With its stunning scenery, hill- and harbor-hugging towns, and historic ruins, Amalfi is Italy’s coast with the most. The breathtaking trip from Sorrento to Salerno is one of the world’s great bus or taxi rides. It will leave your mouth open and your camera wore out. 😊
You’ll gain respect for the 19th-century Italian engineers who built the roads – and even more for the 21st-century drivers who squeeze past each other here daily. Cantilevered garages, hotels, and villas cling to the vertical terrain, and beautiful but out-of-reach coves tease from far below. As you hyperventilate, notice how the Mediterranean, a sheer 500-foot drop below, really twinkles.
All this beautiful scenery apparently inspires local Romeos and Juliets, with the latex evidence of late-night romantic encounters littering the road turnouts. Over the centuries, the spectacular scenery and climate have been a siren call for the rich and famous, luring Roman Emperor Tiberius, Richard Wagner, Sophia Loren, Gore Vidal, and others to the Amalfi Coast’s special brand of la dolce vita.
The Amalfi Coast is one of those places with a “must see” reputation. Staggeringly picturesque and maddeningly touristy, it can be both rewarding and frustrating. As an antidote to intense Naples, it’s the perfect place for a romantic break – if done right (and if you can afford it).
These towns are the big three sights of the Amalfi Coast: Positano is like a living Gucci ad and has the best overnight options; Amalfi evokes a day when small towns with big fleets were powerhouses on the Mediterranean; and Ravello is fun for that tramp-in-a-palace feeling.
Leaving Sorrento, the road winds up into the hills past lemon groves and hidden houses. The gray-green trees are olives. Notice the green nets slung around the trunks; these are unfurled in October and November, when the ripe olives drop naturally, for an easy self-harvest. Dark, green-leafed trees planted in dense groves are the source of the region’s lemons (many destined to become limoncello liqueur) and big, fat citrons (cedri, mostly used for marmalade). The black nets over the orange and lemon groves create a greenhouse effect, trapping warmth and humidity for maximum tastiness, while offering protection from extreme weather.
Atop the ridge outside Sorrento, look to your right: the two small islands are the Li Galli Islands, where some say the sirens in Homer’s Odyssey lived. The largest of these islands was once owned by the famed ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev; it’s now a luxury residence, rented to wealthy visitors for upward of $100,000 per week.
When Nureyev bought the island, the only building standing was the stony watchtower – the first of many we’ll see all along the coast. These were strategically placed within sight of one another so that a relay of rooftop bonfires could quickly spread word of a pirate attack.
The limestone cliffs that plunge into the sea were traversed by a hand-carved trail that became a modern road in the mid-19th century. Fruit stands sell produce from farms and orchards just over the hill. Limestone absorbs the head and the rainwater, making this south-facing coastline a fertile suntrap, with temperatures as much as 10 degrees higher than in nearby Sorrento.
The chalky, reflective limestone, which extends below the surface, accounts for the uniquely colorful blues and greens of the water. With the favorable climate, bougainvillea, geraniums, oleander, and wisteria grow like weeds here in the summer. Notice the nets pulled tight against the cliffs – they’re designed to catch rocks that often tumble loose after heavy rains.
The dramatic, exotic-looking town of Positano is the main stop along the coast. The town is built on a series of man-made terraces, which were carefully carved out of the steep rock, then filled with fertile soil carried here from Sorrento on the backs of donkeys. You can read the history of the region in Positano’s rooftops – a mix of Roman-style red terra-cotta tiles and white domes inspired by the Saraceans.
We’ve chosen Positano as our home-away-from-home for this stretch of the trip, so we’ll cover it in a bit more detail in it’s own section. But we’ll keep on heading from West to East.
Just south of Positano, St. Peter’s Hotel (Il San Pietro di Positano, camouflaged below the tiny St. Peter’s church) is just about the poshest stop on the coast. In the adjacent gorge, notice the hotel’s terraced gardens (where produce is grown for their restaurant) above an elevator-accessible beach and dock.
Just around the bend, Praiano comes into view. Less ritzy or charming than Positano or Amalfi, it’s notable for its huge Cathedral of San Gennaro, with a characteristic majolica-tiled roof and dome – a reminder of this region’s respected ceramics industry. In spindly Praiano, most of the homes are accessible only by tiny footpaths and staircases. Near the end of town, just before the big tunnel, watch on the left for the big Presepe (manger scene) embedded into the cliff face. This Praiano-in-minature was carved by one local man over several decades. At Christmastime, each house is filled with little figures and twinkle lights.
Just past the tunnel, look below an don the right to see another Saracen watchtower. A bit farther along, look down to see the fishing hamlet of Marina di Praia tucked into the gorge (furore) between two tunnels. Consider a detour down here for a coffee break or meal. This serene, tidy nook has its own little pebbly beach with great views of the stout bluffs and watchtower that hem it in. A seafront walkway curls around the bluff all the way to the tower.
Just after going through the next tunnel, watch for a jagged rock formation on its own little pedestal. Locals see the face of the Virgin Mary in this natural feature and say that she’s holding a flower (the tree growing out to the right). Also notice several caged, cantilevered parking pads sticking out from the road. This stretch of the coastline is popular for long-term villa rentals – Italians who want to really settle in to Amalfi life.
Look down and left for the blink-or-you’ll miss it fishing village that’s aptly named Fiordo (“fjord”), filling yet another gorge. You’ll see humble homes burrowed into the cliff face, tucked so far into the gorge that they’re entirely in shadow for much of the year. Today these are rented out to vacationers; the post-stamp beach is uncrowded and inviting.
After the next tunnel, in the following hamlet, keep an eye out for donkeys with big baskets on their backs – the only way to make heavy deliveries to homes high in the rocky hills.
Soon we’ll pass the big-for-Amalfi parking lot of the Grotta dello Smeraldo (“Emerald Grotto”), a cheesy roadside attraction that wrings the most it can out of a pretty, seawater-filled cave. Passing tourists park here and pay $5 to take an elevator down to sea level, pile into big rowboats, and get paddled around a genuinely impressive cavern while the boatman imparts sparse factoids.
Now we’re approaching what might be the most dramatic watchtower on the coast, perched atop a near-island. This tower guarded the harbor of the Amalfi navy until the fleet was destroyed in 1343 by a tsunami caused by an earthquake, which also led to Amalfi’s decline (it was once one of Italy’s leading powers).
Around the next bend we’re treated to stunning views of the coastline’s namesake town – Amalfi. The white villa sitting on the low point between here and there (with another watchtower at its tip) once belonged to Sophia Loren.
Now look up to the very top of the steep, steep cliffs overhead. The hulking former Monastery of Santa Rosa occupies this prime territory. Locals proudly explain that the sfogliatella dessert so beloved throughout the Campani region was first created at this monastery. Today it’s a luxury resort, where you can pay a premium to sleep in the tight little former monk’s cell.
The most striking stretch of coastline ends where the bus pulls to a halt – at the end of the line, the waterfront of Amalfi town. Spend some time enjoying this once-powerful, now-pleasant city, with its fine cathedral, fascinating paper museum, and fun-to-explore tangle of lanes.
Be sure to check other posts, where we dive a bit deeper into Positano, Amalfi, and some pictures from taking a boatride from Amalfi back to our place in Positano.