Aeolian Islands near Sicily

Hi Carolyn, We just got back from Sicily a month ago today. We stayed in Trapani at Residence La Gancia on the waterfront. There were many ferries there but we didn't actually take then to the islands. At the Tourist Info office there were schedules and day tours available. Highly recommend hotel and city. We took the funicular up to Erice from there and also visited the Salines. I saw your question about hotel near Roma airport. We flew from Palermo to FCO and stayed in a wonderful hotel/BnB in the town of Fuimicino. Lovely little village, beuatiful sunset, the hotel was on a canal leading to the Med. I can't remember the hotel's exact name but it had the word Domus in it and we booked it on Booking.com for 90 euros. Large king bedded room with large bathroom with all the amenites. Excellent breakfast and pre-booked taxi to and from the hotel. No shuttle. Any questions, please PM me. Enjoy your RS tour. Sherry

I have traveled in the opposite direction. There is an ferry service between Naples (near Sorrento) and Palermo, which stops in the Aeolians. I based myself on Lipari and did an evening cruise from there to see the Stromboli eruptions. These is an impressive little archeological museum in Lipari that I enjoyed as well. I would highly recommend doing what you have in mind!

Will look into staying on Lipari. Would you recommend where you stayed? We are looking for something simple but nice in a good location -of course! We're you happy with your choice to stay on Lipari or now that you have been to the Aeolian Islands would you pick another island? It's in the book 1,000 Places so we gotta go..... Boat from Lipari to Naples and then train to Sorrento seems the choice. I haven't found any boats directly to Sorrento yet :(

Carolyn, when we stayed in the Aeolians we stayed on Lipari, in Lipari town. We loved it, and used it as a base to take day trips using the hispeed inter-island ferries. There is an awesome museum in Lipari, and the island has some great beaches (bring beach wading shoes). Take a ferry over to Volcano island, and swim in the mud baths (or use of their great regular beaches.) There are many points in Sicily to grab the fast ferries to the Aeolians: Millazo, Messina, etc. We took the train from Naples to Messina, then a ferry. I Would NOT reccomend the train; long and not so nice. We had scheduled the overnight ferry from Naples, but had missed it. We took the local train(Circumvesuviana) from Sorrento. Another return option for you is to the hi-speed ferries to Messina, then take the quick train ride to Catania, then use Whichbudget.com to find a cheap flight from Catania to Naples. We used the Lonely Planet guidebook for all of Sicily, and the Aeolians. When we are looking for a place to stay we pull up Trip Advisor, and sort lodging options into places that meet our requirements. In Lipari e stayed at Diana Brown's B&B, and loved it. Get a room on the top floor. The Aeolians are awesome; so much to see, each island is different. Have fun!

Steve, thanks so much or your post. You are the second post that recommended Lapari. Will look into he B&B you suggested and bring water shoes! Can we go directly fom Palemo to Lapri?

Acording to thinksicily.com, Ustica Lines ferries go from Palermo to the Aeolians: http://www.usticalines.it/en/dettaglio_porto.asp One web site has the following recs for the Aeolians: Visit Stromboli (climb it ideally). Climb Vulcano. Rent a car/mopeds and go around Lipari. (we did the moped and loved it!!) Buy a granita lemone. Use the buses but beware of overcowding. Visit Rinelli on Salina. Visit the Museum on Lipari. (awesome!) Go snorkling to patrol for jelly fish. (if someone/sign says "Medusa" you could get stung..I did, but it was no big deal)
Take jewellery off in Vulcano's mud and wear a throw away bathing suit

I actually started off on Stromboli, where there are more donkeys than people. I much preferred Lipari and moved there ahead of schedule. The small hotel I stayed in in Lipari Town was the Oriente (looked up the old e-mail) - very central, with lots of restaurants nearby to choose from. There is a direct Palermo to Lipari ferry line. The nearest ferry to Sorrento from Sicily is to Naples, since these ferries are BIG (trucks, etc.). Sorrento only has smaller distance ferries. If you want to avoid the Circumvesuviana train, the hi-speed ferry from Naples to Sorrento leaves not far from where the overnight Sicily ferry docks - you'd just need to wheel your luggage a fair hike down the port to buy your ticket on arrival (they leave frequently throughout the day, but are quite expensive). Again, I did it in reverse: took the C-train from Sorrento to Naples, taxi from the station to the dock, then the overnight ferry in a single cabin with a sink (shared WC down the hall). We didn't even "dock" on Stromboli... just did the maritime equivalent of "duck and roll" - running down a wildly-jumping ramp, that was sort-of resting on the small concrete dock. ;-) To do it again, I'd just stick to Lipari and take an evening viewing cruise to see the eruptions: pfffft, 20 minutes later.... pfffft again, repeat... BTW, the jellyfish can be a real issue, depending on when you go and the sulfurous Vulcano mud will ruin your bathing suit.