A Sicilian oasis, perfectly situated between the lapping sea and the smoking volcano. Set at the bottom of a long gated driveway in the orange grove of a working farm, the tiny stone house is attached to a larger dwelling but you would hardly know it. It is utterly private, protected and peacefull. We stayed for a week while hiking Aetna and exploring the coast and we loved coming back every evening to lounge about, watch distant fisherman, cook supper, sometimes on the stone grill, and eat outside under the vine trellis. We loved gathering oranges every morning and pressing them for juice, while keeping an eye on Aetna's dramatic changes, the only valid weather report that would set the itinerary of the day. Alessandra is charming, smart, funny and helpful and leaves you utterly alone if you want. The place is well equipped but not pretentious. Comfortable bed and snazzy bathroom with a perfect shower. You feel Sicily in every detail and quickly get to know the excellent local shops hardscrabble villages. Not a touristic sign or attraction nearby to mar the local life. Drive twenty minutes and you're in the thick of it. Having stayed in countless places from the alps to the sea in the last few years, this was one of the most beautiful. We started missing it, and Alessandra, the moment we pulled out of the gate.