A weekend of pure Sicily

I was reminded earlier this year of the natural beauty of Sicily and the Aeolian islands.  I visited Donna Carmela Resort and Lodges with some travel colleagues and a month later, stayed at Therasia Resort and Spa.  Whilst individually striking, a twin centre trip staying at both hotels, exploring both destinations, is a very special journey.

Approximately 30 minutes’ drive from Catania airport, Donna Carmela Resort and Lodges is located in the centre of one of the owners’ plant nurseries, surrounded by 100 acres of lush Mediterranean and subtropical plants.  In the shadow of Mount Etna, Donna Carmela sympathetically connects the nature of its surroundings with the luxury and expectations of a superb five star resort.

Take the early flight from London to Catania, completely worth it to enable you to enjoy a relaxed lunch on arrival at Sintesi, the hotel’s informal restaurant on the pretty terrace.  In the shade of olive trees surrounded by the tranquillity of the gardens, we enjoyed typically Sicilian dishes including ceviche of seabass, pacherro pasta with basil pesto and an octopus burger.  The warm pistachio cake is not to be missed. Don’t worry about the fact you’ll want to taste more sweet treats at dinner – here is somewhere you should indulge.

The hotel’s farm to table philosophy respects the cyclical nature of the earth and the menu is adapted throughout the year to reflect the season produce of the resort’s vegetable garden and citrus grove.

The principal hotel restaurant, La Cucina di Donna Carmela, serves beautiful Sicilian dishes reimagined using the freshest seasonal ingredients from the hotel’s gardens.  Here you can relish an extremely enjoyable of sophistication, hospitality and superb fine dining.

Chef Piergiorgio Alecci says:

“What is now a trend in the cuisine of the greatest chefs – eating food that comes exclusively from your own gardens – is a habit here, an uninterrupted reminder of the peasant life where cooking has always been done according to nature”.

This statement very much reflects the essence of Sicilian cooking, where the freshest and most delicious ingredients are simply combined, without fuss, to produce the most superb food.

There is plenty to do whilst staying at Donna Carmela, starting with Radicepura Horticultural Park.  Radicepura was commissioned by Donna Carmela owners the Faro family and covers 5 hectares of rich volcanic fertile soil.  Here you can wander through over 5,000 varieties and 3,000 species of plants, making a very pleasant way to spend a leisurely afternoon.

We were very aware that Mount Etna is ever present and respect for the volcano evident among the people of Sicily.  Etna is the most active stratovolcano in Europe, and the world, with a long history of continuous eruptions and lava flows. Mount Etna is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, recognised for its scientific importance, natural phenomena and aesthetic beauty.  We were lucky enough to experience a guided tour of the volcano which is well worth doing: walking through the undulating volcanic slopes and learning more about the many visible craters and evidence of past eruptions and flows is fascinating.  There is opportunity during the summer months to head to the top of Mount Etna, something many of us vowed to return to accomplish.

We headed straight to Pietredolce Winery after our guided walk of Etna, to enjoy the most delicious Sicilian lunch and tasting of Pietredolce wines. Located principally on the northern slopes of Mount Etna, at an altitude of between 650 and 950 metres above sea level, Pietredolce vineyards mainly consist of pre-phylloxera vines between 90 and 150 years of age. These vines are fed by the sandy, loam and mineral rich soils which in turn contribute to lively and soulful wines. We were guided through many of the winery’s wines and wandered through the vines themselves.

We ate a lot that day so were glad to return to the hotel for a fun and relaxed aperi-dinner in the hotel’s Rizo bar.

Any stay in that part of Sicily should include a trip to Taormina.  We were blessed with gorgeous weather and a fabulous guide in the form of Mario Ballarino, General Manager of Donna Carmela, who kindly gave up his day to show us the town. Taormina, just 35 minutes by car from Donna Carmela, is a picturesque hilltop town known for its cobbled streets, boutique shopping and stunning views.  Mount Etna is of course, the backdrop to the town and the magnificent Teatro Antico di Taormina is a must see.  The ancient theatre offers breathtaking views of the sea and Mount Etna and is a still a thriving venue today with vibrant opera scene as well as performers from all over the world – The Gypsy Kings were due to perform a few days after our visit.

Isola Bella, a small island and nature reserve connected to the mainland by a narrow strip of sand, is accessible by cable car of via the beach.  The cable car can also take you into the town if the hills are too much.

Following some shop perusing, a wander through the town and an aperitif in one of the town’s pretty piazzas, we enjoyed the most fabulous Sicilian lunch then gently made our way back to the hotel.

We were greeted by the hotel’s pastry chef and a beautiful set up under the olive trees to enable us to learn to make traditional Sicilian Cannoli.  It’s not as tricky as it looks and using the freshest ricotta, the results were incredible!

Venturing out to explore local towns is part of the experience at Donna Carmela.  We wandered through the streets of Acireale that evening and ate, probably, the best pizza we had ever tasted!

We were fortunate to be able to spend 3 nights at this gorgeous hotel.  The love of what they do is evident amongst the staff who effortlessly look after every guest with personality and discretion. Thank you to Donna Carmela for looking after us so well and to Alex from Tropical Sky, Mel from Travel Counsellors, Aurora from Just Sicily, Fiona from Chartwell Travel and Tina from Westway Travel for joining us.

Next stop, the Aeolian Islands and Therasia Resort and Spa.

Get in touch with Emma if you want to know more and for an immersive video experience of Sicily and Donna Carmela, Jonathan’s Journal is worth a watch.

Donna Carmela Resort and Lodges is available to book through your preferred tour operator.