Hotel Mare

English is spoken by the hotel team, alongside French, German and Italian, so practical conversations do not need to be conducted by pointing at the nearest object. Hotel Mare is a 30-room address in Magazzini, a small village set in the bay of Portoferraio, with the sea doing most of the talking.

The tone is straightforward and useful for a diving holiday: air-conditioned rooms, a swimming pool, a restaurant, a bar, free Wi-Fi and parking. You can also reach a private sandy beach directly from the hotel. It is the sort of place where you can come back from the water, eat properly, and decide whether the evening requires a walk, a swim or absolutely nothing at all.

Hotel Mare stands directly on the sea in Magazzini, within the bay of Portoferraio on Elba. Portoferraio itself is about 5 miles away, so you are outside the town rather than in its streets, but still within reach when you want the harbour, shops or a change of scene.

The hotel sits beside a private sandy beach, with sun loungers and parasols available there. From the port, follow the provincial road towards Porto Azzurro for 6 km, then turn towards Schiopparello, Magazzini and Bagnaia. A car is useful for exploring the island, and free on-site parking makes bringing one less of a logistical puzzle.

You can choose between rooms for two, three or four people, including sea-view categories and family-sized options. For a couple, the double rooms with a sea view are the obvious choice if the outlook matters more than squeezing the room into the lowest category. For three or four, the triple and quadruple rooms keep the group together rather than scattering it across separate rooms.

The standard, superior, deluxe and classic ranges all include air conditioning, a private bathroom, television and a hairdryer in the relevant room categories. Some of the more basic options have fewer listed facilities, so it is worth checking the exact room description rather than assuming every category is equipped in the same way. A few double rooms are located in the basement, including options with mountain or sea views.

Air conditioning matters here for a practical reason: it gives you somewhere cool to recover when the day has involved heat, salt water and several hours in kit. The room selection also includes a three-person sea-view standard room and larger sea-view categories, which suit families or dive buddies travelling together. The choice is less about hotel theatrics than finding the right combination of occupancy, outlook and room facilities.

The restaurant is called Mare and covers breakfast, lunch and dinner. Its spacious, air-conditioned dining room has large windows facing the sea, while the outside terrace looks over the picturesque village harbour. That gives you two very different ways to eat: indoors when you want a cooler, calmer meal, or outside with the boats and water in view.

The kitchen focuses on local food and seafood. The daily pension menu changes and always includes a choice of fresh fish and meat, with a vegetarian option and an alternative for allergies and intolerances. The à la carte menu adds local specialities and classic fish dishes, so the restaurant works for a proper evening meal rather than merely keeping hunger at bay.

There is one bar for a drink before dinner or while the day winds down. A picnic lunch is also available, useful when the plan is to spend the day away from the restaurant rather than return to it between activities.

The outdoor pool looks across the Gulf of Portoferraio, and a smaller adjoining pool has hydromassage. After a dive, that is a more convincing use of your energy than an organised fitness class: swim a little, sit down, and let the day become someone else’s problem. The sun terrace adds another place to stop without having to leave the hotel.

The private sandy beach is directly accessible and comes with loungers, parasols and beach towels. Snorkelling, kayaking and paddleboarding are available for days when you want to stay on the water without committing to another full dive. Boat excursions and equipment hire are also part of the offer.

On land, you can borrow bicycles, go hiking or arrange cultural excursions, including boat trips and visits to the islands. The hotel can help with excursion arrangements, vehicle hire and transfers, leaving you with fewer small tasks to sort out when your attention is better spent on dinner.

The hotel is reached from Portoferraio by road through Schiopparello and Magazzini, and free parking is available on site. An airport transfer can be arranged on request, and vehicle hire is also available. There is no airport distance to build into the journey plan here, so the practical starting point is the port-side route described above.

Free Wi-Fi covers the hotel. Luggage storage, a reception safe, laundry and ironing services are available, while an infirmary is on site and a doctor can be requested. English, French, German and Italian are spoken by the hotel team, which is useful when arranging transport, meals or anything more complicated than ordering another drink.

Check-out is at 10:00. Early check-in and late check-out can be requested, subject to arrangements with the hotel. The property is non-smoking, and pets are not admitted. Visa, Mastercard and cash are accepted.