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• Day Trip from Rome to the Amalfi Coast by High Speed Train and Car
• Small-Group Capri Cruise from the Amalfi Coast
• Amalfi waterfalls - 'Valle delle Ferriere' Nature Reserve - group walking tour
• Best of Amalfi Coast Full Day Private Shore Excursion from Salerno Cruise Port
• Boat tour from Sorrento to Amalfi Coast

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The Amalfi Coast

Deemed an outstanding example of a Mediterranean landscape by Unesco, the Amalfi Coast is one of Italy's most memorable destinations. Here, mountains plunge into the sea in a nail-biting vertical scene of precipitous crags, cliff-clinging abodes and verdant woodland.

Best Time to Visit

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Attractions

Must-see attractions.

Villa Rufolo

To the south of Ravello’s cathedral, a 14th-century tower marks the entrance to this villa, famed for its beautiful cascading gardens. Created by a…

Villa Cimbrone

If you could bottle up a take-away image of the Amalfi, it might be the view from the Belvedere of Infinity, classical busts in the foreground, craggy…

Cattedrale di Sant’Andrea

A melange of architectural styles, Amalfi's cathedral is a bricks-and-mortar reflection of the town's past as an 11th-century maritime superpower. It…

Marina di Praia

Located a couple of kilometres east of the centre, this charming beach and harbour are the reasons why most people stop off in Praiano. From the SS163 …

Chiostro del Paradiso

To the left of Amalfi’s cathedral porch, these magnificent Moorish-style cloisters, complete with the remnants of 13th-century frescoes, were built in…

Punta Campanella Marine Reserve

Sorrento Peninsula

A popular diving destination, these protected waters are part of an 11-sq-km reserve that supports a healthy marine ecosystem, with flora and marine life…

Baia di Ieranto

A spectacular beach at the tip of the Punta Penna peninsula south of Sorrento, Ieranto is reached via a walking path that starts in the village of Nerano…

Museo Correale di Terranova

East of the city centre, this wide-ranging museum is well worth a visit whether you're a clock collector, an archaeological egghead or into delicate…

Top picks from our travel experts

The 17 best experiences on the amalfi coast.

Fiordo di Furore

The Fiordo di Furore, a deep and narrow cleft in the coastline 6km west of Amalfi, is a misnomer. Fjords are formed by glaciers, whereas the Furore ‘fjord…

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Best Things to Do

A beloved destination by travelers around the world, the Amalfi Coast is an incredible destination. Plan your trip now with our 17 favorite experiences.

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This first-timer's guide to the Amalfi Coast can help you plan a safe and successful trip to this glorious stretch of Italian seaside.

Transportation

The Amalfi Coast has many spectacular vistas but getting to them can be a challenge. Here's how to navigate its winding coast roads and endless steps.

Money and Costs

The Amalfi Coast is Italy at its most luxe. Here's how to save some euros on your visit.

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With boats, beaches, delicious food and friendly locals, the Amalfi Coast has plenty to offer families with children.

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Your Trip to the Amalfi Coast: The Complete Guide

TripSavvy / Christopher Larson

The Amalfi Coast, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1997 , is one of Italy's most scenic stretches of shoreline and one of the top places to visit in southern Italy. Set on the Tyrrhenian Sea south of Naples, the coast is known for its picturesque towns perched on cliffs over the sea, its beaches, and its long-standing cache as a playground for the rich and famous.

Because there's so much to see and do on the Amalfi Coast and there are many good places to stay, the towns on the peninsula make a great base for spending at least a few days or even a week or longer.

Best Time to Visit the Amalfi Coast

The secret is out—way out—about the Amalfi Coast, meaning that the best months to visit , weather-wise are also the months when everyone else wants to visit. You'll find the warmest air and sea temperatures and the biggest crowds from mid-June to the end of August. The shoulder season of April-May is great for hiking and sightseeing, though sea waters will be too cold for swimming. September to October is the best time to visit, when the weather is still fine for swimming and sunning, but the crowds have died down. From November to March, many restaurants and businesses close for the season—but it's a perfect time to visit if you want solitude instead of a suntan.

Italian is the first language along the Amalfi Coast  . You'll find that most hotel, restaurant, and shop employees speak some English. However, for the sake of politeness, it's helpful to learn at least a few phrases in Italian.

