Yachting in Italy with a view of Mount Vesuvius — 1

For any yachtsman, there are three main exits from Naples: Naples and its charter companies or, if you want to have a choice, then Procida and Castallamare di Stabia. This is one of the main places for a yacht charter in Italy, or rather — in the Gulf of Naples.

Let's say you want to leave Naples as soon as possible, you can't pronounce the third name, and you decide to go for Procida. Great choice!

Procida

The fleet on Procida is almost larger than the island itself, and renting a yacht there is easier than ordering pizza. So, very often regattas and cruises in Italy start from Procida. What do you need to know about this island?

Firstly, it is small. It is so tiny that you can sail around it on a yacht in a couple of hours. It will take you four hours if you do not set sail, do not turn on the engine, and use prosecco as a driving force.

Secondly, Procida was both a prison for dangerous criminals and a place of rest for Roman patricians. It's interesting whose successors the Italian sailors are now.

What about now? Now on Procida, they don't really care about tourists — and this is good! Thanks to this, one can still find real Italian island life there: lemon trees, fishing nets, and many boats.

— Excuse me, where is the sea? I ask old people playing dice. They look at me for a long time, and then politely answer: «This is an island, the sea is everywhere.»

What is the coolest thing about Procida? Despite the charm of the island, the coolest thing is to look at it from the water. That is, from a yacht. These cute little colored houses, like a bunch of precious stones, they: a) fascinate; b) work for your Instagram; c) tune you to the real vacation sunny mood.

And also wine. Yes, on Procida, there are vineyards, and here they grow a vine that produces a light white wine with aromas of fruit — peach, and apricot. This sort is common both in Procida and in Ischia.

What else? At Procida, they shot scenes for «The Talented Mr. Ripley» — yes, someone here probably shook hands with young Jude Law.

And, of course, from Procida, you can see Ischia, and in fine weather — the Vesuvius! Well, the weather there is almost always good, but due to humidity, the air is not always transparent, but if you are lucky, Vesuvius will be visible from any island.

Ischia

Ischia is a few miles from Procida, and, of course, you must go to this island.

Speaking of gods. If you believe in the theory of handshakes, it is enough to lie down on Ischia's land to consider yourself closely acquainted with Zeus, a. k. a. Jupiter, a. k. a. a hot-tempered Olympian who once threw a pebble at Typhon. Venus (Aphrodite, but we are in Italy) slightly changed the trajectory, and so we got another island in the Gulf of Naples.

What shall you do in Ischia? Anchor off the coast of the island and indulge in hedonism (anchorage at Ischia is one of the most picturesque in Italy).

In general, there are a lot of things that have to do with gods here, for example, there is the thermal park of the Gardens of Poseidon — and thanks to the number of different reservoirs, as well as an abundance of pleasures for the body, you feel the divinity of this place.

What else is interesting in this island? There are three volcanoes on 46 sq. m. — feel like a little prince (though the last eruption happened more than 700 years ago). In addition to thermal springs, there is mineral mud, in which, as they say, Clark Gable himself soaked. And the Aragonese castle — an island near the island, connected to Ischia by a stone bridge. There, of course, was a prison at some point.

And the most important thing is gluttonous pleasures on this island. Be sure to try coniglio all' ischitana — Ischia rabbit and limoncello. If you do not like liquid sweets, try a local rum cake. This is pure pleasure!

What about wine? Of course, there is wine! We thank the Greeks for bringing the first vines to the island. The island's volcanic soils allow you to enjoy exclusively unique local wines. White wine (foraster and biancoella) with seafood, red (barbera or guarnachcha) with a rabbit, and sparkling one for any occasion.

There is a risk that the crew will not want to leave the island voluntarily, but we have so much to look forward to.