Travel I
Three's a Charm
WORDS: CHRISSIE MCCLATCHIE | IMAGES: PELLICANO HOTELS
The day Marie-Louise Sciò first set foot on the island of Ischia in 2018 and breathed in the jasmine and wild thyme-fragranced breeze, a decade-long search came to a close. The CEO and Creative Director of Pellicano Hotels had spent years scouting for another property to add to her family’s pair of handpicked five-stars: Il Pellicano, the legendary waterfront hideaway tucked from view on the Monte Argentario peninsula in Tuscany, and La Posta Vecchia, Jean Paul Getty’s former home on the coast outside Rome.
Sciò grew up playing inside the vast corridors of La Posta Vecchia and also spent many a summer running up and down the cypress-lined lanes of Il Pellicano as Europe’s high society sunned themselves on loungers by the water’s edge. But she had yet to find anything that captured the essence of the intrinsically Italian la dolce vita in quite the same style as their other two properties.
That was until her brother convinced her to make the hour-long crossing over the Tyrrhenian Sea from Naples to Ischia to view Mezzatorre, a coral-red watchtower dating from the 16th century, perched above the water at the northwest tip of the island.
As its rugged, volcanic silhouette grew closer, she knew this was one of the most beautiful locations she had ever seen. “I had never been to Ischia before,” Sciò shares. “It is a magical and happy place, truly authentic and fascinating.” She instantly fell in love. “It captured my heart right away.” The low-key alternative to nearby Capri, where it still feels like Elizabeth Taylor or Richard Burton could cruise past in a vintage Riva at any moment (their holiday on Ischia during the making of Cleopatra in the early 60s announced their relationship to the world), the isle attracts the same fashionable but not flashy set that flocks to Il Pellicano over in Tuscany every summer.
Mezzatorre means “half-tower,” a reference to the fact that it was never fully completed. Surrounded by hectares of lush parkland, the watchtower has led many lives. Originally built to ward off Saracen pirates, in the 30s it became a private boarding house before blossoming into a cultural centre. When the time came for Sciò to cast her creative touch, as she has at both Il Pellicano and La Posta Vecchia, she knew immediately where to look for inspiration. Like her, Italian filmmaker Luchino Visconti had fallen for the whole island’s charms when he visited in the 40s. The director of Il Gattopardo and other such cinematic classics settled into an easy rhythm of summers at Villa Colombaia, a striking whitewashed watchtower high on the cliffs just a few hundred metres away from Mezzatorre. “He was a flamboyant man with the most sophisticated and elegant taste – something you can see in his movies,” says Sciò. “I tried to bring these elements in some way to Mezzatorre.”
The juxtaposition of Sciò’s design ethos with the property’s history can be felt across each of the 57 rooms and 11 suites, many located inside the watchtower itself. Original architectural elements such as arches and high-vaulted ceilings are washed in off-whites and creams, a softness punctuated by dashes of riotous colour in fabric headboards, decorative light fittings and intricate Italian tilework.
In a setting reminiscent of Il Pellicano on the mainland, views from all angles open out to a private cove below stone terraces that tumble down to the shoreline. Around the headland – accessed by a coastal path shaded by tall pines and scented lemon trees – is Lacco Ameno. The sweet fishing village is a photogenic explosion of wooden boats on crystalline waters, set against a colourful array of waterfront bars and restaurants.
Sciò explains that the three hotels are aligned in decoration and design, but each of their characters are still allowed to shine. “For instance, La Posta Vecchia is a very masculine place, and that’s something you can really feel,” she says. Mezzatorre is, she says, “whimsical and dramatic. The property has so much personality.” Like Il Pellicano, where subtle, chic comfort meets Italian flair, Mezzatorre is light and has an understated elegance. “But it has an element of fun, too,” Sciò continues. That can be felt while sipping a sunset aperitivo under the shade of La Baia restaurant, the property’s breezy, thatched-roof beachside hangout, or jumping into the saltwater pool framed by blue and white striped umbrellas and sun loungers, before hopping on one of the electric Vespas at reception to ride the island’s scenic coastal roads
before supper.
The vibe is still playful, yet more formal, at Ristorante La Torre, where Ischia-born chef Giuseppe d’Abundo uses his local knowledge to craft a fine-dining menu of traditional dishes such as coniglio all’Ischitana, a typical rabbit stew, served on tableware selected by Sciò and accompanied by crisp, mineral white wines grown in Ischia’s volcanic soils.
Another treat from beneath the ground is Ischia’s thermal waters – renowned since ancient times for their healing properties. “From the Euboean settlers [of Ancient Greece] to the Romans, these hot springs have been cherished for their ability to restore spirit and body,” says Sciò. At Mezzatorre, the island’s natural benefits are incorporated directly into a spa experience as mesmerising as it is energising. “The therapeutic waters bubble up right into the spa, [feeding into] a menu of unique treatments such as volcanic mud rituals that harness the restorative powers of the island’s natural resources,” she explains.
Sciò says she now sees Il Pellicano as the older sister and Mezzatorre as the cheekier younger sibling. What remains to be seen is whether, with three properties to the Pellicano name, she also now feels that the family is complete.
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