Firstly of every 12 months, I can’t assist however begin chasing summer time—daydreaming, planning, imagining the place the subsequent journey will take my husband, our two children and me. This time, we determined to move south to a sun-drenched stretch of Italy that was fully new to us, planning the last word Sicily household highway journey, the place we may chill out, roam and encounter hidden treasures. That’s how we ended up at two unforgettable Sicilian stops: Almar Giardino di Costanza and Verdura Resort.
CHECK IN, DIVE IN, BLISS OUT
We landed in Palermo on a Sunday in July, our youngsters buzzing with pleasure. After choosing up our rental automotive, we drove lower than an hour to Almar Giardino di Costanza, a peaceable journey by untouched countryside—lengthy, straight roads, nearly empty, with a delicate night breeze. Stepping onto the resort grounds felt like getting into a hidden oasis, surrounded by lush gardens. The staff welcomed us warmly and confirmed us to our spacious two-bedroom suite, making us really feel immediately at house.
My children wasted no time leaping into the beautiful, seemingly countless pool, whereas I settled on the pool bar with an aperitivo, watching them play till the solar set. That night, we dined on the resort’s AquaMadre Restaurant, the place conventional Sicilian dishes had been served.
Almar’s new Almablu Wellness & Spa oasis is deserving of a particular point out. Lately refurbished, it spans over 2,700 sq. meters and provides a full wellness expertise with saunas, steam rooms and hydrotherapy swimming pools. The next day, we hung out on the resort’s non-public seaside membership, simply quarter-hour away, a quiet stretch of coast the place I fell in love with the view (and at last caught up on the e-book I’d been which means to learn), whereas the youngsters went on a mission to seek out crabs within the shallow water.
CULTURE AND COASTLINES
We additionally explored close by Mazara del Vallo, a historic coastal city with an Arab-influenced Kasbah, winding streets and the famend Dancing Satyr Museum. Its wealthy cultural mix makes the city nicely price a go to.
WHERE EVERY PATH LEADS TO PLAY
We bid farewell to Almar and continued southwest to our subsequent vacation spot: Verdura Resort. Huge in scale (its grounds are as giant as all the Principality of Monaco), Verdura makes a placing first impression. The drive in reveals non-public villas perched above the resort, with the Mediterranean stretching out past. Upon arrival, we had been warmly welcomed by the staff, launched to the numerous eating choices (no fewer than seven eating places!) and proven to our two-bedroom household suite, full with a terrace and uninterrupted views of the ocean.
Certainly one of Verdura’s signature touches is the bicycles scattered across the property, able to be picked up and ridden at any second. We used them always, driving to the seaside, the pool and even to dinner. The primary pool is without doubt one of the largest in Europe, however for my children, the actual spotlight was the Verdura Children Membership. Each day introduced new actions: cooking lessons, science labs, dinosaur hunts, cinema nights and video games. Youngsters, in the meantime, had their very own line-up of sports activities packages and coaching camps to maintain them entertained.
That first night, we cycled to Trattoria Liolà, one of many resort’s informal eating places, for pizza and pasta. As we sat down, the sundown painted the sky in probably the most stunning shows I’ve seen in an extended timthe good backdrop to our first evening at Verdura.
TEMPLES ABOVE, TURQUOISE BELOW
Throughout our keep, we additionally took time to discover past the resort. On at some point journey, we visited Agrigento with its unimaginable Valley of the Temples, a UNESCO World Heritage Website the place historical past comes alive among the many historical ruins. Afterwards, we stopped at a small conventional trattoria for pizza and gelato. Easy, genuine and completely a should. One other day, we ventured to Torre Salsa, a pristine, untouched seaside accessible solely by boat or alongside a rugged 4×4 path. There, an countless stretch of sand met the ocean, and after we visited, it felt nearly completely our personal—a real hidden gem.
Our days at Verdura felt like a real vacation. We alternated between the resort’s non-public white-sand seaside and the pool, whereas my husband even swam the total 2-kilometer stretch from one finish of the seaside to the opposite earlier than breakfast. We additionally carved out a bit of “adults-only” time on the SPA, having fun with the thalassotherapy circuit, a collection of out of doors swimming pools, every with totally different temperatures and enriched with sea minerals, designed to chill out and rejuvenate.
SICILY, SERVED WITH A SMILE
As our Sicilian highway journey got here to a magical finish, I noticed essentially the most memorable moments weren’t simply the sights—they had been the individuals. From the concierge to the seaside attendant, from the gelato store proprietor to the pizzaiolo, everybody went out of their solution to make us really feel at house. A resort workers member would prepare one thing particular for the youngsters earlier than I even requested. Within the close by villages, the ice cream store proprietor would possibly add an additional spoon “simply because,” and the pizzaiolo would carry an aperitif on the home. This type of real heat is unforgettable.
As I advised a good friend I met throughout the journey: “Perché di spiagge belle o di resort lussuosi se ne possono trovare in tanti posti… ma la gentilezza di chi ti accoglie fa la differenza,” which means, stunning seashores and luxurious accommodations will be discovered in lots of locations, however the kindness of those that welcome you is what really makes the distinction.