The euro (€) is the official currency of Italy  , and no other currency is accepted. Hotels, most restaurants and shops accept credit cards, though some smaller businesses may not. Note: that while MasterCard and Visa are widely accepted, American Express is not as common in Italy (or Europe for that matter).

Getting Around

The Amalfi Coast road is one of the most famous scenic drives in the world and connects the main towns along the coast. Many visitors opt to rent a car and drive this road. However, given the intense summer traffic, hairpin curves and the sudden drop-offs from the side of the road, we recommend that if you do choose to drive the coastal road that you do so in the off-season. Alternatives for getting between towns include water taxis or ferries, hiring a private driver (or taking advantage of your hotel's courtesy shuttle), or using the slow-moving municipal buses that ply the coast road.

To capture great photos of the towns and beaches of the Amalfi Coast, wake up early. You'll find sparsely populated piazzas with merchants just starting to set up shop for the day, deserted beaches and quiet streets. Also, for summer hiking, it pays to get a very early start—both to avoid the high-season crowds and the hottest part of the day.

Read more about the Best Time to Visit the Amalfi Coast.

Things to Do

Travelers come to the Amalfi Coast for its perfect combination of diversions, including boating and beach-going, shopping, dining out, hiking, and sightseeing in its many interesting towns and historic sites. While you're here, you should definitely plan to take a scenic boat ride, even if it's just a ferry from one town to another. Seeing the coast from the water, with its dramatic cliffs, hidden beaches, and pastel-colored towns climbing up the hillsides is a real treat.

Also plan to visit at least a small handful of the beautiful towns along the Amalfi Coast, each with its own distinct history and character:

• Positano made the transition from sleepy fishing village into one of Italy's most popular resort towns. Built into the steep seaside slope, it offers amazing views, especially if you walk or take the bus to the top of the town.
• Amalfi  town was the first Sea Republic of Italy, later joined by Pisa, Venice, and Genova. Amalfi is now a peaceful resort town with great views. Students of history may want to be based here—Amalfi was an important port in southern Italy through the 12th century and its prominence is reflected in its architecture. 
• Although it's not as glitzy as Positano, Ravello 's position in the hills above the town of Amalfi and the sea makes it a great place for views. The  Ravello Concert Society  holds performances from April through October, most of them at  Villa Rufolo .
• An ancient fishing village turned into a prestigious seaside resort, Praiano is more spread out than the other villages, stretching along the sea. Be sure to visit the church dedicated to Saint Luke, the  Parrocchia di San Luca Evangelista , containing actual historic relics of the saint.

For more information about what to see and do on the Amalfi Coast, check out the following TripSavvy articles:

• 5 Must-See Towns on Italy's Amalfi Coast
• The Best Dishes to Try on Itay's Amalfi Coast

The Best Road Trip Sights on the Amalfi Coast

What to Eat and Drink

Given its seaside location, local specialties along the Amalfi Coast rely heavily on fresh fish and seafood, which may be served in a cold salad, fried, sauteed, or as a sauce for pasta. Fresh clams ( vongole ), octopus ( polpo ), and various forms of shrimp ( gamberi, gamberoni, scampi ) are often the stars of pasta dishes. Note that in most restaurants in Italy, shrimp and seafood are served in their whole form—heads, tails, legs, and tentacles—and it's up to you to clean them. Fresh fish from the Tyrrhenian Sea, such as persico  (perch) and  spigola  (sea bass) are also often served whole, though if you ask, your server will usually be willing to debone the fish and do away with the head. Read more about eating fish in Italy .

Like all regions of Italy, the Amalfi Coast produces locally-made wines, so you should be sure to try some during your stay. Among white varieties, Falanghina is an easy table wine. The Costa d’Amalfi DOC label will show up on high-quality whites and reds from grapes grown near Furore, Ravello, and Tramonti. You can't visit the Amalfi Coast without sampling some limoncello. The strong, sweet lemon liqueur is made on the Amalfi Coast and practically ubiquitous with the region. It's most popular as an after-dinner digestivo (digestif). Delizie al limone , a sponge cake made with limoncello, is one of the most famous desserts along the coast.

