08/10/2026
I’m an unabashed Kennedy-phile. Jacqueline Kennedy, in particular, has inspired me to visit some of my favorite places on this earth - from her beloved Martha’s Vineyard to Montecito, CA, where she spent a bit of her honeymoon, to some hidden gems in Italy - from Ravello to Capri.
Here are some items she inspired in my time along the Amalfi Coast this trip - my fourth visit to this INCREDIBLE region in four years.
Let’s start with her story of summer 1962 - - -
Four days after the death of Marilyn Monroe (and it is reported no small coincidence), the First Lady and Caroline departed the States with their entourage and arrived into Italy. She would base in the cliffside village of Ravello for its privacy and its unmatched views. [Sadly, too many unknowing tourists miss Ravello, a true gem of the Amalfi Coast. We recommend time here to all of our clients. As Ravello is on the other end of the Amalfi Coast, it’s yet another reason to stay ON the coast, as it’s a haul for daytrippers staying in Sorrento.]
Her Italian admirers were as plentiful as she experienced domestically - oh just a little local band along with Ravello’s mayor and most of the village’s population were there cheering to greet her upon arrival. It was famously said “In America they admired her husband. In Europe, we admired her.” Villagers hung banners welcoming her with “Ciao, Jacqueline” and phrases of adoration “Italy loves you!” The First Lady seemed at ease soaking up the authentic Italian hospitality of the locals, even with the aggressive Italian paparazzi.
Yet still, the First Lady, her daughter, her sister Lee Radziwill with her husband the Prince and their young son Anthony, for the most part were able to enjoy some privacy on their 23-day Mediterranean holiday due to their remote location along the Amalfi Coast. [For fellow Kennedy-philes, Ravello was suggested by her “ex-step-brother” American writer Gore Vidal, who had earlier visited there alongside playwright Tennessee Williams. Gore later returned to live in Ravello for more than thirty years, where he wrote many of his literary works.]
Jackie and crew stayed in Ravello’s villa Palazzo Episcopio, a 900-year-old former Bishop’s Palace and then royal residence that the First Lady described in letters as "the loveliest house with the most staggering view in the world." She was informally hosted and often escorted by Gianni Agnelli, the ultra-wealthy, impeccably styled heir to the Fiat automotive empire. Gianni made a few of his open-air Fiat cars and even his yacht, the Agneta, available to the First Lady on the coast. The yacht enabled them to escape the eyes of welcoming locals and more so the lenses of the paparazzi to swim and waterski more freely.
During her holiday, Jackie came down daily from the villa she was staying perched high in Ravello to practice her waterskiing in the bay off Conca dei Marini. She had learned the sport early into her time with the now-president to keep up with the active Kennedy lifestyle off the shores of Cape Cod and West Palm. Afterwards, she would then return to the secluded beach of Conca dei Marini to enjoy the privacy it offered. Some of my personal favorite pictures of the First Lady are taken as she sat incredibly relaxed on the ground barefooted, make-up free with hair still wet from her skiing and swimming.
On that secluded beach was a small restaurant, Ristorante La Tonnarella. It became one of her absolute favorites and put the beachside eatery on the global map. [I was so happy to finally make it here, after being on my list for a while - accessible only by 300 steep cliffside steps or by boat. We opted for the latter. And I now recommend it for lunch for our clients on full-day boat adventures along the coast.]
I was shocked and have to say, La Tonnarella served quite literally one of the most delicious meals I’ve EVER had in Italy. And, of course, I had Jackie’s favorite dish, made specifically for her combining the sweet crunch of pan-fried local zucchini (courgettes) with the savory, smoky depth of speck, all bound together by a velvety emulsion of melted butter, starchy pasta water and plenty of sharp Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. It is said that the First Lady requested this specific combination of ingredients, prompting the chef and original owner, Umberto Lauretano, to whip up a customized pasta dish for her. Today, you can order Spaghetti alla Jacqueline from one Umberto’s sons, Franco and Angelo (the former pictured below).
The tuna net storage room turned local eatery in the 60’s does not look to have changed too much in the more than 60 years since it hosted the First Lady. And it’s a real treat, complete with locals bathing and rock jumping on the small area of beach in front of the historic restaurant.
