This is the most magical holiday destination!
The house is beautiful, in the best possible position with a view that one can simply stare at for hours. The wide terrace is the perfect place to spend long evenings looking out to sea, and early mornings watching the yachts in the bay.
The house has the feeling of a family holiday house that has been enjoyed for generations. It has everything one could need, from kitchen equipment to comfortable furniture to books.
Reaching the house is quite a workout - climbing the stone steps up the side of the volcano, the equivalent of climbing thirty floors. Doing that every day for a week left us feeling fairly fit! Trips down to the village became an adventure that needed to be well planned, and trying to walk back up to the house in the heat of the day was a mistake we made only once.
There are some wonderful walks around the island, so if hiking or trekking is your thing you could take a different route every day and still discover new places with extraordinary panoramas. There are not many shaded spots, so be careful of heading out in the middle of the day.
Arriving on the island we were greeted by Walter who is an absolute delight and was so helpful showing us around and providing valuable local advice. Make sure to buy some of his capers, they are delicious!
I could go on ... but suffice to say that Chiara's house is the most magical place to spend a relaxing island holiday.