Where to Stay

In high season, especially in July and August, accommodations along the Amalfi Coast may be hard to come by and bargains, harder still. That said, if you reserve months in advance—or even the year before, for summer trips—you can secure decent rates in well-located hotels, resorts or vacation rentals. If you're without a car, it makes sense to stay in one of the towns along the Amalfi Coast (see Things to Do, above), so that you can walk to restaurants, shops, and tourist sites. If you have a car or are content to use the frequent public buses that pass by, you can stay outside of a main town—many of the nicer resort hotels are a few kilometers away from the nearest town. Most upper-end hotels outside of town centers have courtesy shuttles that will take you into town or to the nearest beach.

Some of our favorite hotels along the Amalfi Coast include:

• A short distance from Amalfi town, Hotel Santa Caterina is a historic 5-star property built into the cliffs, with stunning views of the coast, a seafront pool and sea swimming, plus kayaking area.
• With a location right in Positano, regal Le Sirenuse is an in-town haven with a pool and several al fresco restaurants and bars.
• Near Amalfi town center, cozy Hotel Il Nido (the nest) is a low-key option where all rooms have sea views.
• A 10-minute walk from downtown Ravello, inland Hotel Parsifal occupies a former convent from the 1200s, with spectacular views of the coast from a position high above the sea.
• In relaxed Maiori, Reginna Palace Hotel offers an in-town location, a private beach, and pool, plus a selection of self-catering apartments.

For more top picks, check our list of the Best Amalfi Coast Hotels .

Most travelers arrive to the Amalfi Coast by way of Rome or Naples. If you're traveling by train, you'll arrive in either Naples Centrale station, then transfer to the local Circumvesuviana train that stops in Pompeii before continuing to Sorrento, on the northern side of the coast. From there, you can either rent a car, take a ferry, hire a private driver, or take one of several daily buses to reach the small towns of the Amalfi Coast. An alternative is to take the train to Salerno, from where you can travel northwards to towns along the coast using buses, ferries, private drivers or a rental car.

If you've picked up a rental car elsewhere in Italy, we advise that you avoid driving in central Rome or Naples and instead skirt these areas to reach Sorrento and points southward on the Amalfi Coast. Make sure your Amalfi Coast hotels have parking and if necessary, reserve a spot for the duration of your stay.

If you're flying, the closest airports are Rome and Naples. Most flights from the US arrive in Rome's Fiumicino Airport, the largest in Italy.

For more on transportation, see our guide on how to get from Rome or Naples to Sorrento and the Amalfi Coast .

Money-Saving Tips

While the Amalfi Coast is no place for vacation bargains in high season, there are a few ways to save money throughout the year:

• Take the bus. Save on transportation costs by using the municipal buses that run up and down the coast all day long. A single ride costs around €2, while all-day passes with unlimited rides are €8.
• Choose a non-waterfront hotel. The small towns of the Amalfi Coast are almost all built on, or near, the water. But you can save money by skipping the more expensive waterfront hotels and opting for one without sea views. The beach is always a short walk away.
• Visit in the off-season. If you can bear the idea of not going to the beach, or at least not going swimming during your Amalfi Coast vacation, you'll save a significant amount of money by visiting in the spring or fall shoulder seasons. Prices drop, towns quiet down, and you may feel like you have the entire coast to yourself.

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization . "Costiera Amalfitana."

Italian National Tourist Board . "More Information."

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The ultimate Amalfi Coast guide

By Nicky Swallow

Southern Italy's famous coastline runs from Punta Campanella to Salerno and includes the picturesque hilltop towns of Positano, Amalfi and Ravello. Brave the narrow, winding coastal road and discover the hidden treasures of the terraced towns and villages along the way.

For more inspiration, check out our guides to the best hotels on the Amalfi Coast and the best beaches on the Amalfi Coast

The Amalfi Coast remains an intriguing mix of sophistication and simplicity. A mere seagull's spit from the super yachts, chauffeur-driven Mercedes-Benz and five-star hotels, another more rural reality exists. Around precariously stacked hill villages, farmers still cultivate small plots of steeply terraced land, and their wives make cheese; down on the coast, tiny fishing communities make a living from the sea. The link between these worlds is Strada Statale 163 - the 'road of 1,000 bends' - commissioned by King Ferdinand II of Naples and completed in 1852. It hugs cliffs and deep gorges for 40km, slicing through lemon groves and whitewashed villages, rising and dipping above the shimmering sea. It is only ever wide enough for two lanes of traffic, with little room for manoeuvre, so traffic jams are unavoidable. And if you happen to be in an accident, well, as the Italians say with a resigned shrug… buona notte .

