Hotel La Palma
Capri's first hotel, opened in 1822 and reborn in 2023 as Oetker Collection's first house in Italy
The Privata Perspective
The island's oldest hotel and its most talked-about recent opening, which is an unusual combination. La Palma opened in 1822, making it the first hotel on Capri, and spent two centuries at the centre of the town's life before Oetker Collection took it on. It reopened in June 2023 as their first Masterpiece Hotel in Italy, and the restoration cut the room count from eighty to fifty so that every one could have its own balcony or terrace.
Francis Sultana led the design — his first hotel — and it shows in a palette that is more confident than the island norm: greens and whites, custom pieces, bougainvillea trained against the arches. The pool deck looks out over the boutiques of Via Vittorio Emanuele, which places it squarely in Capri town, a short walk from the Piazzetta and the shopping without being on top of the noise.
Bianca, the rooftop restaurant and bar, is where the hotel makes its case, running late with food from Gennaro Esposito. There is a private beach club as well, which on Capri matters more than it sounds — beach access here is limited, competitive and mostly reached by boat or steps, so having it arranged is a practical advantage rather than a line on a fact sheet.
Accommodations
Room
The entry categories
The restoration cut eighty rooms down to fifty so that each one gained a balcony or terrace — there are no interior boxes here
Junior Suite
Larger, with terrace
Sultana's green-and-white palette with custom furniture, and terraces big enough to use properly
Suite
The top categories
The largest terraces, several looking over the rooftops of Capri town toward the sea
Dining
Bianca
Italian
The rooftop restaurant and bar, with food from Gennaro Esposito, running late into the evening, and the rooftop most worth booking a table on in Capri town
Beach club
Italian, informal
The hotel's own beach club — on an island where beach access is limited and fiercely contested, this is worth more than it sounds
Pool deck
Light, poolside
The newly built deck above Via Vittorio Emanuele, for lunch between the shops and the sea
Spa & Wellness
A signature spa, the pool deck above Via Vittorio Emanuele, and the hotel's own beach club down at the water — the combination is rare on Capri, where most hotels have to choose between being in the town and being near the sea. The Piazzetta and the Gardens of Augustus are both short walks, and the Via Krupp path down the cliff starts nearby.
When to Go
May–June
The island in flower and the hotel still easy to book
September
Warm sea, thinner crowds, and the rooftop at its best
July–August
Peak Capri. The beach club stops being a nice extra and becomes the reason you sleep well
Book With Preferred Access
Experience Hotel La Palma with Via Privata
Complimentary upgrades, resort credits, early check-in, and dedicated concierge support — available exclusively through our preferred partner programme.
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