Two splendid Days on the Amalfi Coast!

After we left Florence, we had two splendid days on the Amalfi Coast.

Oh boy, this was a huge bucket-list place to see for me.

I was in charge of this portion of the trip, and I took my friend’s advice and got a travel agent to help with these couple days. And we loved him and his advice!

Naples

We took a train from Florence to Naples, got picked up at the train station and taken on a quick tour of that city.

Naples was built by the Greeks, and was an originally a huge Greek colony stretching all the way to Solerno. It was built 2,700 years ago (way before Rome). The eruption of the volcano destroyed the city and the Greeks rebuilt it calling it “Naples” which means “new city.” I think our driver said there are FIVE big old castles like this right in the city:

We got lunch at a pizza place right on the water.

It was hot as blazes sitting on that patio but the pizza made it worth it (and the fans they gave us were lifesavers too!)

Sorrento

The driver took us right to our next little AirBNB in Sorrento, which was down some winding roads right to the beach of Marina Grande.

Sorrento is a new favorite place imprinted on my heart built right on a cliff. In the planning process I had debated and wrung my hands over whether to stay in Sorrento or Salerno (both with totally different reviews), and although I have never experienced Salerno, we LOVED this choice of Sorrento.

Our little rental was up a whole slew of stairs, right on this little port on the water, a black sand beach crowded with picturesque restaurants.

We explored a tiny bit…

…took a quick dip in the water…

…and then raced up the winding road, drinking in the sunset on each turn.

I love how they maximize space and put little tables for the cafes and restaurants everywhere (above left).

We loved the main street of that city, filled up with people and good dinner smells and everything-lemon lining the little shops.

You see, the Amalfi coast is famous for lemons and there are a bazillion lemon trinkets you can buy and famous “limoncello” for sale EVERYWHERE). We got the most delicious crepes and loved just basking in that evening.

And walking back down to our little Marina Grande to that bustling area on the water.

Capri and Positano by boat

The next day we took a boat out from dawn until dusk, exploring the Amalfi Coast from the sea.

It was something that deserves it’s own post, filled with little caves to explore:

That island of Capri that all of us fell in love with:

Deep blue waters to swim in:

And views like this:

Yes, it was CROWDED!!!

But we loved it.
And I wrote all the details so I could keep them forever.

When we got back to our little port, we raced up the windy steps to catch the sunset again:

…and spent one more night just soaking in the ambiance of Marina Grande.

Path of the Gods Hike

The next morning we got picked up nice and early to head to what I had been dreaming of hiking: The Path of the Gods right along the ridges of the Amalfi Coast.

We wound through the tiny streets.

To get to Nocelle where we started the hike.

Once again, this part deserves it’s own post because I want to remember the instructions. We did it backwards from this awesome guide from Earth Trekkers (the best travel website!).

Check out that post for all the details of that hike we loved.

Amalfi Town

From there, we headed, again on these tiny roads, over to the actual glorious town of Amalfi.

I had to snap a picture of us trying to pass this bus on the road along the ridge…yow!

Here’s the road from the window:

And HERE, is the beach at Amalfi:

Ha!!

August is the worst month to visit these towns in Italy. All of Europe is on holiday, and everyone wants to come to these beautiful spots. But we knew this going in and did it anyway since it was the only timing we could make work before Claire leaves. And we just embraced the crowds and the heat. It was awesome:)

Amalfi and Positano are the two most popular Amalfi Coast cities, and we were so happy we got to explore this one for just a little bit. LOVED walking from the beach into the main little square to find this incredible church there to greet us:

It was so beautiful!

Didn’t hurt that there was, of course, delicious gelato to greet us too.

Elle tried the lemon, because when in Amalfi…

Farm Lunch

Our next stop was at this gorgeous little farm in the middle of the valleys surrounding the Amalfi coast where this Italian family made us a garden-fresh, home-made lunch.

It was filled with fresh vegetables from their garden, home-made gnocchi and meatballs, and the most delicious tart for dessert.

I will be dreaming of that lunch for a long time.

This was our hostess Olivia:

…and her parents who were. the chefs. So full of light.

Ravello

From there we made a quick stop at the town of Ravello, another popular, more quiet town up away from the water.

With more incredible views.

We all wished we could have stayed here longer, maybe a day or two.

But loved at least getting a feel for that place before we headed away from our newly beloved Almalfi coast.

Off to visit Pompeii.

On these tiny streets:

To be continued!

More about the beginning of our trip to Italy:

• A Mother/Daughter Art History Trip to Italy
• The Best Way to See London Highlights
• A Day Exploring the Art and Wonder of Florence