What to see on the Amalfi Coast

Explore the coastline along the 50km winding coast road from Sorrento to Salerno. In summer, when tourist-coach jams and the lack of anything resembling a parking space add to the chaos, it is often quicker to walk - and anyone without a head for heights is strongly advised to travel by boat (there is a regular summer service between Salerno, Amalfi, Positano and Capri ).

Heading east towards the Amalfi coast from Salerno, you will leave the built-up port area, and head leisurely past the town of Vietri and its ceramic workshops to the coast proper. The approach from the west, on the other hand, drops immediately into the most spectacular scenery, looping from Meta - just before Sorrento - up to the Colli di San Pietro and down again towards Positano, with dizzying views of the spume below.

Take a boat from the quay at Positano and visit the Grotta delle Matera (which you can explore) and the pretty, disconcertingly named cove Marina di Crapolla, with Roman-villa ruins on the beach. Also stop at the three small islands known as Li Galli (literally meaning the cockerels), believed by the Ancients to be home to the Sirens, whose song so enthralled passing mariners that they went weak at the knees and allowed their ships to drift onto the rocks.

Darcie Imbert

Olivia Morelli

Connor Sturges

Nicky Swallow , CN Traveller

The big tourist-pull along the rugged stretch of coast between Positano and Amalfi is the Grotta dello Smeraldo, a swimming spot accessible by boat (frequent tours from Amalfi and Positano) or from a car park on the road above.

Visit the Duomo in Amalfi. Most of its prize pieces are displayed in the Cappella del Crocefisso. You get to it via the exquisite 13th-century cloister Chiostro del Paradiso, with its interlaced Moorish arches, which flanks the Duomo. In the square outside, the Bar Francese is a good place to sit and muse on the passing of empires with a cappuccino and a copy of The Duchess of Malfi.

The Duomo of Ravello is equally impressive with its bronze doors and the two exquisite marble pulpits that face each other across the nave, adorned with mosaics; there is also a good museum in the crypt. But most people visit Ravello for its two famous villas, the Villa Rufolo and the Villa Cimbrone, which is now a hotel.

The best towns on the Amalfi Coast

Positano had a brief moment of glory in the 12th and 13th centuries when its merchant fleet gave Amalfi a run for its money, but centuries of decline forced three-quarters of the population to emigrate to the USA in the mid-1800s. When John Steinbeck arrived in 1953 to write his famous article for Harper's Bazaar , he found a pretty little fishing village known only to a few, mostly Italian, cognoscenti. But the cat was out of the bag and the dolce vita jet set moved in, big time, in the 1960s. Described by Paul Klee as 'the only place in the world conceived on a vertical rather than a horizontal axis', Positano is home to just short of 4,000 souls, although in summer thousands more pile in daily from Sorrento, Capri, Ischia and Naples.

But in spite of the crowds, Positano remains utterly beguiling. You don't come to Positano to see the sights; there aren't any to speak of. You come to drink in the matchless views along with your Campari, to shop for flowing linen and handmade sandals, or simply to watch the passing parade of tanned women in gold sandals and immaculately groomed men in pastel shades, cashmere sweaters draped over their shoulders. The only street level is the beachside walk, or at least it feels that way: just about anywhere else you go will involve lots and lots of very steep steps. There's always a buzz down here on the grey-shingle Marina Grande, where restaurants, bars and tall pines line the curve of sand. In summer, the serried ranks of sunbeds fill up quickly; for the best swimming, take a boat to explore the many small coves up and down the coast, a trip that can easily be combined with a stop-off for lunch at Da Adolfo beach shack on Laurito Beach. Book a table and wait on the jetty for the gozzo with the red fish on its mast to come and pick you up.

For spectacular snorkelling in crystal-clear water, head to Li Galli, the archipelago of three tiny, jagged islands just off the Amalfi Coast where, according to Greek mythology, the Sirens (or Sirenuse) attempted to lure Odysseus to his death on the rocks. Odysseus may have resisted, but Rudolf Nureyev was less successful: he made the largest island his home for the last years of his life. Hotels will arrange the trip (in their private boat if you're staying at the right place), or you can talk to one of the four Lucias at the Lucibello boat booth on the beach.