Each morning before her daily waterskiing, Jackie was treated to a breakfast of Sfogliatella Santa Rosa, a sweet creation of the nuns of the Conca dei Marini, reportedly with a cold coffee to combat the high August Mediterranean temps. The Dominican nuns’ version of the local delicacy from the 17th or 18th century is considered the sacred ancestor of the modern Neapolitan Sfogliatella. [I had the distinct pleasure of enjoying one during my stay at the monastery turned luxury hotel where they were invented, Monastero Santa Rosa Hotel in Conca dei Marini. What an amazing location I look forward to sharing with clients! 16+ years only.]
Jackie enjoyed gelato at Caffè Calce, still open in the beautiful Duomo square of Ravello. She also ate frequently at Garden Ravello Restaurant, where I ate with my family in 2022. Today the restaurant proudly displays a plaque - one in English and another in Italian - commemorating her stay as well as the “Jacqueline's Bar" in her honor. The cocktail menu says today “In the summer of 1962, Jacqueline Kennedy came to Ravello for peace, poetry, and perhaps a little mischief. She found all three just steps from where you sit now. This bar is her story retold in sips, bites, and soft whispers.” Cocktails include Angnelli’s Affair, J.K. Was Here and Sumner of ‘62.
Jackie joined the ranks of many previous famous dinner guests at Trattoria Cumpà Cosimo, a rustic neighborhood trattoria famous for its family-style traditional Neapolitan home cooking. [Also still open and on my list for my return next year, God willing.] She also regularly ate meals prepared by local culinary legend Mamma Agata, who worked as a private chef. Jackie famously fell in love with Mamma Agata's simple “Spaghetti del Contadino” (farmer's spaghetti), a recipe still taught today at the family's renowned Ravello cooking school [also on my next to-do list.]
During their stay, Jackie and her crew were treated to traditional folk dance and singing performances and custom fireworks. They even awarded her honorary citizenship during the stay. Jackie was so captivated by the hospitality of song and dance that she had four-year-old Caroline and her young nephew, Anthony Radziwill, dress up in traditional regional Tarantella clothing. Caroline joined the local children in the square, learning the energetic tarantella dance steps right in front of her mother. The memory of her legendary visit remains a foundational part of Ravello's modern identity as the "City of Music". Today, Ravello hosts a summer music festival on the iconic open-air stage at the Belvedere of Villa Rufolo, offering panoramic views of Italy's Amalfi Coast. [I was so honored to attend this event last week and will most definitely recommend to clients desiring a unique, authentic and STUNNING music experience during the months of July, August and very early September. The performances range from orchestral symphonies and opera to early baroque and jazz genres in the evenings with one special sunrise performance, called Concerto all'alba, which will actually be held tomorrow starting at 5:30AM! The sole morning performance will feature, as it often does, The Orchestra Filarmonica “Giuseppe Verdi” di Salerno.]
The world-wide press coverage of a tanned, relaxed Jackie alongside Italy’s most famous pl***oy, Gianni Agnelli prompted President Kennedy to famously send his wife a brief, direct cablegram reading: "More Caroline, less Gianni," urging her to protect Camelot's domestic image by posing for more photos with her daughter instead of the reportedly undeniable “electric" chemistry between the two as they walked down cobblestone streets and swam off his yacht. While married, Gianni was also known for his high-profile affairs with the likes of Anita Ekberg and Rita Hayworth. That all said, Gianni’s wife Marella was present and pictured with Jackie for portions of her trip. Still the First Lady’s “Dolce Vita" lifestyle ended a few days later when Jackie and Caroline returned to the U.S. to meet the President in Rhode Island after a brief meeting with Italy’s Prime Minister in Rome.
There are some conflicting reports, including some of the literature included in the pictures below, as to whether John Jr. joined the First Lady and his older sister in Italy, but pictures misattributed as John John are instead of his cousin of the same age Tony. And the First Lady’s secret service agent’s account of the trip in his book “My Travels With Mrs. Kennedy” by Clint Hill only mention Caroline in tow.
Many of the pictures of the First Lady below are actually taken by Agent Hill and others on her protection duty and not the paparazzi.
Thank you again, Mrs. Kennedy, for your incomparable travel tastes and where they have led me to great joy! You simply never disappoint!
