J.K. Place Capri – Three Keys on the quay of Marina Grande

On the quay of Marina Grande, a few metres from where the hydrofoils from Naples still tie up, J.K. Place Capri occupies a cliffside building with one of the longest hotel pedigrees on the island: the structure was first inaugurated as a hotel in 1885 and quickly became a point of reference for the nobility who wintered on Capri. Rebuilt under the J.K. Place name with interiors by the Florentine designer Michele Bonan, whose use of marble, columns and tailored fabric gives the rooms the feel of a private house rather than a hotel, it now holds 22 rooms and suites stacked above a private stretch of shoreline. The kitchen at JKitchen is led by Executive Chef Andrea Cimino, who works a light, seasonal take on Mediterranean cooking built on regional produce. The MICHELIN Guide gives the house Three Keys, its highest distinction for a stay, and the hotel belongs to Leading Hotels of the World, Virtuoso and a handful of other invitation-only collections.

01The house

Before it was J.K. Place, the building was a private house called Villa Bovaro, raised on the slope above the harbour and converted into a hotel before 1885 under its first name, the Hotel Continental. It was run by Giuseppe Maldacena together with his brother-in-law, a seaman named Antonio Cimino; Maldacena had lived in England and spoke the language well enough that the hotel doubled as an informal information point for Anglo-Saxon visitors to the island.

Its early guests include a literary footnote: the American Wolcott-Perry sisters, who arrived on Capri in 1897 and later inspired the Compton Mackenzie novel Vestal Fire, lodged at the Continental before building their own Moorish-style villa, Torricella, nearby. The hotel was renamed Hotel Métropole after the First World War, and a renovation carried out under its later name, Hotel Palatium, in the late 1980s, uncovered Roman cisterns and a stretch of the ancient road down to the harbour beneath the building.

The design now running through the rooms is the work of Michele Bonan, whose marble, columns and tailored fabric give the house the unforced feel of a well-kept family home rather than a hotel built to a brief.

02Rooms and suites

The 22 rooms and suites run across nine categories, from the 30 sqm J.K. Classic, which looks toward Monte Solaro, up to the 75 sqm Penthouse Suite, with its view over both the sea and the small port below. Most of the house faces the water, and the standard finish runs to marble bathrooms, Egyptian cotton towelling and flat-screen televisions throughout.

Insider tip

Open mid-April to mid-October; a free shuttle links the harbour, hotel and Capri town.

For more privacy, the Hideaway Superior Room has its own patio and a discreet path through the garden, while the Master and J.K. Master rooms, the largest of the sea-facing categories at up to 55 sqm, suit longer stays.

03Where to eat

Dinner is served at JKitchen, on a long terrace that runs out over the marina toward the mainland. The Executive Chef changes course with the season, working a light Mediterranean repertoire built on the day's catch, regional meat and dairy, with particular attention paid to the pastry course. Breakfast and all-day dining run from the same terrace, with a separate menu for guests arriving outside kitchen hours.

Guests wanting a table away from the main terrace can ask for private dining, set up around the property for a more intimate evening.

04The bar

At the Lounge Bar, cocktails arrive with a changing plate of tapas put together by the kitchen to match the season — a spot best timed for the hour the light drops over the bay. The quieter alternative is the Pool Bar, set in the garden for a calmer drink or a light meal away from the terrace crowd.

05Spa and wellbeing

The J.K. Spa is deliberately small: two treatment rooms, a spa boutique, a sauna and steam room, and a gym fitted out by Technogym. Facials draw on the Dr. Barbara Sturm skincare line, and the outdoor pool sits directly above the hotel's own stretch of shoreline, so a treatment can end with a swim in the sea itself.

06The neighbourhood

The address does most of the work: the hotel sits directly above the sea, within easy walking distance of the harbour of Marina Grande, where the funicular climbs to the main square and boats leave for the Blue Grotto and the Faraglioni. A complimentary shuttle runs from seven in the morning until midnight, connecting the harbour, the hotel and the centre of Capri town, so the crowds around the Piazzetta are a short ride away rather than on the doorstep.

07Making the most of a stay

J.K. Place Capri keeps the same rhythm as the island, opening from mid-April to mid-October. Naples is 45 minutes away by hydrofoil, or 15 minutes by helicopter, and the hotel has been ranked among Travel + Leisure's Top 20 Hotels in Italy, at number eight.

For a weekend. For a lifetime.