Hoping to go to the Amalfi coast, what can you tell me?

[bclover]

We're dreaming of the Amalfi coast. we know nothing!
Best town to stay in?
Hoping to go September of 2022

 

[whatnot]

I’m hoping to go May 2022. Looking forward to replies also!

 

[Marita40]

Oh, I love it there and have been several times. You can take a bus from Rome if you are not driving, or take a train from Rome to Naples and then the Circumvesuviano train from the Naples train station to Sorrento. Like the name says, the train circles Vesuvias for great views. From there I took a bus to Positano. I highly recommend that town!! Stay at the Hotel Vittoria. Take a day trip by boat to Amalfi and enjoy all the limoncello!
You can also hire a driver from Rome to take you there directly. I won't drive those hills and cliffs (can't even look), so that's why I advise transportation.

 

[Vincenzo Corleone]

We're dreaming of the Amalfi coast. we know nothing!
Best town to stay in?
Hoping to go September of 2022

My wife and I absolutely loved Positano.

 

[NoiseBoy]

My first post-pandemic trip is going to be to Milan & Florence. Both are new destinations for me. I'm also hoping for 2022.

 

[Ncc1701]

This may sound strange but I did not like the Amalfi Coast. Sure it is stunningly beautiful and must be seen but for me I did not like living life "vertically." The bus ride getting to Positano was a motion sickness nightmare. No real sidewalks, just one road with crazy drivers so once you get to your hotel, you're basically limited to a small area to see. The beaches are small, full of people and rocks. Positano is a nice town to visit but you get tired of going up and down in the heat of summer which is when we went. A trip to Capri is nice but I was scared off from going to the Blue Grotto by nightmare stories of the money hungry guides. I spent a week there and think three days would've been enough. With that said, it should be experienced, have dinner with the most amazing view you will ever have, take a lot of pictures, and thats it...lol

 

[Marita40]

Just to add to what NCC1701 said above, really the best time to plan a trip is off tourist season. It CAN be overrun with tourists during high season, and prices are often much higher. I found going in October wonderful. Once I was in Positano with a friend in late October, the weather was balmy warm but not crazy hot, and we were literally the only people in the hotel and on the beach--place was heavenly because it was so empty. Of course, this was pre-Covid, so I don't know the conditions that will occur in the future. You can usually tell high and low season by the stated hotel rates on their websites.

 

[Vincenzo Corleone]

To elaborate on my earlier post:

When my wife and I went, we first went to Rome. We had no car. We took a train from Rome to Salerno, and from there took a ferry to Positano, where we stayed at a wonderful place called Villa Rosa. While in Positano, we used taxis to get around. We visited the beautiful gardens at Hotel Palazzo Murat, walked the meandering streets visiting the various little shops along the way, sampled the Limoncello and gelato, walked on the beach, and took a ferry to go to Ravello where we visited the beautiful grounds at Villa Rufolo and Villa Cimbrone. And of course, all the wonderful dining experiences throughout. Four nights in total, then we moved on to Capri. Any more than four nights in Positano probably would have been too much for us, but everybody's different.

 

[Bamaman]

Oh, I love it there and have been several times. You can take a bus from Rome if you are not driving, or take a train from Rome to Naples and then the Circumvesuviano train from the Naples train station to Sorrento. Like the name says, the train circles Vesuvias for great views. From there I took a bus to Positano. I highly recommend that town!! Stay at the Hotel Vittoria. Take a day trip by boat to Amalfi and enjoy all the limoncello!
You can also hire a driver from Rome to take you there directly. I won't drive those hills and cliffs (can't even look), so that's why I advise transportation.

I agree with Marita. Best way is to travel light and just take the fast train down to Naples.

It's a shame that there's been so many Covid problems in Europe. I understand there's a 3rd wave possibility, and that many places are going to just about fully shut down. Oh, well. There's always next year.

I'm just getting bored hanging around the house in the U.S. We are going to the Grand Canyon end of May, but there's just so few places we care to see domestically any longer. I long for our friend's little inexpensive apartment in Budapest we missed when our 4/2020 flight was cancelled..

 

[georgemoe]

Following! DW and I just booked RCCL Odyssey for September 2022 Greek Isle sailing and Naples will be the last port. Planning to get a driver and do Positano, etc. while there.

