On a recent sweltering day, I stepped off a SeaDream Yacht Club yacht, which had docked overnight at Marina Grande in Capri, and climbed into a taxi. We zigzagged our way up the island’s winding roads, weaving past tourists wilting in the heat. My destination was Torre Saracena, a private beach club in the quieter Marina Piccola.
A short while later, the driver hit the brakes and pointed toward what appeared to be little more than a side road bordered by pine trees and stone walls. “It’s there!” he said, gesturing, with the expansive Mediterranean views I had been expecting nowhere in sight. Skeptical, I climbed out of the taxi and started down the street, turning to the driver with doubt clearly etched on my face. “Keep going! It’s there!” he shouted.
After a few minutes of trial and error, I spotted Torre Saracena’s gate and stepped into the secluded property. Any uncertainty that I was in the right place disappeared the moment the bay far below opened up before me. The water shimmered, striped umbrellas shaded sunbathers reclining on cobalt-blue beach beds, and the iconic Faraglioni rock formations rose offshore. Above it all, the club’s namesake 16th-century watchtower, built directly into the limestone cliffs overlooking the property, seemed to stand guard.
Open from mid-April through mid-October, Torre Saracena pairs its seaside setting with an open-air restaurant that recalls a typical trattoria in nearby Naples. The menu includes such traditional dishes as a pasta with peas and crushed almonds and pasta prepared with potatoes and mussels, alongside other Neapolitan specialties. During my visit, I settled onto the terrace, feasting on grilled octopus and sipping a Yellow Sun Marine, a bright cocktail of limoncello, lemon juice and ginger that I’m still hoping to recreate at home.
Part of the pleasure of Torre Saracena is that it’s so removed from the Capri tourist circuit. Over its 120-year history, generations of Italian families have returned to the historic beach club, while newer visitors like me are drawn to the feeling that this is a place to embrace and enjoy rather than simply another sight to see. There’s an unmistakable chicness to it, but also the ease and breeziness that come with being at the beach.
My blissful two hours at the club felt like an eternity, in the best possible way. Eventually, I had to peel myself away and return to my SeaDream yacht, continuing on toward the Amalfi Coast. Those who aren’t ready to leave quite so quickly, however, can plan ahead and book a stay at Tenuta Saracena, part of the Faraglioni Collection and located directly above the club.
The recently renovated villa — one of only a handful of properties on Capri with direct beach access — accommodates up to eight guests across four bedrooms and features terraces, gardens, an outdoor dining area and a pool.
Torre Saracena feels particularly alluring as the days shorten and the high season begins to wane. With the end of Ferragosto, the traditional mid-August period when Italians decamp for the last of their summer vacations, the crowds on Capri thin, even as the warmth and sunshine of the Mediterranean linger. What better place than the beach club to savor the season’s final golden days — or better time to begin dreaming of going there next summer?
