day trip to Procida

Planning your vacation in southern Italy? Take a day trip to Procida.

Procida is for sure one of the best-kept secrets in the Bay of Naples. This Italy’s island gem is probably one of the cutest little town islands I visited. Colourful houses, narrow streets, charming harbour and 10,000 residents squeezed into less than 4.1 square kilometres and 16km of jagged coastline have stolen my heart. Although Procida was featured in a number of films, such as Il Postino and The Talented Mr Ripley, it still doesn’t suffer from mass-tourism. But I am telling you, this might be the new “it” destination in this part of Italy.

Where is Procida?

Procida is a small island in the Bay of Naples in southern Italy. It is situated between the mainland, the Cape Miseno and its larger, much more touristy sister island of Ischia. Created by the eruption of four nearby volcanoes it is a comune of the Metropolitan City of Naples.

How to get to Procida?

By boat. There are many ways to get to Procida, but for sure the best and easiest one is to take a ferry from Naples harbour. I also suggest Naples is your starting point and Procida is a great daily destination – although you can also opt for a few days stay in Procida, a day trip is completely enough to explore this small island. From Porta di Massa in Naples to Procida it takes 35min to 1 hours, depending the ferry/hydrofoil you choose. While discovering this area we stay at Caruso Place Boutique and Wellness Suites in the centre of Naples and they helped us to organize this daily trip. We travelled with the company SNAV, one of the boat trip providers, the ticket for a one way trip will cost you from 15€ to 20€.

Where to take the most Instagramable photos?

Although Procida is still considered as one of the non-touristy places in an otherwise crowded area of Italy, I am sure its popularity will grow in the following years. So hurry up and try to visit it on the brink of the main season (April, May or September are a great option). Overall, after my day visit to Procida, I can tell you it has so much potential. Creating an Instagram worthy picture is an easy task. Tiny streets with colourful houses offer plenty of good photo locations, lovely beaches, the harbour is simply charming, but my favourite is a viewpoint from the Terra Murata fortified village, the highest point of the Procida island (91m). Fortress walls were built to protect the city from the invaders, and people nowdays still live there. From the viewpoint right next to Terra Murata, you can see the whole fishermen’s village underneath right next to Marina Corricella with the cutest colourful fishing boats anchored. The authentic feel created by colourful houses, scents and flavours of the Mediterranean cuisine, harbour cats hiding among piled nets and old fisherman taking sitting in harbour, watching the sea and repairing their fishnets, will bring you to the whole new (old) world. It is magical.

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They say Puglia is Italy’s sun-bleached heel. From extraordinary churches, ancient towns to rich culture and Puglia’s countryside – its a true gem and remarkable source of gourmet food, culture and happiness. If you notice one thing about people living there, it’s that they are genuinely happy. When we asked the Leonardo trulli resort owner, what’s the secret, she just gave us a big, slightly mysterious smile. Nevertheless, Puglia’s trulli (which is the name of the traditional Apulian dry stone house with a conical roof) are the ones you shouldn’t miss. They perhaps hold a secret to a carefree, happy life, they bring you a few decades back, to a time when people were woken up by first light, the sunrise, roosters and donkeys. I truly believe there’s something magical about this place. I felt it. Exploring amazing trulli and their surroundings was the ending of this years big Italian adventure. And it was an ending we’ll never forget.

outfit: Tom Tailor

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Betty Barclay Beautiful Eden

“Some fragrances are like poetry. The moment that we perceive them, they invite us to dream, are like a gentle touch, and – with a fleeting suggestion – open up wonderful fantasy worlds to us. “

Each spring I am in search for a new, fresh and floral fragrance. The one that captures true spring in a bottle and this year’s Betty Barclay’s new launch Beautiful Eden is a perfect example of that. It is light, happy, lively, floral, juicy, soft and delicate at the same time. The composition gathers fruity (top), floral (middle) and woody (base) accords, all complementing themselves into a dreamy floral fragrance, perfect for spring and summer months. All together Betty Barclay Beautiful Eden combines 5 products – eau de parfum, eau de toilette, deodorant, soft shower foam and moisturizing body mousse. Betty Barclay Beautiful Eden eau de parfum was my go-to fragrance while exploring the beautiful Amalfi coast. When I found a stunning garden of Belmond Hotel Caruso in a charming little town of Ravello, I knew it was a perfect location to capture it on photos as well. Even though it is impossible to capture the scent itself, I hope this blog post takes you to the enchanted blooming garden.

