Hotel Il Girasole ★

The Hotel Il Girasole is one of the Secret Hotels of the Amalfi Coast, a hidden hideaway in Anacapri on the island of Capri

Anacapri is the island of Capri's second village, halfway up the slopes of Monte Solaro about a 15-minute drive west of the main town, which is itself confusingly just called "Capri."

Ask the driver of the teensy public bus from the Marina Grande docks up to Anacapri what lies at the end of the line beyond the village, and he'll say, "Nothing.That’s not entirely true. There's a cement pathway, scurrying with lizards and bordered by high walls spilling over with bougainvillea and fig, olive, and oak branches.

Follow the path for ten minutes, past the wrought iron gates of houses scattered across this back side of the island—far from the tourist scrum of Capri Town—and you arrive at the Girasole, a summery set of bungalows with killer views across brick terraces to the Bay of Naples, far below.

Rooms 16, 18, 19, 22, and 23 get the best panoramas; the views from rooms 8 to 11 (under the pool deck) are partly blocked by an arbor laden with flowering vines, those of room 24 by fig and peach trees on the next terrace down.

(Unless you're desperate for a €10 to €15 discount from the cost of a standard room, avoid rooms 3 to 5 under the reception hall: the views are of the linen closet.)

All of these numbered rooms have tasteful modular furnishings and padded headboards.

The four named rooms are larger, pricier suites that have been classed up with repro antiques, stuccowork or painted motifs on the walls, picture windows, and direct Internet access (other guests make do with the four iMacs in the lobby; €4 for 30 min.).

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