Italy · Pontine Islands
Yacht Charter Ponza
Coloured houses stacked like a Greek amphitheatre, and the best sea caves in the Tyrrhenian.
Ponza is a volcanic crescent halfway between Rome and Naples, and it is the island Romans go to instead of Capri. The houses fall to the harbour in coloured tiers, the coast is cut into caves and arches the whole way round, and outside three weeks in August it holds a fraction of the boats you would find on the Amalfi Coast on the same afternoon.
What the coast is actually made of
Ponza is tufa — soft volcanic rock — so the sea has worked it into arches, tunnels and grottoes rather than cliffs. The Grotte di Pilato on the eastern side were Roman fish tanks cut into the rock and are entered by tender.
Chiaia di Luna is the one people photograph: a crescent of sand under a two-hundred-metre wall of pale rock, with no road to it. The beach itself is closed for rockfall, which matters less than it sounds because the anchorage in front of it is the point.
Palmarola, and why you keep a day for it
Forty minutes west sits Palmarola, uninhabited except for a handful of summer houses cut into the rock, and generally rated the most beautiful island in the Tyrrhenian by people who have seen all of them.
There is nothing on it. That is the appeal, and it is why a Pontine week keeps a whole day free for the crossing and the anchorage rather than treating it as a detour.
Practical notes
- Sailed from Salerno — a real passage, not an afternoon, so the Pontines are a full week rather than an add-on
- Ponza harbour is small and full for the whole of August; in June and September it is another island
- The anchorages here are exposed and the order of the days follows the forecast, not the itinerary
- Palmarola deserves a whole day: forty minutes west, uninhabited, and no shelter if the wind turns
Reached from: Salerno
Where to dine
A table by the water
Acqua Pazza
PonzaOn the harbour, doing the fish the boats bring in with almost nothing done to it.
Il Tramonto
Le FornaOn the western cliff, facing Palmarola across the water, and timed for exactly what the name says.
Gennarino a Mare
PonzaBuilt out over the water on stilts beside the harbour, and there since the 1950s.
What to do
Anchorages & excursions
Chiaia di Luna
A crescent of sand under a two-hundred-metre wall of pale tufa, with no road down. The beach is closed for rockfall; the anchorage in front is the reason to come.
Grotte di Pilato
Roman fish tanks cut into the rock on the eastern shore, entered by tender and swum through.
Palmarola
Forty minutes west, uninhabited, and generally called the most beautiful island in the Tyrrhenian by people who have seen the rest.
Piscine Naturali
Rock pools on the western side, separated from the sea by a lip of tufa, reached from the water.
The fleet
Yachts available for Ponza
Vessels that operate here, from flagship motor yachts to smaller crewed boats. Every rate is quoted on enquiry.
Good to know
Questions we are asked about Ponza
- How do you reach Ponza?
- From Salerno, and it is a genuine passage rather than a hop — which is why the Pontines are a week of their own rather than a day off the Amalfi Coast.
- Is Chiaia di Luna worth it?
- From the water, yes — a crescent of sand under a wall of pale rock with no road to it. The beach is closed for rockfall, so the anchorage in front is what you came for.
- What does a yacht charter to Ponza cost?
- It depends on the yacht, the season and the crew, so we quote on enquiry rather than publish a figure that would be wrong for most weeks. Send us your dates.
Destinations
Nearby destinations
Charter here
Enquire about a charter at Ponza
Tell us your dates and how many of you there are, and we will come back with the right yacht and a full quotation.