This place is seriously magical. The photos are absolutely amazing, yet somehow still don't do the view and the space justice. We had a totally blissful stay at Alvise's place on Alicudi. The isolation of Alicudi is what drew us there, but we were slightly concerned with the "not much to do there" thing... but then again, that was also the point. Sure, it's not a big island, but just existing in the space of this house is inspiring and calming. I wish I could stay there for several weeks (and maybe one day we will)... I may just come out a changed person. Every single time my wife and I walked up to the top level we had to mentally pinch ourselves and say out loud, "Is this place real? Are we really here? How can this be possible?" The view is really that amazing...

Michaela who hosts us, is such a loving, friendly, helpful person. Our baggage was lost days ago on our arrival to Palermo and the airline was completely useless in helping us track it down, and the majority of the time they wouldn't even answer the phone. Michaela called the airline at three different numbers until finally after a few days got a hold of someone who told us on the day of our departure from Alicudi they had found our bag! It was so nice knowing how much she was willing to help. She also set us up with several wonderful "home cooked" meals that were so perfect.

We went on several of the trails, cooked at home (the house may be remote, but the kitchen has all the cooking supplies you need, a dish washer, oven, stove... etc), and were truly able to relax in a way that we have not done in years... honestly. One day I told myself, "I'm just going to sit here all day and do nothing... just be," and it was blissful.

For us, there were no flaws with this place. Yes, being on Alicudi has its own "character" that you have to know you're getting yourself into. Sure, there will be ants in the kitchen floor at times. Water is precious on Alicudi so with the reclaimed water from the sink you flush the toilet manually. Big deal... these things are part of the character of this special place, and without them the place wouldn't be what it is. It would lose some of what makes it so magical. We're now back on "mainland" Sicily and thinking fondly of our stay on Alicudi... I wish we stayed longer, and I'm almost certain we'll be back.