Carlo’s apartment is brilliant – clean, lovely space, very good shower, really nice bedroom and cool little balconies overlooking the streets where you can watch Sicilian world go by. We were greeted by a bottle of wine, ice tea and water in the fridge, as well as a selection of Sicilian cakes baked by Carlo’s sister and big bowl of fruit.

Carlo the owner was actually away during our stay, however his nephew Gaspare received us and helped in all sorts of ways, letting us store our rented electric bikes in his garage just up the road and charge them overnight.

Be aware the area is not pedestrianised so there is a fairly steady flow of cars, however the noise isn’t too much because the streets are narrow and driving is slow.

The town itself is not the sort of place you’d really stay without either some mode of transport, OR if you are really into hiking.

The beach at Castellamare itself is dirty with plastic and litter, as are many to the North East. However, head to the North West along the coast towards the Zingaro reserve and you’ll find much more pleasant coves and sandy stretches, where there appears to be at least some sort effort to keep them clean. We rented electric bikes from a guy named Massimilliano, who’s agency can be found in the pedestrianised part of the main via Corso Giusseppe Garibaldi – these were brilliant to get around the steep hills which traverse the rugged terrain along the coast.

One thing we would say as a note to pretty much every AirBnb owner: Pleeeeeease leave some cheap old olive oil, salt and pepper for basic cooking – its amazing how few people think to do this – I’ve lost count of the huge bags of salt and bottles of olive oil I’ve had to leave behind at the end of holidays. This is a very very minor and very general note to all hosts, and wa more than made up for in many ways at Carlo’s apartment. Highly recommended.

We would wholeheartedly recommend Carlo’s apartment - its brilliant value and a very nice space.