Here the island changes register. No steps, no narrow lanes: the road comes all the way to the water, the bus stops fifty metres from the sand and in front of you there is a small harbour of pleasure boats instead of fishing gozzi. The sun is on you all day, because the coast faces south-west, and on the horizon there is Ischia. The Chiaiolella is not the Procida of the photographs. It is the Procida where you swim.
It is the best equipped part of the island: the beach clubs, the bars, the pizzerias on the seafront, the hire places. The footbridge to Vivara also starts from here, and Vivara is the exact opposite — an uninhabited nature reserve you enter only by booking. Two worlds two hundred metres apart.
How you get there
Direct road access: the Chiaiolella is the far end of the island from the harbour and you get there by car, by scooter, by micro-taxi or on the L2 bus from the terminus at Marina Grande. It is the only village on the island you can reach with a suitcase without paying a forfeit, and it is the reason a good many families sleep here.
The L2 line is also the most used in summer: at peak times you travel standing. Anyone with an evening return on the last hydrofoil should work backwards, starting from the time of the sailing and not from the time of sunset. The real timetables are in getting around Procida, the links with the mainland in getting to Procida.
The beaches
The Chiaiolella beach is the busiest and the best served on the island: dark volcanic sand, shallow and safe water, several beach clubs alternating with free stretches. It sits between Punta Serra and the headland of Santa Margherita Vecchia, and two tuff stacks separate it from the Ciraccio. The southern stretch is the one many guides call the Ciracciello: it is the same beach, only the name on the map you are reading changes.
On the question of which is longest the sources argue: the island’s tourist portal calls this one the longest, two other local guides give that title to the Ciraccio. We are not stepping in. The real difference is another one: the Chiaiolella has the facilities, the Ciraccio has the space and the afternoon mistral, which in summer lifts the sand.
The beach clubs’ rates are not published: ask the price of sunbeds and parasol before you sit down, which here is normal and offends nobody. One source alone lists the beach as equipped for people with reduced mobility, but we have not found that confirmed anywhere else: if you need it, telephone the beach club before you set off. The full comparison is in the beach guide.
The bridge to Vivara
From the side of the little harbour starts the footbridge that leads to Vivara, the crescent-shaped islet that closes the arc of the Chiaiolella. It carries no vehicles, and under the deck runs the water pipeline that supplies Ischia: a technical walkway before it is a tourist one.
Walking as far as the gate is free and is worth the stroll at sunset, but going into the reserve is not: you get in only on a guided visit booked online, Monday is closed and from 25 September 2026 entry is only from Friday to Sunday at 09:30. Walking boots are needed: flip-flops are turned away at the entrance, and that is not a polite formula. All the details and prices are in the page on Vivara and in the page on the guided visit.
Eating on the seafront
The front of the little harbour is the part of the island with the most choice after the Corricella, and with prices that are generally more reasonable: Da Mariano and Da Girone are the two addresses Procidans name first, and on the seafront there are bars and pizzerias for the evening as well.
What to order: the fish of the day, the spaghetti ai ricci when the season allows and the insalata di limoni made with the limone di Procida, which here is a side dish, not an oddity. The complete picture is in the restaurant guide and in what to eat in Procida.
Sleeping here
The Chiaiolella is the practical choice: you arrive by car, you unload in front of the door, the beach is on foot and the children do no stairs. In exchange you give up the colour of the Corricella and the view from above at Terra Murata, and every evening you have to take some form of transport to eat anywhere else.
In summer the seafront is alive until late: if you are a light sleeper, ask for a room at the back. The honest comparison between the four villages, with the pros and cons of each, is in where to stay on Procida. With children, look also at Procida with kids: almost all the advice leads to this side of the island.
When to come
The sun beats down all day and there is no natural shade: in July and August, without a parasol, the afternoon is unbearable. With the right wind you can surf here, which does not happen anywhere else on the island.
The best moment is late afternoon, when the sun goes down exactly in front of the beach, behind Vivara and Ischia: it is the most head-on sunset on the island and you do not have to climb anywhere to see it. In June the water is still cool but the beaches are free; in September the sea is at its best and the beach clubs start to close. It is worth reading when to visit Procida too before you fix the dates.
