Hi there,

I have recently asked questions about places to stay in Positano. After countless research, and not being able to find anything not-overly-expensive-but-nice (which hasn't been booked out), I have accidently came across Ischia, and it seems to offer everything we are after!

Quick note - we are spending 3 weeks in Italy for our honeymoon, and this particular part of the trip is the relaxing, swim/sunbath part.

The choice of accommodation on Ischia is far better than such on Positano considering the prices, I have found nice hotels in different parts of the island, so I think the choice will be made based on the best location.

Here are my options at the moment:

Miramare (Ischia Porto) - lovely hotel, spa etc, location seem to be good. Although we could only afford a non-view room. Highly rated across travel websites

Aragona Palace (Ischia Porto) - also nice hotel with spa, pools etc, close proximity to cafes etc. We can take the more expensive Superior room with Harbour View.

Hotel Parco Smeraldo Terme (Barano d'Ischia) - amazing reviews, awesome spa/pools and a big plus - it's right by the beach. However I don't understand whether it's within walking distance of other places on the island.

So what's important to us:
- Proximity to the beach. Don't have to be right on the beach, but it needs to be within easy reach
- Good pools/spa
- Great food, restaurants within walking distance
- Ability to explore other things by foot. Don't mind taking buses, but not all the time.

I've gone through a number of Ischia topics on the forum, and saw there is a couple of people that live there/spend many years so hopefully they will be able to help.

We loved Il Moresco, which has a great pool area and a private section on the sea down the street. Did you see my long thread on where to base on the island?

@ekscrunchy, had a brief look but can't seem to find it. Can you provide a link?

I'm sorry I was so brief before, not good to try to write much on the iPad; I will look for the link now and also comment that Barano is strong for the beach but my impression (formed only by passing through on the bus) was that it is out of the way for restaurants and town life. The two in Porto would be better. The Aragona Palace is right at the harbor so not sure about the beach right on site….

Can you make it work at all by stahing away from the beach and talking a bus or walking to the beach, and to the fabulous thermal park at Negombo?

Take a look at these and come back with questions which I will do my best to answer!


http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...the-island.cfm


http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...-its-spell.cfm

ekscrunchy, I've read through your (VERY) extensive threads and I have to say it made my choice even harder I'm even more convinced that each place would offer us something unique, based on other comments inside your threads.

I'm 100% convinced we are making the right decision by going to Ischia over Amalfi/Capri, so that's a start .

Barano seems like the least obvious choice due to it's remote location and generally a very small town.

I have also started considering Lacco Ameno, looks like a beautiful spot. San Montano hotel looks very appealing...

In terms of location, would you say Miramare is located a lot better than Aragona Palace?

Lacco Ameno would be fine.

There will always be restaurants near a hotel, but if you want to seek out the "best" places (not in terms of being fancy, just having better food than the typical tourist restaurant) you might haave to take the bus. Really the bus is not at all bad and you get to sighsee along the way.

I don't know the Miramare, though. The location is near the Il Moresco, I think, where we stayed, between Ponte and Porto. (Can you get in there in your price range??) The best beaches are not in that area, but you can swim in the sea.

Between those two, the reviews on the Aragona have been so strong for years that I would lean that way. It's right by the bus stop to get to the better beaches, on the southern coast and near Forio.

Hi!

In case anyone's interested, after tons and tons of research, we've decided to stay at Terme Manzi.

It worked out only 60 euros more expensive for 5 nights than Miramare, but we thought it was definitely worth it. Of course the location isn't as great, however many travellers couldn't speak more highly about the excellent free shuttle that literally takes you anywhere as long as you organise ahead.

I'll be doing a series of blogs about our trip on return, so if anyone's interested will post here on the forum!

(we are doing Paris, Milan, Venice, Florence, Val d'Orcia, Ischia and Rome).

I have seen that hotel featured on a cooking show in the US..looks fine.

I do hope you will return with a report as info on the island is hard to come by on this forum....

Let me know if you need food info..
the SlowFood Il Focolare should be easy to reach from the hotel. I cannot urge you enough to post your impressions here upon your return..

Absolutely. I'm planning to write a blog post on every location.There will be posted here http://mxmmv.co but I'll feature it on the forum.

Does Ischia have nightlife? How is it different from Capri, Positano?
Is it just less touristy? If flying into Naples, how would you get to Ischia?

You can take the ferry from Naples; there is a bus from the airport to the ferry piers.

Yes there is nightlife. And yes, there are many tourists on Ischia, just not so many Americans and not so many tour groups.

Please post your trip report here, not only a link to your blog. the more info you give back the more you will receive in future.