The building of Villa Augustus Hotel was once a mill and its product used to meet not only the needs of the inhabitants of Lipari but also those of the nearby islands.
It had always belonged to the d’Albora nobility, and in the 19th century the family turned the old mill into a residential villa for themselves.
During the second world war it provided shelter and relief for those partisan militants who landed on the island. It was thanks to this experience that the d’Albora Prince, grandfather of the current owner, came up with the idea of turning the residence into a hotel in 1950.
Nowadays you can get to it almost by chance, by following a friend’s instructions or by asking anyone local for directions, as its notoriety due to its past makes it inevitably unique on the island.

The Hotel is situated 50 metres from the historic town centre of the island, just 3 minutes walk to the main port. It is easily reached from the main street via a typical Aeolian alley up to an archway entrance, which, through a stone porch, leads you to a special and enchanted patio/garden, around which the structure of the villa extends.
Just a short distance from the hotel there is the Archaeological Museum and a few kilometres away there are the most popular beaches of the island, among which the “Spiagge Bianche” (White Beaches) overlooking the crystal clear sea.
Bike, car, scooter and boat hire, diving centres, excursion offices, shops, all the amenities that the historical main centre of the island offers can be found on the hotel’s doorstep.

The common areas are characterised by Sicilian furnishings dating back to the 17th and the 19th centuries. The hotel facilities include: a comfortable Hall, reading room, TV lounge, meeting and conference room, breakfast room, piano bar and the garden, the real heart of the original villa, for enjoyable breaks accompanied by tasty appetizers and music.
On the first and last floors there are terraces-solarium equipped for sun treatment with showers where you can enjoy the sun, the cool air and relax in total privacy, sipping our own home made drink.

As early as the first half of the 19th century d’Albora family’s business interests were interwoven and substantially laid in the manufacturing and mercantile sectors, its main activities being the milling industry, the fitting out of sailboats and ships, mercantile enterprise and wholesale trade of local products.

Between 1869 and 1872 d’Albora’s third generation definitively abandoned animal drawn mills in favour of modern steam powered mills and decided to purchase a new vessel to expand its mercantile activities, namely a 53 tonned brig, which was built in Palermo, fitted out in Genoa partly with the financial contribution of Master Giuseppe De Luca di Pozzo D’Agnello. In the 1880s the family was forced to fit out at its own expenses additional marticana boats of various tonnage, to meet the frequent supplies of grains, particularly in the crowded town of Lipari.

At the end of the decade, besides Giuseppe De Luca, Giovanni d’Albora’s sons Giuseppe (born 18.07.1846), Gaetano (born 11.07.1849), and the latter’s son Carmelo (born 25.10.1872) were in charge of the d’Albora’s fleet. The gulets exported capers, Malvasia wine, but above all raisins and passolina raisins to Trieste and some French ports and imported grains and pulses. Such activities allowed the d’Albora family to establish itself as the main bourgeois family of the island and to consolidate its position through the marriage of Master Giovanni’s firstborn son Giuseppe with Isabella Liguori, a known Neapolitan merchant.

Master Giuseppe d’Albora and Isabella Liguori’s son, Augusto d’Albora, became executive officer of the Prefecture and after the First World War, political leader at a provincial and local level. He, together with his wife, Lucia Mosiello, rebuilt the family’s private residence, significantly destroyed during the war, and later on, in 1950, after providing shelter, decided to transform the building into a hotel.

Since then the couple d’Albora/Mosiello, with great devotion, love, consistency and perseverance, began their wonderful adventure as hoteliers, by turning all the common areas and annexed services into en-suite rooms, bar/restaurant, various facilities and a dance hall to entertain friends and hotel guests, making it the 1st Italian Touring club hotel/resort.

Later on, around 1975/1980, their son Marcello stepped in. He was a government employee and married Aurelia Costa/Rodriquez, who was also a government employee. From the beginning Marcello demonstrated great responsibility, ability to focus and strong administrative skills.

