42km (26 miles) NW of Naples and 20km (13 miles) W of Pozzuoli
When the Greeks arrived on this coast more than 2,500 years ago, they first landed in Ischia. They felt that Ischia was a perfect base from which to dominate the mainland. Yet, they quickly changed their minds and moved to nearby Cuma, by modern Pozzuoli because of Ischia's very active volcano -- 788m-high (2,585-ft.) Monte Epomeo -- which erupted repeatedly until the 14th century. Only then did the island's population start growing, laying the base for the development of the spa industry we see today. The first thermal establishment opened in Casamicciola Terme in 1604, destination of the upper crust of society. The island itself, however, went relatively undiscovered by tourists until the 1950s, when well-to-do Italians came here in the hopes of finding an alternative to overcrowded Capri. Although Ischia is more popular now than it was then, the atmosphere remains quieter than on Capri, partly because of the island's larger size, but certainly also because of its calm and bucolic character.
