Conde' Nast Traveller - April 2006
The 30 Best Mediterranean Villas
DON ARCANGELO ALL'OLMO - This is possibly the most beautiful and certainly the most polished villa in Sicily... Access is via enormous, arched double doors through a barrel-vaulted entrance hall to the main house, which dates from 1800. There is a serious collection of antiques and paintings (including Flemish oils); the crisp, white bed linen bears the family crest, and the bathrooms have black-marble showers. The decor is fresh, with white, slip-covered sofas, shades-of-white walls and carefully selected objets. The vivacious owner gives cookery classes in the vast, light-filled kitchen...
LA FAVORITA - La Favorita is a 300-year-old former hunting lodge five minutes' drive from the south-western coastal town of Marsala. It is an atmospheric aristocratic pile, with worn but polished tile floors, 18th-century oil paintings and antiques, a lived-in grand salon and formal dining room... The grounds resemble public gardens, with a palm-lined avenue through banks of oleanders backed by banana trees and plenty of benches, chairs and tables.
VILLA GLICINE - This pretty, architect-designed house was built recently in traditional Sicilian style, combining the best of old and new... It is in a convenient location in the hills behind the city of Catania, but enjoys a secluded position at the base of an extinct volcano with Mount Etna beyond. There is a new swimming pool in the walled, terraced garden, which has mature palm trees, a rose garden and a number of shady seating areas.
SOLANTO - the owners of this sea-front villa outside Palermo..... rent out two exrtravagantly decorated, self-contained suites.....with a stunning swimming pool...From here a little gate opens to stairs leading down to the sea....
VILLA ARMERINA - An early 17th Century hunting lodge, this is an honest four-square country house with enormous rooms...There's a peaceful lawned area with bucolic views in front and a new swimming pool at the back......
MASSERIA PERNICE - Four very stylish, self-contained apartments comprise this working winery....two suites open onto a pretty courtyard garden and two are next to the luxurious hall, a triple-height, open-plan barn conversion. Each unit has a well-stocked (complimentary) fridge....Aperitifs are a daily ritual, with cocktails or wine served beside the large swimming pool or at one of the numerous viewing points on the hilly estate......
