Mr & Mrs Smith

We spent a week at Le Lumie at the end of May. Here is what we discovered. Directions: (with benefit of hindsight) from Catania airport, head south on the N114 towards Siracusa and turn off towards Lentini on the N194. That road will take you via Vizzini and Chiaramonte to Ragusa. Pass all of the towns, avoiding going into the town centre if you can, and then after Ragusa follow signs to Modica. If you wanted to take the scenic route, miss the turning so you have to take it anyway, you could go down the coast via Siracusa and Noto on the N115. Le Lumie is between 2 tiny streets, Via Alessandro Grana (never saw that street sign in a week there) and the Via Raccomandata. If you enter Modica from the North before you get into the town centre, there is a petrol station and a car park on your right. The road opposite the car park on the left is signposted to Duomo di San Giorgio and takes you up to the magnificent church. You are then very close to Le Lumie, so park before the roads get too narrow, and walk. If you miss that turning, there is a sharp left turn immediately before San Pietro church, which leads onto the road below via Raccomandata, and you can park and walk up the steps, not with your bags, lots of steps that way. Restaurant La Contea was recommended and full of locals, but not very good. I've eaten a few bad pizzas to tell you this is the good one: the best pizzeria is Matteotti at the bottom of town. They also have great ice cream, so no need to go to another Gelateria for pudding. Osteria is very traditional, but a good local brasserie-type place Torre d’Oriente is more expensive, but worth a visit. Beaches: NB: we visited last week in May to be told holiday season doesn't officially start until June 1. Our first port of call was Sampieri, about a 40-minute drive from Modica. Everything was boarded up. It’s very small. Next we tried Marina de Modica, which is also pretty small, but had a couple of beach cafes which were open. More than one person recommended we visit the little villages along the coast to the south west of Modica beyond Pachino. It’s beautiful, blah-de-blah, it’s about an hours drive from Modica to that part of the coast. We started with Portopalo but there’s nothing there. Marzamemi IS actually a very pretty little fishing village. Theres a little harbour with boats coming in and out and a beautiful square with bars and restaurants and a couple of little shops. Very nice. There isn’t a beach in the village, just the harbour, although there is a small beach cafe with sun loungers on the road heading into it from the south. Blink and you’ll miss it. Sicily driving: The person randomly reversing out in front of you has right of way. Always drive at least twice the speed limit. The road may just stop in a huge roadwork without a diversion. Allow for such delights in any travel timing plan.

Le Lumie was just the perfect accommodation for a night in Modica, for my girlfriend and myself. We were travelling around Sicily by car to celebrate our first year anniversary and this boutique hotel was perfect for our first night. We booked the superior room, the furnishings are lovely, the room was super clean and the home made breakfast was what we needed to kick start another day.

We had dinner at the nearby Torre D'Oriente, also run by Le Lumie's owners; and the food was amazing! The setting is also quite impeccable overlooking the valley with Modica Alta in the background!!

We spent much of our time at an amazing beach in Sampieri, no more than half an hour's drive from Le Lumie. It seems to be the beach of choice for the Modica locals, and we certainly enjoyed the crystalline waters and quiet, relaxed atmosphere there. Driving in southern Sicily is not for the faint-hearted, but if you enjoy driving then it is worth the three hour trip to Mount Etna, for the fantastically windy roads and stunning mountain views alone! Hire a SMALL CAR - some of the roads in Modica are terrifically narrow, which perhaps explains the abundance of scooters.