Bellevue Syrene 1820

Hotel description

This classic five-star hotel has been an Italian favorite since its opening in 1820, and it’s easy to see why: this cliffside villa looks out over the waterfront and the Bay of Naples from one of Sorrento’s most privileged positions. To this day the Bellevue Syrene drips with 19th-century elegance, scarcely diminished by the recent renovations — while some of the furnishings and décor have been modernized, the atmosphere as a whole is as regal as ever.

Anyway a slightly more contemporary color palette and a bit of modern art do not a design hotel make. The changes have made the Bellevue Syrene more livable, but it’s still every inch an old-world classic. Courtyard-view rooms are plush and attractive, but if you’ve come all this way, you may as well have a sea view, complete with a balcony looking out across the bay toward Vesuvius.

In a way the mix of classic and modern only accentuates the 19th-century fantasy of the place. Along with the fifty rooms and suites, the Bellevue Syrene abounds with salons, sitting rooms, and terraces, and boasts a number of dining options — al fresco in summer, behind windows in winter, but always with that extraordinary view of the bay.