We are a family with a 5 y.o. and we really enjoyed our time in Casa Penelope.
Here are the things I would highlight, I hope they are relevant for you too.
The house is not big, but it is well designed and maintained. We liked that it has enough storage space so we actually could hide the suitcases out of view and keep our clothes on hangers and in drawers. Maybe a small detail, but it made us feel at home.
Everything we used worked well: cooking stove and oven, washing machine, refrigerator. Special mention for the excellent WiFi, very important for my wife, who had to work (lots of Zooms and Teams calls) during the day.
The location is fantastic! 2 minutes to the beach, no more than 10 minutes by foot to the closest cafe, supermarket and pharmacy.
The beach is good for kids, with water that becomes deeper gradually. It is a pebble beach, so you will need slippers. Casa Penelope has an umbrella and a couple of small beach chairs that we gladly used.
Worth mentioning, the fishery on the beach, which quickly became an attraction for both us and our daughter: old fishermen untangling the nets, seagulls flying low looking for some treats, boats being pulled out of the water with motorized pulleys, quite a show! We also bought fresh fish one day and cooked it.
Last but not least, great hosts! Elisa drove us from the railway station to the house, and she and Fabio promptly answered all our questions on Whatsapp.
One information proved especially important: Fabio told us about a bus that can take us to Messina, so we gladly followed his advice — on the day of our departure there was a transport workers' strike planned, so it was unclear if we could still take the trains we originally had in mind…
I totally recommend Casa Penelope and hope to come back someday. Thank you, Elisa and Fabio!