Hotel Hermitage

If you want your diving holiday to come with a proper hotel around it, Hotel Hermitage gives you plenty to work with. This is a large seafront hotel in Portoferraio, with 130 rooms, several places to eat, three outdoor pools and a private beach laid out with sun loungers and parasols.

English is spoken by the hotel team, alongside Italian, German, French, Spanish and Russian. That matters when you are discussing dinner, a transfer or the small practical details that tend to appear once your kit is dry and your energy is not.

The mood is broad rather than stripped-back: beach, pools, restaurants, a bar, wellness facilities and enough room for a family or a couple to follow different plans without turning the day into a committee meeting.

The address is in Portoferraio, on the island of Elba, directly by the sea. A private fine-sand beach sits beside the hotel, so you can move from breakfast to the water without organising a small expedition. Sun loungers and parasols are available on the beach.

Portoferraio town centre is 4 km away. The hotel puts you close enough to reach the town while keeping the immediate setting focused on the coast. Biodola Beach is nearby, and the island gives you further options for days when you want to leave the hotel behind.

Free on-site parking and valet parking make the property practical if you are travelling with a car. The hotel can also arrange airport transfers on request.

There is a wide spread of accommodation, from single and double rooms to triple and quadruple rooms, family rooms, junior suites, suites and cottages. For a couple, the double rooms with a sea view or balcony are the obvious direction if the view matters once the mask and fins are back in the bag. Family and triple categories give groups more room to organise themselves without everyone living out of the same suitcase.

Room details vary considerably by category, so the useful question is not simply whether the room has a view. Selected rooms add a balcony, air conditioning, soundproofing, blackout blinds, a minibar, Wi-Fi, a safe, bathrobes and slippers. Others keep things simpler, with a private bathroom and little else listed. The sea-view and balcony categories therefore deserve a closer look before you book rather than a hopeful click on the first available option.

Some rooms include a double bed, while twin-bed accommodation is also available. Junior suites and suites provide a step up in space and finish, with selected versions adding air conditioning, a balcony, a minibar and blackout blinds. Family rooms are available too, which is useful when the non-diving members of the party need their own holiday rather than a daily timetable of boat departures.

Breakfast is included and served as a buffet. The main restaurant, Hermitage, covers breakfast, lunch and dinner with Italian cooking. La Ghiotta also serves all three meals, with gourmet dishes and a sea view. For lunch or dinner by the pool, Fuoco di Bosco brings Mediterranean plates, pizza and grilled food into the picture.

Peter Pan serves lunch and dinner and is aimed at younger diners, giving families another option beyond the main restaurant. The kitchens work with fresh, seasonal ingredients and, where possible, local producers. Vegetarian and gluten-free dishes are part of the menu, which is more useful than a vague promise to cater for everyone.

There are three bars. Bar della Hall focuses on wine and champagne, Bar La Ghiotta sits directly on the beach and serves cocktails, while Sunset Bar is the pool bar, built into the hotel pool. There is also a snack bar, picnic lunches and a pool bar for the moments when sitting down to a full meal feels unnecessarily ambitious.

Three outdoor pools give you alternatives to the sea: the central pool, the Caribbean pool with its bar, and an outdoor hydromassage pool overlooking the sea. Beach equipment, pool facilities and beach or pool towels are available, so the basic business of finding a place to lie down is covered.

For the muscles that have spent the day negotiating with current and gravity, the hotel has a spa, sauna, steam room, solarium, massages and aesthetic treatments. There is also a fitness room, plus yoga, Pilates and aquagym. Massage appointments should be arranged before arrival, which is worth remembering before your shoulders begin filing formal complaints.

When you want movement without another immersion, the hotel offers tennis, table tennis, fitness, hiking, fishing, windsurfing, kayaking, paddleboarding, sailing and other water activities. Golf is available 3 km away. The concierge can help with excursions, including visits to Portoferraio and Marciana Marina, as well as boat trips. Families also have a games room, a children’s play area, a children’s club and babysitting services.

Free Wi-Fi is available throughout the hotel. Reception operates around the clock, and the building has a lift. A concierge, luggage storage, a safe at reception, laundry, dry cleaning and ironing services keep the practical side manageable when a diving trip turns into a longer island stay. An on-site infirmary is also available.

Airport transfers can be arranged on request, and car hire is available through the hotel services. Free parking and valet parking are provided on site. Pets are accepted, with the hotel applying its own pet-related conditions. The property is non-smoking and includes accessible facilities.

The hotel has four meeting rooms and can handle business events, although most divers will be more interested in the beach, pools and the nearest reliable route to dinner. Visa, Mastercard, American Express and cash are accepted. Check-in and check-out times should be confirmed directly before travel, as the published hotel details do not give matching schedules.