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About FORIO D'ISCHIA

The largest town on Ischia, with around 20,000 residents, Forio has some of the island's best restaurants and most of its worst traffic jams. In times past, its problems were more severe, of course. Its exposed position left it prey to attacks by Saracen pirates, so 12 watchtowers were built along the coast. One of them, il Torrione, dates from 1480 and dominates the town centre with its craggy crenellation. It’s open occasionally for small exhibitions. There are 17 churches in and around Forio, most of which were heavily reworked during the l8th century, and none of which contains  outstanding artworks or observes regular opening hours. Standing apart from the town on its headland (where Forio’s youth congregates in the evening), the stark, white Santuario della Madonna del Soccorso would not look out of place in Spain; there are pretty majolica Stations of the Cross around the steps outside  the church. In corso Umberto, a church has stood where the Santa Maria di Loreto is now since the 14th century; in piazza del Municipio (which has a great sea view) much  of the convento di San Francesco is now occupied by council offices but the church can be visited. In the Santa Maria delle Grazie  nearby, alms were dispensed in the l7th century; in the piazza of the same name, San Vito is Forio`s  parish church. Just north of  Forio, along the road to Lacco Ameno, a sign points left to La Mortella, an  award-winning garden that was carved out  of a volcanic stone quarry. Designed by renowned British landscapist Russell Page; the garden was completed by Susana Walton; widow of the composer Sir William Walton  and here New Zealand tree ferns unfurl with a prehistoric languor, alongside heavily scented Amazon water lilies. Having arrived on the island at the end of the 1940s in search of sun, quiet and inspiration, Walton and his young Argentinian wife set about turning a wild plot of land, described by their friend Laurence Olivier as ‘nothing but a quarry', into one of southern Italy’s most luxurious gardens. The William Walton Trust, which runs the garden, also provides accommodation and coaching for young musicians, and organises weekend classical music concerts (included in the price of admission) from April to June, and September and October. To get there, take a circular bus from Lacco Ameno to Forio, or back, and ask the driver to set you down at La Mortella or take the Forio minibus straight to the door. A few kilometres further down the lane, through typical Ischian countryside mercifully free of holiday flats, past a breathtaking belvedere, is La Colombaia. Luchino Visconti's villa is now a film foundation and cultural centre, with regular exhibitions and events.