Palazzo Aurantia

Palazzo Aurantia occupies an eighteenth-century townhouse on Via Santa Maria della Pietà, the pedestrian lane that tips Sorrento’s old town toward the cliff and the little harbour of Marina Piccola. From the street it is a pale wall and an orange door; inside, a spiral stair rises past frescoed landings to a rooftop terrace with a plunge pool and the whole bay laid out like a map.

We restored the palazzo with local craftsmen: original cotto floors, hand-painted majolica in the bathrooms, linen curtains the colour of lemon pith. The look is quietly contemporary, with low lighting, walnut furniture and a few good pieces of Neapolitan art. There are only thirteen rooms, so the service is personal and unhurried.

Breakfast is served on the terrace or brought to your door: warm sfogliatella, blood-orange juice, ricotta, cured ham. At six o’clock the bar opens in the old cellar with Campanian wines by the glass, and the team will book you a table in town or a private boat to Capri.

The hotel welcomes guests aged sixteen and over. It is a short, steep walk to the old town and a longer one back, so we offer luggage porters and a bell at the lower gate for the car that takes you to the station or the port.