After a whirlwind day in Naples we jumped on a ferry in the shadow of Vesuvius for an hour-long boat ride, headed to our island destination of Ischia and the resort of Punta Chiarito, set at the mouth of the Bay of Naples.
We quickly left Naples in our wake.
The impetus for the trip was the agriturismo resort of Punta Chiarito, which had come highly recommended by a friend.
Arriving at the port of Forio, we jumped into a taxi and began to circumvent the island.
After a 40 minute drive around the edge of the beautiful island, we arrived at the small town of Panza where we called Punta Chiarito to come pick us up.
Arriving at Punta Chiarito
Punta Chiarito is perched on a dramatic cliff overlooking the Tyrrhenian sea.
I had been lured by the promise of a stunning cliff side setting, swimming in a grotto, and amazing onsite farmed food in a climate so warm that the tomatoes grew year-round.
Driving down the tiny island roads, I could tell already that I would love this place. Yes, Ischia is beautiful, but the fact that it is a workaday place – and not a wealthy resort area – made the island special.
We pulled into the luscious, olive tree strewn drive and we could feel any tension leave our bodies.
Punta Chiarito was everything I hoped it would be.
Our seaside room had a charming little terrace that peered out over the sea through the olive trees.
The walk at the foot of our room encircled the hotel and provided a foot path with sweeping views over the sea and the dramatic peninsula town of Sant’Angelo.
The pool just below fed by a hot spring, teetered on the scenic cliff.
Punta Chiarito was peaceful and mesmerizing – and I just wanted to sink into it and never leave.
Lunch at the Punta Chiarito Cantina
But I had also come for the food…. and it was time to head down to The Cantina for lunch.
The Cantina lies at the foot of the hotel and the journey down the hill takes you past another pool under canopies of olive trees.
We ensconced ourselves at an outdoor cliff side table, where only a wood railing lay between us and hurtling down a steep cliff.
The Cantina staff immediately brought us lightly brined olives, fresh from Punta Chiarito trees. But we were ready to relax and dig into the housemade wine. Our server offered us a choice of red or white wine.
We went for the white on this beautiful sunny day – and quickly became addicted to its weighty fragrant flavor, anchored in Ischia’s ancient wine history going back several millenia to the Greeks.
The Cantina menu is filled with items from their own Ruffano farm that stretches from the top of a small mountain down to the sea.
We opted for a couple of items to share, and quickly fell in love with the Cantina’s food.
All future Tomato Bruschetta will be measured against this one. Punta Chiarito’s housemade toasty bread is topped with chunky red tomatoes and liberally swimming in a pool of its farm made olive oil. Topped simply with basil – but the kicker herb that put this bruschetta over-the-top was the fresh, spicy oregano which we could see growing in terra-cotta pots around us.
The Insalta Mista encompassed a bit of everything – olives, potatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, artichokes – all doused in the stunningly fragrant olive oil.
The Cantina also offers freshly squeezed tart Lemonade, with fruit straight from its trees.
We took in the bustling farm scene.
A small flatbed truck had arrived piled with Moscato grapes, and a small bunch was brought to our table so we could sample them.
But beside our table was the most fascinating scene: the day’s olive oil production was beginning.
And there is certainly no shortage of olives for Punta Chiarito to work with. All around the agriturismo you will see olives, from those captured in nets to the trees that surround the hotel.
We even saw staff standing on a precarious cliff side fence harvesting olives from trees outside our hotel room.
As the first pressing of the oil flowed from the olives, the owner brought around to his guests tastes of the golden oil sopping in pieces of bread. It was dazzling.
Watching the scene was like a lunchtime floor show that just makes you want to while away the day with a couple of bottles of wine and then lie
Hanging out at the Punta Chiarito Lounge
The lounge area is the only place that you can get WiFi, which is fine since we didn’t find ourselves in our simple-but-pleasant rooms much. And hey, we were on a gorgeous island so being incommunicado was just fine.
In the evenings, we would head to the bar to partake of some fabulous aperitivo concoction.
We would anticipate what interesting cocktail would be envisioned. The list of cocktails is long, but our bartender would work around our mood, creating something interesting from fresh fruit and juices he had on hand, which wasn’t necessarily on the lengthy menu.
My favorite was probably this Prosecco and St. Germaine beverage topped with cucumber, a slice of Mango, fresh herbs and the piece de resistance – a frozen green fig that had the texture of eating sorbet and was out of this world.
Dinner at Punta Chiarito
The service at Punta Chiarito is wonderful, and they attempt to meet resort standards by having a couple of fine dining options. But their forte is clearly with their simple and delectable agriturismo fare from The Cantina. This is what they should be trying to bring to their more formal restaurants that are based inside the hotel. The dinners while fine, came nowhere near the brilliance of The Cantina food.
While I would not hesitate to head back to Punta Chiarito, I would probably plan future dinners differently. I would try dinner in town or fill up at The Cantina during the day, and simply have a light snack in the bar in the evening. I also understand that The Cantina is open till early evening, so I would probably opt for an early dinner there. With so much potential, if Punta Chiarito feels obligated to have fine dining this wouldn’t be a difficult correction to make in their more formal restaurants.
The Punta Chiarito Shop
Luckily The Cantina has a shop where you can purchase Ruffano farm-made items.
As I still had another ten days of traveling in Dublin and London, I needed to travel light and only brought home three small bottles of olive oil for me and gifts for some pretty lucky family members.
But you can also purchase wine, marmalade, honey, and sun-dried tomatoes.
Breakfast at Punta Chiarito
The breakfast buffet, which is included with the room cost, is another example of how good the Punta Chiarito food is when they focus on their agriturismo strength.
Each morning the long buffet table is piled with housemade offerings of numerous baked goods, meats, and cheeses.
My favorites were the housemade yoghurt with honey from their own hives and granola.
I also loved grabbing a fresh orange, slicing it open, and squeezing my own fresh orange juice.
With the large breakfast buffet and a late meal at The Cantina, I could be completely satisfied for the day.
Life at Punta Chiarito
I spent three lovely days at Punta Chiarito.
With so much good food to eat, luckily there are lots of beautiful places to walk to surrounding the hotel. But typically the awesome pool is calling.
We spent our days hiking, lounging by the pool, and be pampered at the spa with a massage on one rainy morning.
Another day, we took the bus to Sant’Angelo to see the charming peninsula town up close. Hotel staff consider it part of their service to pick you up or drop you off at the town of Panza, where you can easily catch a bus that circumvents the island.
I learned that the island of Ischia is filled hot springs and that people from all over Europe come to Ischia for health benefits.
Talking with other guests at the hotel, I also learned that the hotel has its own beach at the bottom of the cliff.
On my final morning, I determined to try heading down to the beach to take in the sunrise. But I found the path precariously steep, even though someone had filled in spots with cement and a rope handrail.
I stopped a third of the way down, and marveled at the sunrise above Sant’Angelo where it seemed like the sky was on fire. I was happy that I had awakened early to take in this sight.
Parting with Punta Chiarto was made bearable by knowing that I would be back… for the wonderful food, for the hot springs, to tour Ischia vineyards and to perch myself on the Punta Chiarito cliff and look out over paradise.
A Reluctant Goodbye to Ischia
When it came time to leave, the hotel arranged a taxi for us. We retraced our route back to the ferry.
Back at the charming port of Forio, we boarded the ferry back to Naples.
I would recommend staying no less than three days at Punta Chiarito – and probably at least five, as you will want to both spend time at the agriturismo as well as exploring the island of Ischia.
