Italy · Lazio · Pontine archipelago
Yacht Charter Pontine Islands
Ponza, Palmarola and Ventotene — the emptiest islands in the Tyrrhenian, reached from the Salerno fleet.
The Pontine Islands are the least known good thing in the Tyrrhenian. They sit between Naples and Rome, they are half the sailing distance of Sardinia, and outside a fortnight in August they are close to empty. Italians know them. Almost nobody else does.
Three islands that are nothing like each other
Ponza is the one with the town: coloured houses stacked down to the harbour like an amphitheatre, and two of the finest anchorages in the Mediterranean either side of it — Chiaia di Luna under a two-hundred-metre cliff, and the Piscina Naturale, a rock pool the sea fills through gaps in the stone.
Palmarola, an hour west, has nobody on it. It is the island Italians mean when they say the Lampedusa of the north: no road, no village, a handful of grottoes and water that goes an unlikely green over the white rock. It is a lunch stop and an afternoon, not a place to berth.
Ventotene is flatter, smaller and older-feeling — a Roman harbour cut directly into the tufa, a marine reserve around it, and a history as a place of exile that runs from Augustus to 1943. It rewards a slow day more than a photograph.
It is a passage, and we would rather say so
The Pontine are not a day out from the Amalfi Coast. From Salerno it is a real leg — the kind you start early and finish in the afternoon — and that is the honest reason they stay quiet while Capri fills.
It makes them a week, not an excursion. The usual shape is to leave the Campanian coast behind on day one, spend four or five days between the three islands, and come back down the coast at the end. On a motor yacht the passage is shorter and the week can include Ischia and Procida on the way through.
If what you want is a day on the water with lunch at anchor, say so and we will point you at Capri or Positano instead. The Pontine are worth the crossing only if you are giving them the days.
What the anchorages actually ask of you
These are exposed islands. Chiaia di Luna is untenable in a westerly and the Piscina Naturale wants a settled forecast, so a Pontine week is planned around the wind rather than a fixed itinerary. This is normal here and it is why a skipper who knows the water is worth what he costs.
Ponza's harbour is small and fills in August. Ventotene's Roman port takes a handful of boats and nothing large. None of this is a problem in June or September, when the same water carries a third of the traffic.
Practical notes
- Reached from the Salerno fleet — a full passage, not a day trip, which is why the islands stay quiet
- Ponza for the town and the two great anchorages; Palmarola for a deserted afternoon; Ventotene for the Roman harbour
- Naples and Rome Fiumicino both work for arrival; Naples is closer to the boat
- Anchorages are exposed and the itinerary follows the forecast rather than a plan on paper
- August fills Ponza harbour; June and September do not
Reached from: Salerno
Where to dine
A table by the water
Gennarino a Mare
Ponza PortoPonza's most storied address — lobster, scorpionfish, linguine all'astice. Terrace on the water.
Il Core de Ponza
PonzaAuthentic Pontine cooking — octopus alla ponzese, octopus salad, fried paranza.
Trattoria da Enzo
VentoteneTwo tables on the Roman island's port — the freshest fish, local Moscato di Ventotene.
Da Peppino
PonzaFamily cooking; book weeks ahead in August — the stuff of legend.
Bar Tripoli
Ponza PortoAperitivo on the mole watching the ferries — Pontine lemon granita and bruschette.
What to do
Anchorages & excursions
Piscina Naturale, Ponza
A natural sea pool formed by volcanic rock — sheltered snorkelling and swimming.
Cala Feola, Ponza
The island's loveliest cove — white calcarenite and emerald-green water.
Palmarola
An uninhabited island rated among Europe's ten most beautiful — boat only, no facilities.
Catacombs of Ventotene
A Roman necropolis cut into the tufa — Augustan era, original Latin inscriptions.
Chiaia di Luna, Ponza
An 800m moonlit cliff reachable only by sea — archaeology and wild nature.
The fleet
Yachts available for the Pontine Islands
Vessels that operate here, from flagship motor yachts to smaller crewed boats. Every rate is quoted on enquiry.
Itineraries
Yacht charter itineraries in the Pontine Islands
What a week here actually looks like, day by day.
Good to know
Questions we are asked about the Pontine Islands
- How long does it take to reach the Pontine Islands?
- From Salerno it is a full day's passage under sail, less on a motor yacht. That distance is exactly why they are still empty, and it is also why they suit a week rather than an outing.
- Can we combine the Pontine with the Amalfi Coast?
- Yes, and it is the usual shape of the week — down the Campanian coast at one end, the islands in the middle, Ischia and Procida on the way through. It works better on a motor yacht, which shortens the passage.
- Is there anywhere to berth on Palmarola?
- No. Palmarola is uninhabited and has no harbour: you anchor for the day and sleep at Ponza. That is the whole appeal of it.
- When is the best time to sail the Pontine?
- June and September. The water is the same as August, the anchorages hold a third of the boats, and Ponza's harbour is not full by eleven in the morning.
- What does a charter to the Pontine Islands cost?
- It depends on the yacht, the season and the crew, so we quote on enquiry instead of publishing a number that would be wrong for most weeks. Tell us your dates and how many are coming.
Destinations
Nearby destinations
Charter here
Enquire about a charter in the Pontine Islands
Tell us your dates and how many of you there are, and we will come back with the right yacht and a full quotation.