Shalai, hotel with a Michelin-starred restaurant in Linguaglossa

Shalai is a small hotel inside a former 19th-century stately residence, in the centre of Linguaglossa, the village on Etna's northeast slope from which the road to Piano Provenzana climbs. It has 13 rooms and suites, an intimate spa and the restaurant of chef Giovanni Santoro, born in the village, who won the Michelin star in 2015 and keeps it in the 2025 guide. It is the bed for those who come to Etna also to eat and drink well: the wineries of Castiglione di Sicilia and Passopisciaro are a quarter of an hour away.

The house and the rooms

The building belongs to the Pennisi family, who commissioned the renovation from the architects Lucia Papa and Paola Mariotto. It preserves the original 19th-century tiles in the bar corner and, upstairs, a lounge with frescoed vaults. The same painted vaults cover the two junior suites: one with a private terrace, of 18 m², and another with a balcony, both for three people at most.

The rest are rooms of simple lines, white and bright: a Deluxe with a shared small terrace for three, a Superior with a balcony, two under the roof (a double and a Family Executive for four), an 18 m² twin or double, a 16 m² double for single use and a 14 m² single with a balcony. All have a scent of their own, of orange, which the hotel has created for its spaces.

The spa and the restaurant

To reach the spa you cross a small inner garden. The circuit lasts an hour and includes a sauna, Turkish bath and a hydromassage tub with salt water instead of chlorine, with a herbal tea at the end. It opens by reservation from 9:30 to 13:00 and from 15:00 to 19:30, and the website says it is now for the exclusive use of whoever books. There are body and face treatments with Comfort Zone products.

The restaurant alternates fish from nearby markets and meat from local farms selected by the chef's family butcher's, with some vegetable-only dishes. The Michelin Guide mentions four tasting menus and an à la carte menu; the best-known dessert is Lumìa, made with lemon. The cellar is in the premises next to the hotel and the lounge bar serves sweet wines and spirits. The website does not publish the restaurant's hours or prices: book a table on its online system or by phone.

Getting there and what is nearby

From Catania airport it is 58 km: A18 motorway towards Messina, Fiumefreddo exit and the 120 road towards Randazzo as far as Linguaglossa. The hotel reckons 40 minutes to Catania, 20 to Randazzo and 25 to Taormina and to Etna North. With prior reservation it arranges transfers. The website does not mention private parking.

From here you have the tastings at the north-slope wineries and the Linguaglossa station of the Circumetnea train to hand. For the cable car or the summit craters with a guide, which leave from the south slope, allow more than an hour by car.