BAGLIO OF SANTA MARINA

300 square metres - 10 beds - 5 bathrooms
The villa is a historic manor house built in 1834 on an estate in the agricultural plain of Santa Marina di Milazzo. In 2015, the property underwent a complete restoration that included the interior spaces, period furniture, historic frescoes, and all functional technical systems. The house spans 300 square metres over two floors: on the first floor, there are 4 spacious double and triple bedrooms, 2 separate terraces, and two bathrooms. On the first floor, you’ll find the entrance, a spacious kitchen, two dining rooms, a study, a living room with a sofa bed, two bathrooms, a guest bathroom, a pantry, and other amenities. The house is equipped with a TV, Internet outlets in every room, and free Wi-Fi; it also features heating for the winter, and the 5 bedrooms are air-conditioned.
On the interior side, there is a patio of approximately 90 square metres, shaded by a centuries-old plane tree, well-lit, and furnished with tables, chairs, and umbrellas for pleasant evenings outdoors. Essential services are available in the vicinity of the town of Santa Marina: post office, church, tobacco shop, newsstand, pharmacy, and grocery stores. The villa is about 4 km (a 7-minute drive) from the town centre and the Milazzo ferry terminal for the nearby Aeolian Islands. About 1 km from the house lies the start of the long, public west-facing beach—several kilometres long—featuring private beaches and beach facilities. On the Milazzo promontory—a peninsula extending about 5 km into the Tyrrhenian Sea—there are numerous coves, inlets, natural pools nestled among the cliffs, sea caves, and scenic viewpoints. The owners have a small 7.50 ml sailing catamaran with an auxiliary motor that comfortably seats up to 8 people, as well as a small 4.50 m inflatable boat, useful for landing on small beaches inaccessible by land. These vessels are available upon guests’ request for guided day trips around the Milazzo Peninsula and are captained directly by the owners. The villa is 3.8 km from the Milazzo highway exit, a ½-hour drive from Messina, 1 hour from Taormina, and about 1 hour and ½ from Catania Airport, which is connected to Milazzo by private bus service and taxis. Milazzo is a small town where the traces and monuments of a past rich in history are clearly visible. Notable sights include the imposing and impregnable Arab-Norman castle (11th century), the sanctuary of St. Anthony of Padua carved into a rock cave (12th century), and the church of St. Francis of Paola, built by the miracle-worker in the 15th century, the old town, the many 17th-century churches, and the numerous palaces in Milazzo’s historic centre, which are home to many restaurants, bars, pubs, and nightclubs. The port serves as a hub for connections and departures for excursions and mini-cruises to the nearby seven Aeolian Islands, the closest of which is just one hour away. In recent years, Milazzo has seen a growth in sustainable tourism—combining sun, sea, leisure, and culture—without the drawbacks of mass tourism found in other, better-known destinations.