In the heart of Sicily there is a widespread wine resort with a Blue Flag sea

“Wine is conviviality, culture. And it should be drunk at the table.” Words of Francesca Planeta, who for over fifteen years has turned a personal intuition into a pioneering model. A type of hospitality that does not merely accompany wine, but tells its story, amplifies it, makes it into an experience. In Menfi, among vineyards, olive groves and the sea, the Planeta family has, over time, built a widespread resort that today is one of the beating hearts of Sicilian hospitality.

A detail of the interiors of La Foresteria

It all begins with La Foresteria in 2009: “It was our school – recounts the company’s head of marketing and communications – a laboratory of hospitality where, year after year, the standards that today characterise the family’s entire accommodation offer were perfected.” More than strategy, Francesca prefers to speak of vision, that of those who believed – even when others doubted – that wine could best tell its story through direct experience, contact with places, flavours, people.
Located in Contrada Passo di Guerra, a short distance from Menfi, the wine relais is immersed among the vineyards and olive groves of the Planeta estate, overlooking the sea of Porto Palo. There are fourteen rooms, each dedicated to an aromatic herb. The beating heart of the boutique hotel is the cuisine of Angelo Pumilia, a chef who knows the family’s culinary tradition inside out and who has made it global thanks to his passion for Asian cuisines (particularly the Japanese one).

There are two tasting paths: Casa Planeta, which celebrates the family’s historic recipes, and the Seasonal Menu, which enhances local raw ingredients with dishes inspired by the flavours of Sicilian land. The novelty of this year is the introduction of a three-course short menu, designed for those who want a more streamlined gourmet experience. There are also various activities linked to Planeta’s food and wine world, starting from tastings of their labels, to cooking classes, oil tasting and foraging courses. “Another new entry for the 2025 season – continues Planeta – is the Bar-Lounge area, which complements the restaurant as a space dedicated to relaxation and conviviality.”

The Country House in the countryside of Menfi

The Country House

Just over a year old is the Planeta Country House, ten rooms with a rural atmosphere overlooking the countryside of Menfi, at more affordable prices and more family-oriented (here the clientele still consists of around 50 percent Italians). “Then there is the sea – explains Francesca – the other resource of the territory together with wine and oil. That is why we opened Insula, our beach club immersed in nature on a Blue Flag sea.”

A widespread experience certified Ecoluxury

The widespread hospitality of the renowned Menfi wine family is one with the Planeta Terra project, which includes organic farming, waste reduction, collaboration with local producers and habitat protection. It is no coincidence that La Foresteria boasts Ecoluxury certification. The other common denominator is the food and wine experience. Overseeing all the tables is chef Angelo Pumilia who, while at the Foresteria offers a more refined menu, at the Country House focuses on sharing with the “Chiamavinu” idea, a social table of delicacies in tapas style to accompany the glasses. On the beach at Insula, with a view of the sea, the flavours range from couscous to tuna parmigiana, to vegetable tataki.

Wine remains the protagonist, but it does not entirely steal the show and integrates perfectly into that storytelling concept with Repertorio 1694, a list that includes the finest historic Planeta labels, with verticals of rare vintages; the Carta degli Amici, which gives space to the Italian producers most aligned in vision and style; and the Insula selection, which moves along the coasts of the Mediterranean, with particular attention to the islands and maritime territories.