Stroll up a windy path, past water features, and underneath the main pool. Brush past the tropical palms and bougainvillea that overhang, and you reach the vaulted foyer that is Capri Palace Jumeirah.
Location
Unfortunately, there is no effortless way of getting to Capri unless you are prepared to spend a fortune and book your hotel’s private yacht transfer. For around €1000 EUR each, your hotel will whisk you from the entrance of Naples Airport, down to the port, and across to the beautiful Capri in style.
From Rome, the cost is more, and a faster option is a helicopter from Rome Airport to Anacapri heliport. If you are on a budget and don’t mind slightly scary taxis without seat belts, being charged random prices unrelated to the meter, and having to source your own ferry ticket at the port, you can simply hail a taxi at the airport and scoot down to the port for around €30 EUR. Our recommended less stressful and intermediate option, also offered by most hotels, is a private transfer from the airport to the port, where you will be handed hydrofoil tickets and ushered onto the boat (cost around €150 EUR pp).
Anacapri, where you find Capri Palace Jumeirah, is sleepy in comparison to Capri town. Not all the crowds make it up this far, so you can wander through the streets during the day without being jostled. Conversely, you are not in the center of things, and if you just want to pop out for a new handbag or a cola in the square, you have the hassle of having to taxi down the hill, or you can take the hotel’s shuttle bus.
If you really don’t like heights, don’t stay here. The road between Capri and Anacapri is hairy, to say the least. It winds up and up the mountain like an alpine road to a ski resort. When you reach the top, parts of the road are built on concrete stilts sticking out of the mountain! Capri Palace and its L’Olivio, which you should visit even if you are not staying, are worth the ride, but I always pray that the breaks on my taxi are working!
Style & Character
The decor at Capri Palace Jumeirah is a million shades of dreamy cream, complemented by fantastic and unusual artwork. The staff are welcoming and will be expecting you. They have been working there for many years, and there’s nothing relating to your stay they don’t know or can’t help you with.
Service & Facilities
By Capri standards, the pool at Capri Palace is large, and there are certainly plenty of loungers in the beautifully tended tropical garden. Wait for the excellent pool man who will make up a lounger for you. The spa is meant to be superb – Liz Hurley used to come here for their effective leg treatments, which I think says it all.
At night Capri evolves into one of the most romantic places on the planet, and the same is true of the Capri Palace. At night the entire hotel seems to be candlelit. Lanterns adorn every corner and shelf, and the entire world seems to be bathed in a subtle glow.
Rooms
Each room is different, and above base level, most are large and stylish, replicating the cream tones of the lobby. Most have large canopied beds, and the bathrooms are beautifully finished, although they can be on the small side. The tiling and decor in our last bathroom reminded me of the inside of a luxurious pyramid. Rooms either have a balcony looking out over the pool and, in the distance, the island of Ischia, or face the mountain and offer a patio or, my favorite, a private pool.
The base rooms are just that, more basic than the rest. They have nice decor, but some dont have a balcony and feel small and claustrophobic. My preference is to book the deluxe sea view or a pool room which comes with it’s own private pool.
It’s worth mentioning that my husband and I are light sleepers and although the rooms are cool and relaxing, at 6:00 am, if you are facing the front of the building above L’Olivio. you will hear the restaurant and other rooms open their electric shutters, so bring your earplugs! These are, however, minor gripes in an otherwise excellent hotel.
Dining
Hop in an open-topped taxi down to Capri town. Stroll over to the busy square and grab the first table that becomes available. In the height of the summer, finding a seat is a feat in itself. Still, no worries, if you can’t find one, do a circuit around the backstreets, maybe grab a drink outside the Quisisana hotel, or maybe indulge in one of the designer shops before returning to find that elusive free seat. Now you can relax for a few hours and absorb the soap opera of the Capri passers-by.
Our highlight, in terms of restaurants within the hotel, is the wonderful 2 Michelin Star L’Olivio, which is an indulgence of beautiful fish and pasta with Mediterranean flavors. Apparently, they light 300 candles here every night to maintain the perfect ambiance, and it is just that. Perfect. Nab a seat by the huge open windows and feel the Capri breeze melt away all the real world’s stress. The waiters are weirdly intuitive, almost psychic. They know your glass is empty, whether your bag needs its own seat (yes, mine likes to have its very own seat where possible!), and whether your napkin has fallen on the floor before you do. Quite astounding, what you need literally appears in front of you before you even know you need it.
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