. All these mentioned venues are within walking distance of each other in this compact little town. About a ten minute ride away is the stunning hotel complex and winery of Capofaro which I visited during the day and would select without hesitation.

As mentioned above, exploring on a Sunday can be a bit of a flop without advance reservations but at least the traffic was minimal which turned out be a blessing. I mention this because, despite my aversion to any situation where my skin might be scraped, I hired an electric scooter to get around. Ignoring my near phobic fear of motorbikes, and adopting the adage ‘to delay brain decay do something scary every day’, by Monday I could have reclaimed the mental age of twelve. The workout was beneficial too – my arms ached from my petrified handlebar clutching, my lockjaw symptoms were short-lived, and my abdominal tone was visibly improved after 10 hours of tight clenching. I was reminded of riding pillion many years ago when the navigator pulled over to say that as much as he was enjoying the closeness, he needed to breathe in order to get us home. I had to loosen my boa constrictor grip.

I only needed a valid driver’s license to hire this machine that felt heavier than my Telsa and certainly accelerated faster. All too soon it dawned on me that every other corner-cutting lunatic had had the same lax limitations applied and was also likely as inexperienced as me. To boot, all four of the licensed taxi drivers on the island seemed to have a go at shunting me off the road at some point in the day, and I found negotiating curly corners with billowing buses one metre off my tail rather challenging.

Despite my terror and trepidation, the freedom of hiring Pegasus (so named because I called on the protection of the war gods quite often as I battled on) allowed me to traverse every inch of the island. The Salina landscape is varied and spectacular. Steep cliffs drop into the glorious Med and offer up a prolific range of beautiful beaches – many of them hidden from view unless you happen to pause for a break. There are also several incredible hiking trails in the interior parks leading up to and around Monte Fossa Felci, the highest peak of two dormant volcanoes that provide breathtaking views across the entire Aeolian region. The Salina villages however, whilst lovely, aren’t particularly inspiring except perhaps Leni and the tiny neighbouring fishing village of Rinella. I lunched here at Pa.Pe.Ro which is famed for developing ricotta granita (unsuprisingly, I found their arancini balls sensational too) This fun and vibrant restaurant, overlooking a tiny port and a beautiful beach, was packed full of patrons who’d joined a well-humoured queue, seemingly expected to secure a seat here. It’s well worth visiting.

I was so nervous scouting around on my untrusted steed that I barely took a photo all day and I dared not taste even one sip of the Malvasian wines available – tragic really because I love desert wines and there are several famed vineyards on Salina – Capofaro, Fenech and Hauner to name a few.

Instead, I decided to incorporate a much anticipated viewing of a spectacular sunset near Pollara with a caper masterclass beforehand at Sapori Eolina, a distributer recommended by my hotel concierge. Capers are a big thing on Salina so I remounted Pegasus and rode west to learn more. I arrived to find not one soul in Pollara spoke English (well, not on Sunday anyway) I did manage to decipher enough to work out there are 2000 plants in the village and that capers are a great crop. You hack the plants down to their roots in winter, they lie fallow until spring when they sprout again and fruit in time for picking May through July. Then you hack them down again in readiness for the following year. Seems to me if you don’t mind hacking it’s a great business. For a more understandable and in depth experience, the most highly recommended caper guide in Salina is Giuseppe from Leni, but, as you’ll already know, it being Sunday he’d had taken the day off.

I returned to the recommended sunset viewing spot along a road that would make a sidewinding serpent envious just as the clouds thickened and released the only downpour recorded that month. I took it as a sign and retired for the day, exhausted and wet but exhilarated to have survived. Champagne sundowners from my own hotel veranda have never tasted better.

You can find the rest of my Sicilian travel story in part one here and part two here.