Hotel Luna by Jamie Dunford Wood

A delightful cliff top boutique hotel with perhaps the finest views of any in Capri, as 'seaview' in most hotel brochures on Capri means a distant blue haze over a forest of TV aerials. But at the Hotel Luna there is nothing between you and the sea, and there are a series of little shaded terraces in its extensive gardens, as well as fine sit out balconies for the best rooms.

The facilities
It's not fashionable or glamourous like the Quisisana, but for sheer beauty far from the madding crowd, at the end of its own shaded path just a few hundred metres downhill from the Piazzetta, it can't be beat. Next door are the famed Gardens of Augustus with their views towards Vesuvius, so this is as close as you can get on modern Capri to appreciating what the emperors came for, unless you know someone who owns an expensive villa.

The reception area and sitting room/bar next door are brightly tiled in traditional Caprese majolica, with comfortably upholstered sofas and easy chairs in yellow with blue piping like an English country house. The staff are typically Italian, i.e. not snapping to attention, but that all adds to the lazy feel of the place. Upstairs the corridors are plain, but again with majolica tiling in red, green and black.

The rooms
This continues in the reasonably sized rooms, which have small sit-out balconies, dark green shutters, simple pink and green decor, good quality repro 19th-century inlaid furniture and whitewashed walls adorned with paintings by local artists. Hotel Luna’s deluxe rooms have slightly more sophisticated dark wood and cream styling, with twin sinks. Most rooms have separate bath and shower.

The 20 deluxes and 4 suites have fabulous sea views, with the balconies covered with bamboo shading. Breakfast there at dawn is heaven. Hotel Luna is easily the sort of place a Conran or a Branson or a Forte could snap up and all of a sudden it becomes trendy and three times the price. Get there before they do. Oh, and there's a pool, and a fine shaded restaurant.