 

[jerryo]

My DW and I spend a couple of weeks touring the Amalfi coast a couple of years ago in mid-June. It was already crowded (presumably less so than in mid-summer), but still wonderful.
We spent most of our time hiking (interesting, steep trails), sight-seeing and eating!. We started in Geneva (where we'd been on business) and took the train down to Florence for a week (also wonderful). From Florence we took the (super-express) train to Salerno via Naples. We caught the bus to Amalfi (there's also a ferry) right in front of the Salerno train station. Spent 3 days in Amalfi, then bussed to Positano for two days (also took the express ferry back to Amalfi after a hike), then to Sorrento for 3 days, then the ferry to Capri for 3 days. Then caught the morning ferry and spent a day museuming, sightseeing and eating in Naples, before catching the express train for a short week in Rome before heading back to the U.S.
In Amalfi, Positano and Capri we did a lot of hiking. From Sorrento we took the commuter train to Pompeii, then a bus to Vesuvius, then a bus to Herculanum, then the train back to Sorrento (long day!). We really loved Amalfi and Capri (which surprised us...good hiking, great restaurants, and quiet once the ferries left in the evening!). We thought Positano was beautiful (but a bit too crowded and touristy). And found Sorrento surprising charming and a great base for sightseeing. Naples was a bit gritty, but a great archeology museum and incredible pizza! The towns and trails in the hills (Ravello, the pathway of the gods, etc.) were truly remarkable! (There are a couple of (somewhat dated) hiking guides that are essential, since the trails are unevenly marked.).
Yes, the buses can be nauseating but they are convenient and cheap and essential for getting to some of the trails. While expensive, the express ferries are quicker and far more comfortable. There were a couple of pre-packaged independent hiking trips we considered (on foot travel, etc.), but they couldn't get the hotels we wanted, so we booked everything ourselves on line, which wasn't too difficult, even in June! And the trip substantially exceeded our already high expectations!

 

[jerryo]

A couple of other comments: The circumvesuviano is a slow commuter train with a couple of (confusing) lines that takes a couple of hours to get from Naples to Salerno. It worked well for daytrips sightseeing to Vesuvius and Naples, but had lots of pickpockets at the Naples end and wasn't well-suited for luggage. Far easier either to take the express train to Salerno and work your way up the coast by bus or ferry or to start with the ferry from Naples to Capri, then work your way down the coast by ferry or bus. There was also some kind of commuter card we bought that got us unlimited local buses/commuter railroad (at least in and between Naples and Salerno)

 

[Golden sunsets]

If you'd like a bird's eye/insider's view of the Amalfi area go to and subscribe to the You Tube channel "Nicki Positano". She is a British woman who has lived in Positano with her partner Carlo and their daughter for 20 years. She publishes vlogs twice a week. They cover day trips around the Amalfi area, cooking, their garden and day to day life. It's very picturesque. They grow most of their own food. She's very entertaining, and Carlo, who speaks limited English is adorable. Their drone captures spectacular videos of the area.

 

[ncbill]

FYI, Omaze currently has a contest - 6 days there:

https://www.omaze.com/products/positano-le-sirenuse

It does look like you'd be doing a LOT of climbing...

 

[YVRRocketSurgery]

We did a flash visit in October 2016 durng a cruise stop in Naples.
We trained it from Naples to Salerno, ferried it to Positano, bussed it to Sorrento, and express ferried it from Sorrento back to Naples.

The quick visit was enough to make me want to spend a longer period of time there exploring more of the region. During our October visit, I thought there were enough people around that it was lively but not crowded. Weather was a bit meh for us as it was overcast with some drizzle.

Agree with a lot of Ncc1701's comments. I enjoyed the views from the winding bus ride from Positano to Sorrento but someone had tossed their cookies and put a seat out of commission. The bus was surprisingly busy. I enjoyed exploring the towns but can see needing to hike up and down Positano getting a bit repetitive.

 

[LiveBelowMeans]

We based in Sorrento and had a rental car. Easy access to Amalfi coast, Pompeii. Ferry to Capri leaves from Sorrento also. Stayed at the Grand Ambasciatori Hotel with fabulous view of water and walking distance to town and ferry. Jmho

 

[grasshopper]

We were on the Amalfi coast and Capri last week of September in 2018 great weather less touristy. Our trip was different for us because we were there to hike the old Roman footpaths from town to town. Positano was about as close to the water as we got. Hiked the Path of the Gods, several ruins off the beaten path, but stayed mostly on footpaths. Capri has a few nice hikes one to the top of Monte Solaro from Anacapri, the Ristorante Monte Solaro at the top has some very cold barri. For a real Italian dining experience try a agriturismo we liked Agriturismo Fattoria Terranova near Sorrento. Ciao.