He devoted himself with passion to the community of Lipari. He was mayor, creator of the hospital of the island, the Technical High school for accounts and building surveyors, the town corporate body of assistance and of other activities. He, together with his wife, Aurelia, continued running the hotel, renovating, upgrading, and extending the services until his death in May 1989.
Since then the family tirelessly continued in this business until September 2014, when the Marcello and Aurelia’s daughter Lucia flew to heaven.
Since then, with deep sorrow and an unfillable void, though halved, the family has become even closer and committed to continue this journey, always arduous and turbulent, but highly satisfying and full of surprises and so the story goes on …

Here, where the air is full of health and nothing mortal you can hear, enchanting like a mermaid, Lipari calls people to fully enjoy themselves. Oh tourist! If you are looking for a place to satisfy all your hidden tastes, without any doubt, without hesitation dash here, come to the “Augustus”.

Oh stranger, who land on these shores, welcomed by the Aeolian breeze, choose this Hotel, enjoy and smile…in a garden, green and silent, breathe sweet fragrance of jasmine…. Now, here and there dawn has already risen, go contemplating the divine waves that caress the Port and Marina Corta….Villa “Augustus” in Lipari is heaven…among shining silences of obsidian!

The hotel is situated in the heart of the historic centre of the island, just 3 minutes walk to the main port. It is easily accessible from the main street through a typical Aeolian alley. Just a short distance from the hotel there is the Archaeological Museum and a few kilometres away there are the most popular beaches of the island, among which the “Spiagge Bianche” (White Beaches) overlooking the crystal clear sea.
Bike, car, scooter and boat hire, diving centres, excursion offices, shops, all the amenities that the historical main centre of the island offers can be found on the hotel’s doorstep.

mappa

Lipari is the largest of the seven islands that make up the Aeolian Archipelago. Of volcanic origin, it is situated in the Tyrrhenian sea, north of the Sicilian coast and includes two active volcanoes: Stromboli and Vulcano.

Evidence of the presence of man dates back to very ancient times , as early as 6000 B.C., when the first settlements were built due to the presence of large quantities of obsidian, a volcanic glass rock, thanks to which the Aeolian islands were at the centre of flourishing trade routes.
Since then the islands were at the centre of the main trade in the Mediterranean sea (during Bronze age, Iron age around 2500 B.C.), a destination and a land to conquer for several people such as the Phoenicians, Etruscans, Greeks, Romans, Arabs,Byzantines and Normans. After long stages of occupation and raids, the Aeolian islands, and Lipari in particular, flourished again under the Normans, during whose domination, the castle was fortified and the island repopulated.
Later on, during Fascism and afterwards, Lipari was a place of confinement for foreign (especially Yugoslavs) and Italian civilians among whom were: Gioacchino Dolci, Francesco Saverio Nitti, Carlo Rosselli ed Emilio Lussu.
After the Second World War, Edda Mussolini, widow of Galeazzo Ciano, was sentenced to 2 years confinement in Lipari.

The islands take their name from the god Aeolus (Àiolos, Αἴολος in ancient Greek), king of winds. According to Greek mythology, Aeolus found shelter on these islands and gave them his name due to his fame of wind tamer. He lived on Lipari and was capable of forecasting the weather by observing the clouds from an active volcano, presumably Stromboli. Thanks to his ability, vital to the inhabitants, who were mainly fishermen and needed to know the probable evolution of meteorological events, Aeolus enjoyed great popularity in the archipelago. According to a theory, it was precisely the fame of this mere Greek prince, skillfull in forecasting the weather from the clouds, to contribute to create the myth of the god Aeolus, who was capable of controlling the winds.
The name of the Lipari islands derives from the myth of the legendary king Liparo, coloniser of the island of Lipari and contemporary with Aeolus.
According to Plinius, these islands were called Efestiadi (Hephaistiàdēs, Ἡφαιστιάδης, i.e. dedicated to Hephaestus) and subsequently, by the Romans, together with Aeoliae and Lipari, Volcaniae (Plin. III, 92).