Where to stay in the Eolian Islands?

Are you going to Sicily for the summer holidays 2019? What if you go from one island to another? Here's where to stay on the Eolian Islands!

The Eolian Islands — Isole Eolie in Italian and also named “Lipari Islands” are a volcanic archipelago located north of the Sicily , in the Tyrrhenian Sea and belong to the Italian State. The archipelago consists of 17 islands, islets and rocks.

7 islands are inhabited and only 3 of them are accessible to motorists. The famous islands Vulcano and Stromboli, which are active volcanoes, are in the Eolian Islands. They have a population of 14,016 inhabitants, spread over the following 7 islands: Lipari, Salina, Vulcano, Stromboli, Panarea, Filicudi and Alicudi.

Occupyed by the Greeks as early as 580 before our era, the Eolian Islands were subject to several legends, in particular that the god Eole — master and ruler of the winds in Greek mythology — would have colonized the archipelago during the Troy War. The archipelago of the Isles has been listed on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 2000, and is attended by more than 200,000 visitors each year.

Would you like to visit the Eolian Islands? Isn’t it classy and unusual to sleep on the slopes of an active volcano? Here are the places to sleep in Lipari, Stromboli, Vulcano and Salina!

Lipari

The main island of the archipelago, Lipari includes 16 000 inhabitants permanent, and administratively depends on the province of Messina in Sicily. Occupied from the Neolithic, it is the largest of the 7 islands. You are advised to choose to sleep in Lipari if you want to enjoy the social activity of the “capital” or discover the careers of Obsidian and sandstone.

It unfolds as soon as it arrived at the port by its acropolis, dominated by the Cathedral of Saint-Bartolomé, built by the Normans in the Middle Ages. The Cathedral dell’Addolorata — medieval times — seat on the port and the city and is built in baroque style. The Eolian Archaeological Museum is a must in the city. It houses one of the largest archaeological collections in Italy, and traces the history of the Eloan islands of the Prehistory in the Roman era.

Via Garibaldi, in the Marina Corta district is the main shopping street, with many shops, souvenir shops, restaurants, bars and cafes. Don't miss swimming in the beaches of Porticello, Canneto and Acquacalda: they are beautiful! The coast of Lipari is to be seen, especially the Roman Baths of S. Calogero (not the singer...), which are the oldest thermal baths in the world.

Salina

Salina is the second largest volcanic island in the archipelago. The homonymous city reflects the quintessence of Italy, notably by its bright colours, village houses, churches and old palaces decorated with yellows, ochres, roses and oranges. The streets are sprinkled with bougainvilliers, jasmines and lemon trees. In the countryside, grow vines and orchards.

The speciality of the island is the manufacture of ceramic tiles. To sleep in Salina, choose the village Malfa North. It has a lot of hotels close to the sea. It is the production area of the capers and the famous wine Malvasia .

You can also hike on the slopes of the two extinct volcanoes of the island: the Fossa delle Felci (at 961 metres above sea level) and Monte dei Porri , culminating at 860 meters. To sleep in Salina in peace, choose Leni , inside the land and in a green paradise.

Vulcano and Stromboli

If you decide to climb the homonymous volcano, you will logically sleep in Vulcano, the island of demons. The harbour smells like rotten eggs due to the suffering exhaled by the volcano and the island is only a lunar and desert landscape, bordered by black sand beaches. We can go around the crater and then go to the beach Sabbie Nere de Vulcano Porto.

Two ports allow an anchor point on Stromboli, the most eastern island of the archipelago. The island is home to the famous explosive volcano Stromboli, which is one of the most active in Europe. After climbing the volcano, relax on the beaches, especially in Ficogrande, Forgia Vecchia, Spiaggia Lunga or Scari.