Bytes of Italy

Matera: A Cave with a View

In this April 27, 2015 New Yorker article, D. T. Max tells the story of the rise and fall and rise again of the Sassi area of Matera, a town in southern Italy which has been occupied since prehistoric times.  "The main section, the Civita, contains grand churches and picturesque palazzi; it is flanked on both sides by the Sassi, or the Rocks—steeply graded districts where mostly peasants lived."

The Sassi area was neglected and ultimately depopulated sixty-five years ago, prior to being revitalized over the past thirty years.  It is now a tourist destination with beautiful high end hotels such as La Casa di Lucio and Palazzo Gattini, excellent restaurants including Ristorante Francesca, a variety of artisans and even a jazz festival, Gezziamoci. In fact, it has been selected as a capital of European culture for 2019, but is certainly worth a visit long before then.

 

A Room with a View

In an article from the New York Times on February 25, 2007, Andrew Ferren provides an overview of hotel rooms in a number of cities, including Rome, which feature amazing views.  Following is a link to the article and an excerpt of the section focused on Rome.

http://travel.nytimes.com/2007/02/25/travel/25journeysweb.html

With seven hills, Rome ought to offer some spectacular vistas, and the city does not disappoint those with a penchant for sun-drenched rooftop gardens and horizons of domes and spires. The best lookout is most likely in the grand Hotel Hassler at the top of the Spanish Steps. The luxuriously paneled and tapestry-hung suites like the San Pietro offer the most panoramic views for 2,950 euros a night (nearly $4,000 at $1.33 to the euro). There are several “classic” rooms with similar vistas and one deluxe room, 506, which for 710 euros has a balcony over the Piazza di Spagna, offering a big-eyed peek at the skyline, from the marble Victor Emmanuel monument to the domes of the Pantheon and St. Peter's. Rooms like 720 (2,300 euros) peer into the Borghese Gardens and the Villa Medici. Next door, Room 718, a single, costs 460 euros.

For those who like history at closer range, there is the Hotel Forum (rooms with a view from 350 euros). The lobby reads old-world pensione with marble floors, creaking staircases and fringed swags galore. More than a dozen rooms overlook the Roman forum, with its parade of columns and arches. Alternatively, you can zoom out and take a long view of the Eternal City from the swank 1960s Hilton Cavalieri (from 465 euros double occupancy) crowning the crest of the Parioli hill and offering a panoramic sweep of the city and even the distant mountains ­ which, given the hotel's hilltop vertical advantage, can even be seen from the poolside terrace.

Best Small Hotel in Italy

According to Travel and Leisure magazine's March 2007 DesignAwards issue, the duoMo Hotel in Rimini is the best small hotel in Italy.  This innovative and ultra-modern hotel designed by accomplished artist and designer Ron Arad has also been lauded recently by the European Hotel Design Awards as having the best lobby and public area interiors, as well as the top bar and restaurant interiors.  Here is what T&L had to say:

Intergalactic shapes in metal, wood, and Corian, "shower pods" in the guest rooms, a front desk carved out of polished steel in the shape of a giant, tilting dough-nut: the duoMo represents the thrill of the future.  But it's a vintage version of the future - a dash of space-age optimism for the 21st century, from a designer best known for his sculptural furniture.  Arad's 43-room hotel on the Adriatic Coast is a seductive celebration of form over function, and it dazzles.

Here's a link to another T&L article from December 2006 shortly after the hotel re-opened.

Wallpaper, the design focused magazine, also featured the hotel and had this to say:

Its location, size and Schrager-like nightclub-with-rooms concept sets duoMo apart from Rimini's package-tour behemoths.  Stretched across the bronze-clad ground floor is NoMi Club & Bar, the hotel's social club and the antithesis of the mega-clubs in nearby Riccione.  Local hipsters, hand-picked by club manager Matteo Sormani, sip cocktails alongside guests at the steel-topped bar, which snakes around mirrored pillars.  Chef Massimo Costanza serves modern-traditional fare at tables lined by Arad's 'Ripple; chairs.  And DJs from New York, Amsterdam and Ibiza dictate the soundtrack.

The hotel entrance is dominated by Arad's 'floating' reception desk (pictured above), produced by Molteni & Co.  The futuristic rooms have ethereal Corian bathroom pods and Sky Gold Vision, but lacks mini-bars, as guests are encouraged to mingle in the 'lift-lobbies' on each floor, communal areas where they can surf the net, leaf through coffee-table tomes or fix a cocktail from the honesty bar.  There's no spa, gym or pool, but manager Marianna Chiaraluce keeps a fleet of 20 bicycles, five Vespas and a Cinquecento, so guests can explore the medieval villages of Verucchio and Montegridolfo and shop at the designer outlets in Marignano.

Affordable B&B's on the Amalfi Coast

Travel & Leisure magazine recently highlighted three affordable bed & breakfast options along the Amalfi Coast, all of which would look to be strong choices for accommodation if heading to the area.

In Positano, check into the Villa Rosa Positano (doubles from $221) for wide ocean vistas from a sprawling, 12-room, whitewashed house.  Book a room on one of the top floors - the higher the better - to ensure unobstructed views. 

The lofty rooms at the 19th-century Villa Lara (doubles from $175), perched on a terraced hillside, have sweeping views of the area's tiled roofs.  The friendly staff here sets the seven-room B&B apart. 

For away-from-it-all privacy, try Al Borgo Torello (doubles from $104), in the small medieval village of Torello.  Of the four rooms - all named for flowers - the Rose and the Sunflower have stunning panoramas of the Amalfi coastline.  We recommend the Rose room for its secluded balcony.