The 18 Best Luxury Hotels in Sicily

Almost every house in this selection has a pool, and nearly always a view comes with it: of the sea, of Etna or across vineyards and fields.Therasia Resort Vulcano · PoolWith seawater you swim at Therasia Resort Vulcano on Vulcano: two pools are constantly fed with fresh seawater and face Panarea and Stromboli, and there is also an infinity pool with a jacuzzi and a waterfall. At Verdura Resort, a Rocco Forte Hotel, Sicily, four thalasso outdoor pools with mineral-rich seawater belong to the Irene Forte Spa, the main infinity pool looks out over the Mediterranean, and the spa has an indoor pool. Rent one of the Rocco Forte Private Villas Verdura Resort Sicily and you have your own infinity pool in the garden with more than 60 m² of water.Susafa Sicily · PoolAmong vines and olive trees lie the pools of Sicily’s rural luxury hotels. At Susafa Sicily in the Madonie the panoramic pool lies at the end of the estate above the fields. The infinity pool at Monaci Delle Terre Nere Zafferana Etnea looks across vineyards and sea to Etna, and Donna Carmela Resort sets its pool among centuries-old olive trees with a sea view. In the villas at Monaci and in the lodges and suites at Donna Carmela you also have your own pool or jacuzzi.

Above the coast of Taormina, if you are looking for a 5-star hotel in Sicily, you can choose between the heated outdoor pool of Belmond Grand Hotel Timeo and the infinity pool of Villa Timeo, the heated infinity pool of Belmond Villa Sant'Andrea right on the bay of Mazzarò and the infinity pool below the panoramic terrace of The Ashbee Hotel.

In Palermo, Agrigento and Syracuse, the free-form outdoor pool of Villa Igiea, a Rocco Forte Hotel, Palermo lies among ancient columns with a view of the sea, Hotel Villa Athena Agrigento has an outdoor pool in the archaeological park, and Ortea Palace Sicily has an indoor pool in its basement spa. At Almar Giardino di Costanza Mazara del Vallo you swim in the courtyard among palms, fruit trees and roses.

Plenty of room is offered by the spa on the south coast: the Irene Forte Spa at Verdura Resort, a Rocco Forte Hotel, Sicily has a spa area of 4,000 m² with eleven treatment rooms, including a double suite and a medi-spa room. Its thermal area includes a sauna, a two-storey steam bath and an infrared sauna, and the care products contain botanicals from the resort’s own organic farm. Guests of the Rocco Forte Private Villas Verdura Resort Sicily use the same spa.Hotel Villa Athena Agrigento · SpaHammam and vaults shape the spas of two luxury hotels in the west and south. The Almablu Spa at Almar Giardino di Costanza Mazara del Vallo is divided into a Roman-Arab hammam with tepidarium, calidarium and laconicum plus a salt steam bath, which uses salt from the Saline Culcasi di Nubia, and a Norman area with an organic sauna, a Finnish sauna, an ice fountain and a cold plunge pool. At Hotel Villa Athena Agrigento, the spa lies in a former storeroom for grain and oil around an ancient Greek cistern, decorated with restored 18th and 19th-century majolica.Belmond Villa Sant'Andrea · SpaAbove the Ionian Sea, Dior has set up a spa at Belmond Grand Hotel Timeo with a view of Etna, offering Dior facials and the 90-minute “Talisman of Vitality”. At Belmond Villa Sant'Andrea, signature rituals with Lávika and yoga with a sea view belong to the Wellness Centre, and at both Belmond houses spa and fitness access is free for suitespot guests. The Plumière Spa at Grand Hotel San Pietro works with Sicilian citrus fruit and olive oil, with a double cabin for couples and two panoramic jacuzzis with a sea view.

On Etna and on the islands things are quieter – good news if what you want most from a 5-star hotel in Sicily is rest. The Vulcano Natural SPA at Therasia Resort Vulcano has a warm hydromassage pool, a sauna and a Turkish bath. At Monaci Delle Terre Nere Zafferana Etnea, treatments with Etna botanicals also come to your villa, terrace or the garden, with 24 hours’ notice. And at Donna Carmela Resort, massages use the organic Radicepura line and yoga is practised under olive trees.

From 150 € you stay at Villa Carlotta Taormina Sicily; a night at Belmond Villa Sant'Andrea costs up to 670 €. The Rocco Forte Private Villas Verdura Resort Sicily are in a class of their own at 3,232 €: there you book the whole house, on two floors, with 207 to 293 m² and your own infinity pool in the garden.

What is included in all 18 luxury hotels: daily breakfast for two. An upgrade on arrival, subject to availability, is offered in 17 houses, early check-in and late check-out, subject to availability, in 14.

Hotel credit often amounts to 100 US dollars, as at Villa Igiea, a Rocco Forte Hotel, Palermo, where suites receive a further 100 US dollars from two nights, not in all rates. At the two Belmond houses, Belmond Grand Hotel Timeo and Belmond Villa Sant'Andrea, it is 100 US dollars, 220 in suites. 50 US dollars are offered at smaller houses such as Susafa Sicily. At the Private Villas it is 250 US dollars, which can also be used for golf, or 100 US dollars depending on the rate.

Extras at the Belmond houses: free access to spa and fitness, mineral water in the room and a shuttle between Taormina and the bay of Mazzarò, from the Timeo from April to October. At Villa Sant’Andrea, access to the private beach is included. From a booking value of 10,000 US dollars you also receive a 500 US dollar voucher for your next Belmond booking; special conditions apply.

When the benefits apply: in 13 houses from the first night. Five houses require two nights, including Susafa Sicily, Villa Carlotta Taormina Sicily and Donna Carmela Resort.

Points and status can be collected in nine luxury hotels. With the Leaders Club, for example at The Ashbee Hotel, if you give your membership number when booking; with I Prefer, for example at Almar Giardino di Costanza Mazara del Vallo; with Marriott Bonvoy at Ortea Palace Sicily. The three Rocco Forte houses, including Villa Igiea, a Rocco Forte Hotel, Palermo, also credit regular points and status benefits.

When it is most beautiful: from May to October for sea, beaches and islands, in spring and autumn for round trips to temples, Baroque towns and Etna, and in autumn also for the grape harvest on the volcano’s slopes. When to book a 5-star hotel in Sicily early: for July and August on the coast and the islands. Some luxury hotels in Sicily open seasonally: Therasia Resort Vulcano welcomes guests roughly from mid-April to mid-October, and Villa Neri Resort Linguaglossa Sicily closes in winter, roughly from December to March.

How long to stay: for a round trip between 5-star hotels in Sicily, plan seven to ten nights in two or three stages – three to four nights in the east between Taormina and Etna, plus Palermo, the west or the Aeolian Islands.