 

[Surewhitey]

We really enjoyed our short time in the area. We took the high-speed train from Florence to Salerno.

We made Palazzo Vingius in Minori our home base. Really nice couple who made croissants and espresso every morning for us. It was off-season mid-March. Glad went then as there were not many people for sure. I imagine the locals are way more relaxed. The only restaurant that was open down the stairs. He greeted & talked with us a lot & was very hospitable.

We liked Positano too. Very scenic and we spent the day there. Get in shape for the stairs in all the areas.

Do take the bus as the drive is stupid windee (road to Hana on steroids). Easy to get along this way.

I do remember Villa Cimbrone & Terrazza dell'Infinito being a great place for sights and pictures. Super nice.

 

[Gumby]

We flew to Naples, stayed overnight, then took the ferry to Capri for two days (stay in Anacapri and see the Villa San Michele while you are there), then to Sorrento, where we stayed for 3 days. Sorrento is larger than the other towns in the immediate vicinity and has more lodging options. The very best thing we did was hire a driver for the day to take us down the Amalfi Coast itself. That way, we could concentrate on the amazing view and let someone else worry about the switchbacks, narrow roads and vertiginous cliffs. (He also knew all the best spots for pictures). We stopped in Positano, Ravello and Amalfi, while the driver waited for us. Each is unique and splendid, but the views from Ravello are beyond compare. We ate lunch there. If you do nothing else, you need to go to the Villa Cimbrone in Ravello and stand out on the Terrazzo dell'lnfinito (Terrace of Infinity).

You can also take the train from Naples to Sorrento if you wish. It reminded me of riding the Metro North here in Connecticut. If you wanted to take a side trip not on the Amalfi Coast, I would recommend taking the train from Sorrento to Herculaneum (modern Ercolano), which is halfway to Naples. It was really quite interesting to see the ruins, which are better than the ones at Pompeii.

In Naples itself, I can recommend the National Archaeological Museum, with its Farnese Collection, and Santa Chiara, especially the orange grove in the convent.

Edit to add: We went in late February. It was way less crowded.

 

[NW-Bound]

We stayed at a hotel in Sorrento and used it as a base. We did a day trip by ferry to the island of Capri. We took the municipal bus from Sorrento down the Amalfi coast scenic road and back. I don't remember how far south we went, but did get off the bus to walk a few towns along the way, and particularly Positano where we had lunch at a restaurant on the beach. It was off season (late February), and we were the only tourists in Positano that day, it seemed. Or perhaps everyone was having a siesta.

On the train back to Naples, we stopped for a visit to Pompeii, before taking the night train from Naples to Venice. The train stop was right outside the gate to Pompeii ruins. There was a shop that kept the luggage for us for a few euros while we visited Pompeii for a few hours.

It was a very memorable trip in 2003. We came by train from Nice, and happened to be there for the Carnival in Nice, and later also in Venice.

 

[donheff]

Beautiful drive. We stayed at Sorrento, Capri, and Positano. That was 36 years ago in May and we drove there as an alternative to a planned visit to the northwest coast which was too cool. No reservations - we just called ahead a day before we arrived. We did that in Lake Garda, Verona, Venice, Florence, Amalfi, and Rome. I wouldn't try that now.

 

[bclover]

FYI, Omaze currently has a contest - 6 days there:

https://www.omaze.com/products/positano-le-sirenuse

It does look like you'd be doing a LOT of climbing...

lol,thanks ncbill. I entered, hey even if I don't win it's a nice organization

 

[Athermos4u]

We flew direct naples, and hopped on the transit right in front of the terminal that took us to the ferry port. From there a beautiful boat ride to Capri. It's a great place to spend some time, it's easy to get around on, and the same ferry service goes on to all the other Amalfi coastal towns. It's fast, cheap, and doesn't require the use of all the road the wind back and forth.

 

[BH58]

If you'd like a bird's eye/insider's view of the Amalfi area go to and subscribe to the You Tube channel "Nicki Positano". She is a British woman who has lived in Positano with her partner Carlo and their daughter for 20 years. She publishes vlogs twice a week. They cover day trips around the Amalfi area, cooking, their garden and day to day life. It's very picturesque. They grow most of their own food. She's very entertaining, and Carlo, who speaks limited English is adorable. Their drone captures spectacular videos of the area.

Thanks for sharing this. What awesome armchair travel. I too have Amalfi Coast on a future travel list!

 

[Golden sunsets]

Thanks for sharing this. What awesome armchair travel. I too have Amalfi Coast on a future travel list!

I love this channel.