For better or worse, tourist trails through Sicily often overlook Noto, a bijou town in the island’s east. Which means that, unlike the rest of Siracuse, there is a charming atmosphere of captured time, especially in the superb collection of Baroque architecture.
Completely in step with the setting, the newly minted three-bedroom Casa Scianna mines a faded vintage aesthetic courtesy of its co-owner Edoardo Marchiori who has channeled a long stint as senior fashion editor at Italian Glamour into a second career as an interior designer. Interestingly, the B&B’s creative DNA is subliminally amplified by its moniker, a tribute to the Sicilian born photographer, Ferdinando Scianna.
Which explains the 1950s cinematic quality of the interior décor – the cool stone floors underfoot dressed with four poster wrought iron beds, Empire chairs, the obligatory prints of Roman emperors, and exuberantly colourful ceramics, drop crystal wall chandeliers, and antiques crafted by local artisans.
Each room features a different configuration, but the first floor suite has the advantage of a capacious day-bed set in a private al-fresco terrace that opens to that blue-on-blue sky.
Meanwhile, the in-house kitchen serves only breakfast, but in Noto, this is no hardship as the casa leads directly into a neighbourhood of small grocery stores, restaurants and bars, the latter quietly humming with the flick of card games.
ADDRESS
Via Ascenzo Mauceri 50 96017 Noto Siracuse Sicily
-
Il Sereno’s new Listening Suite is what phonophiles’ dreams are made ofDesigned by Patricia Urquiola, the new Lake Como-facing suite unites Japanese listening culture with Italian design
-
Y.Z. Kami's meditative, architecturally-inspired Domes take over Gagosian Beverly HillsA collection of Kami's Dome and Messenger paintings are currently united at Gagosian Beverly Hills
-
Bees can now check in at Kew’s new pollinator hotelAt Wakehurst, Kew’s wild botanic garden, artist Kristina Pulejkova unveils four functional sculptures that tell the hidden story of seeds and act as a refuge for bees during the heat of summer
-
Il Sereno’s new Listening Suite is what phonophiles’ dreams are made of
Designed by Patricia Urquiola, the new Lake Como-facing suite unites Japanese listening culture with Italian design
-
Inside Belmond’s most exclusive holiday villa yet, a lavish Ligurian palazzoOnce the theatre of lavish parties, Villa Beatrice is now a palatial haven of seclusion with easy access to Portofino’s Splendido, a Belmond hotel
-
The most stylish hotel takeovers to pop up at this summerFrom Capri to Ibiza, luxury fashion brands are taking over seaside resorts with exclusive boutique pop-ups and bespoke poolside accessories
-
Detour Discotheque is bringing ‘the world’s dreamiest party’ to PugliaThe pop-up event, La Dolce Vita Disco, promises dancing, good food and sunshine in a 16th-century Italian farmhouse
-
Five tranquil suites by Patricia Urquiola suspend visitors ‘between sea and sky’ in CapriPatricia Urquiola dreams up a study in contrast and tradition for the next chapter of Jumeirah Capri Palace
-
Sun-soaked European destinations to visit in springDreaming of Florentine palazzos and Greek islands now that the weather is starting to turn? Check into one of these beautiful European hotels and holiday homes
-
Everything you need to know about Italy's Lake Maggiore, according to FormafantasmaFrom baroque gardens to panoramic views, Andrea Trimarchi and Simone Farresin show us around this Italian escape
-
Wallpaper* checks in at Romeo Roma: a new hotel that’s one of Zaha Hadid’s last projectsLocated within Rome’s Tridente, Romeo Roma is a palimpsest of periods in which the late Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid left her avant-garde mark
