Le Sirenuse

Le Sirenuse began as the Sersale family's summer house, and seventy-five years of continuous family ownership explain everything about its charm. The red-washed villa climbs Positano's cliff in layers of majolica-tiled terraces, antique-filled salons and bougainvillea, with the town's pastel cascade and the Tyrrhenian Sea filling every window. It is glamorous without effort, personal without intrusion—the Amalfi ideal made real.

No two rooms match: vaulted ceilings, hand-painted tiles, family antiques and balconies angled toward the dome of Santa Maria Assunta below. The pool terrace, wedged between lemon trees and the view, is among the most photographed in Europe yet somehow stays serene. Service runs on long-tenured staff who treat returning guests as extended family, which many effectively are.

Evenings begin with an aperitivo as the town lights come on, then move to the celebrated fine-dining terrace or the champagne-and-oyster bar. The chic little spa and the hotel's boat—for coastal swims and Capri runs—complete the picture. Positano's crowds swirl below; up here, the hotel simply floats above them.