I'd always wanted to visit Elba, and was disappointed to find a fairly limited selection of hotels when I came to research it. The Lonely Planet Italy guide suggested this hotel, and it seemed right up my street as it wasn't a big tourist hotel.

It's a small, family run hotel. It's by no means luxurious, but it's functional, clean and comfortable. It's run by an Italian lady and her mother (neither of whom speak much English - the daughters German is better). Our room was quiet and cool, with a small balcony.

When we stayed, they'd had a flood in the kitchen, so weren't able to serve food. I'd read that the food was good, so that was a shame. Breakfast was included in the price (croissant, roll, coffee, juice etc).

The hotel is in a small village near Marina di Campo. There are buses (the last one is around 5.30pm) to the village from Marina di Campo, or you can drive, cycle or walk. It's quite a small village, with a bakery, a tobacconist and a couple of restaurants, with great views back down to Marina di Campo, particularly at sunset. The village is an ideal starting point for walks on Elba.

I'd recommend this hotel to anyone wanting to get away from the touristy side of Elba, and people wanting to explore the island in full and not just the beaches!