Staying at Maria's villa in Erice is always a great pleasure and this is the third time we have done so. Erice is a fabulous medieval town and being high up, it provides spectacular views of all the surrounding Sicilian contryside including Trapani, the salt lakes, the sea, the Egadian Islands and much more. The wonderful large patio garden at Villa Apolline is private enough and perfect for sunbathing, dining alfresco and generally relaxing and the views from the garden are probably as good as you'll find anywhere in Erice. The rooms are well appointed and comfortable but the views from the top bedroom are to die for. The kitchen is well equipped so if you want to eat in you can do so in style (once you've discovered where the butcher, baker and green grocer are to be found and when the fish van makes its delivery). Of course one is also spoiled for choice of restaurants, cafes and the unrivalled pastry shops. There are three roads up to and down from Erice depending on which direction you might wish to explore the surroundings and so long as you don't mind fairly tight winding roads it's no problem getting out to beaches, Greek ruins, other interesting towns and villages etc.. Only problem with the roads up and down are that you have to resist looking at the incredible views around each corner if you don't want to end up taking the very short way to the bottom!
All in all Maria's villa is a really great place to stay. Nice enough to just laze away the days in the beautiful garden; perfect as a base to see the West of Sicily.