Casa Angelina
With just 39 rooms, the boutique Casa Angelina hotel offers the luxury and comforts of a five star hotel in a charming and artistic atmosphere in laidback Praiano.
Perched on a cliff overlooking the Mediterranean, the hotel offers everything for those who love the sea and seek tranquility and even when your eye isn't drawn irresistibly to the beautiful views out to sea and Capri beyond, there is plenty of art dotted around Casa Angelina's stylish white interiors, with paintings, bronzes and glass work on show.
The rooms are an exercise in reverse Fordism - you can have any colour you want, as long as it's white - all the rooms are stylish and very comfortable and the majority have baths in the en-suites.
You will probably be tempted to sample the wares at some of the regions other restaurants, but the rooftop Un Piano nel Cielo restaurant is lovely and serves good quality Mediterranean fare. The fairylight illuminated Moroccan bar is also a lovely place to spend an evening.
The hotel's additional facilities include an outdoor pool and sundeck, an indoor pool and access to the beach.
Why We Love It
If you fancy a trip over to Capri, or along the coast to Pompeii, you can charter your own private boat from the hotel.
Le Sirenuse
Opened in 1951 by the Sersale family who still run it, Le Sirenuse has a deserved reputation as one of Italy's finest hotels.
The hotel is set in the village of Positano, at the heart of the Amalfi Coast, on a steep slope overlooking the Gulf of Salerno and the Islands of the Sirens.
Most of the bedrooms have a balcony or terrace overlooking the azure sea. The rooms are light and spacious, decorated with a combination of antique and contemporary furniture, and have cool whitewashed walls and colourful tiled floors.
The swimming pool is surrounded by a large terrace with stunning views of the sea and the village of Positano. The beach is accessed via a steep flight of stairs cut into the cliff side.
The hotel's La Sponda restaurant serves excellent Neapolitan cuisine, and there are two bars, while the immaculate Aveda Concept Spa combines traditional Ayurvedic and modern therapies and has a sauna and steambath. The hotel has two boats, including a classic 1972 Riva, available for excursions.
Why We Love It
The hotel is housed in a distinctive dark red building that was originally an 18th century palazzo.
Santa Caterina
Founded in 1880 and run ever since by succeeding generations of the Gambardella family, the Santa Caterina is one of the great hotels of the Amalfi Coast.
Located just outside the town of Amalfi, the hotel enjoys a panoramic coastal setting, with views over the Tyrrhenian Sea.
The property is spread over a series of landscaped terraces that lead down to the sea. The stylish rooms and suites are built into various levels of the cliff face. Each is individually decorated, with tiled floors, a mix of contemporary and antique furniture and small terraces or balconies with great views.
A scenic path past citrus groves and bougainvillea-clad gardens delivers guests to the foot of the cliff, where there is a saltwater swimming pool, sunbathing deck and open-air restaurant.
The gourmet restaurant up in the main building serves the Santa Caterina's renowned, award-winning cuisine and there is a spa offering a range of treatments including aromatherapy and reflexology, as well as a sauna and a Turkish bath.
Why We Love It
Don't feel like climbing down to the pool or back up again? No problem, take a leaf out of Charlie's book and use the glass lift cut into the rock face.