Top notes: pear, black currant, mandarin orange
Middle notes: peony, egyptian jasmine, lily-of-the-valley
Base notes: sandalwood, cedar, vanilla

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Spiaggia Marina Grande of Positano is probably the most iconic beach on the whole Amalfi coast and most definitely one of the liveliest, touristy and most cosmopolitan of them all. Positano overall is a beautiful picturesque beach town in Italy, famous for its colourful houses, narrow streets, pebbled beachfront, amazing food and superb location. It is literally set up in the cliffs of Amalfi coast, this once a poor fisherman’s village is now an iconic luxury destination. A destination I’ve been dreaming of visiting about as long as I can remember and this spring I finally did. More blog posts about Positano and the whole Amalfi coast are coming up soon, today I am sharing with you an outfit post shot on one of the most iconic places ever – the beach of Positano. I hope you enjoy!

dress: Dorothy Perkins

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As the winter slowly turns to spring and finally reaches summer months, my skincare routine also changes, from rich textures and ultra-nourishing ingredients to more lightweight and hydrating ones. This summer I was glad to discover the new L’Occitane Aqua Réotier line with 5 different products, each of which contains moisturizing water enriched with minerals. The story begins in the Provencal mountains at the Réotier spring and continues in L’Occitane laboratories, where they add hyaluronic acid to the water, already rich in calcium. Even though it might seem like just another “moisturizing skincare line”, the L’Occitane Aqua Réotier is actually much more than that. Due to many minerals, especially high concentrations of calcium, the skin is not moisturised only temporarily, but it also helps to maintain the protective coat of the skin, and thus provides the skin with long-term moisture. So, it keeps the skin moisturized on the short as well as on the long run.

5 products of the L’Occitane Aqua Réotier ultra moisturizing collection

Just by glancing at the L’Occitane Aqua Réotier Ultra Thirst-Quenching Gel, you can tell it is an exciting novelty. The dance of the bubbles in a fresh, non-greasy gel texture applies beautifully to the skin, it moisturises well and ensures a non-shiny finish. Because I have a dry skin type, the gel itself is not moisturizing enough for me. Somewhat richer, yet still fresh and light is the L’Occitane Aqua Réotier Ultra Thirst-Quenching Cream with a silky texture. Both products work well on my skin, especially when combined. The cream is perfect as a day time and night time skin-care routine (in the evenings I might sometimes add a drop of argan oil to it). L’Occitane Aqua Réotier Moisture Prep Essence is the one product in this line I never skip. It functions as a skin toner, while providing a lot more moisture. I pour it directly on my palm and gently massage it into my skin (I don’t recommend application with cotton wools as it doesn’t provide extra hygiene, you’re just going to use more of the product). Because good skin-care starts with properly clean skin, L’Occitane has not forgotten to add a cleanser to its new line. L’Occitane Aqua Réotier Water Gel Cleanser deals with all the impurities, oils and even daily make-up (I still use Micellar water for my eye make-up), without drying out the skin – which is a true rarity on the market (I’ve had problems with severe dryness after washing my face with gels numerous times). It foams nicely and the feeling after washing is fresh and clean. The last but not least is the L’Occitane Aqua Réotier Fresh Moisturising Mist, a small 50ml spray, providing instant refreshement. I use it mainly to refresh makeup during the day, otherwise you can use it as part of your skin routine or before applying makeup. To sum up my impressions – all the products are ultra-hydrating, have a nice fresh smell and a good texture. The price range is from 11.70€ for a mist to 28.50€ for a gel. Smaller L’Occitane Aqua Réotier Collection is a perfect choice to try out the line and also comes in handy for travelling. Finding a cleansing gel for the face in such tiny and handy packaging is otherwise (almost) impossible.

Who would benefit from the L’Occitane Aqua Réotier line?

Certainly, all those who are looking for moisturizing products with high quality ingredients. All those who want to replace a heavy (winter) routine for something smoother and lighter, but no less effective in the warmer months. Women and men of all ages (I’m sure that many men will be impressed by this line, my Jan definitely is). The L’Occitane Aqua Réotier line will suit most skin types, both dry, normal, as well as mixed and oily. It might not be the best choice for those who have extremely sensitive skin, although I didn’t notice any irritations myself. L’Occitane, therefore, earns one big thumbs up for Aqua Réotier line from me.

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