Praiano & La Praia

A few bends to the east along the Amalfi Coast road is low-key Praiano, which has a couple of very cool, rather new, rather fresh places to stay. There isn't really a centre to the village (unless you count the busy Bar del Sole), but it has a huge church with a colourful dome, and a rocky beach, La Gavitella, at the bottom of 350-plus steps, where you can enjoy the last rays of the evening sun - bliss on this convoluted stretch of coast. To really understand the topography of the costiera here, you need to get down to sea level. You can pick up a boat in Positano or Amalfi, but you can also take a detour down to cute Marina di Praia (aka La Praia), a clutch of cottages and a small beach wedged between towering cliffs, where there's a boat concession and a couple of simple restaurants to set you up for your trip. Heading west, you will eventually reach Punta Campanella, the wild, barren tip of the Sorrentine Peninsula and, beyond it, Capri.

But a gentle chug eastwards towards Amalfi takes you past some pretty impressive scenery. It's liberating to be out on the water and there's so much to take in that isn't visible from the road: gorgeous villas suspended over the water; sea caves and grottoes tucked into folds in the cliffs; solid Saracen defence towers that speak of pirate raids and war; slivers of pebble beach begging you to stop for a quick dip; waterside restaurants perfect for lazy lunches. The jagged coastline to the east of La Praia is broken by the Vallone di Furore gorge, which shelters at its mouth a few ancient fishermen's huts hewn from the rock face and a tiny scrap of beach. Further on is the Grotta dello Smeraldo (you'll know you're there from the tourist boats swarming around it), named after the intense, greenish light that filters into the cave from an underwater arch.

Just beyond the Capo di Conca headland lies the pretty fishing village of Marina di Conca, with a handful of restored fishermen's houses, a couple of restaurants and a tiny, whitewashed chapel, all overlooking a shingle beach lapped by crystal-clear water. Back up on Strada Statale 163 (SS163), a towering viaduct crosses the Vallone di Furore, giving a bird's-eye view of the fishing hamlet far below, and is a suitably vertiginous venue for the annual Mediterranean Cup High Diving Championship. In the hills directly above the gorge (to reach it you have to drive almost to Amalfi before doubling back) lies the little bohemian town of Furore. Beyond it is the fertile plain of Agerola, where soft-eyed, brown Agerolese cows provide milk for delicious cheeses such as the ovoid Provolone del Monaco and fior di latte Agerolese (cow's-milk mozzarella). Apart from the dizzying views, there is a good reason for coming up here: a visit to Marisa Cuomo's Gran Furor Divina Costiera winery, where Cuomo and her husband Andrea Ferraioli produce much-lauded DOC Costa d'Amalfi wines, rich with the tastes of sea and sun.

Amalfi and Atrani

The lifeblood of Amalfi today is tourism, but between the ninth and 12th centuries it was a proud and glorious maritime republic with a population of 80,000, a rival to Venice, Pisa and Genoa. The Amalfitani learnt to make paper from Arab traders, producing bambagina , a thick, heavy parchment made from cotton and linen rags, and in the 18th century the steep, narrow Valle dei Mulini and surrounding area were clogged with paper mills. The hard sell in Amalfi these days is garish ceramics, neon-yellow limoncello in gimmicky bottles and the ubiquitous menu turistico . But it's a very pretty little town with a fascinating history, in a spectacular setting wedged between the sea and the mountains, with several good restaurants and the wonderful Hotel Santa Caterina . And if you abandon the tourist-jammed main drag and climb up into the warren of narrow, tunnel-like side alleys and steep stairways, you will be catapulted back into the Middle Ages.

Life centres on the open-air salon of Piazza del Duomo, dominated by the flamboyant, striped façade of the Norman-Arab-style cathedral with its interlaced arches and a set of magnificent bronze doors cast in Constantinople in 1066. The best place to refuel and reflect is the charming old Pasticceria Pansa, whose delizie al limone , creamy cakes flavoured with local lemons, are legendary. Juicy Amalfi lemons make excellent limoncello, the local brew that will often be produced, homemade and straight from the freezer, at the end of a feast. To escape Amalfi's crowds, take the stepped footpath that leads over the hill to Atrani, a fishing village with an atmospheric tangle of tightly packed buildings, tunnelled walkways and staircases and a brilliant trattoria, A'Paranza. If you are driving, you probably won't even realise you're in Atrani until it's too late: the SS163 sweeps right over the top of it on a viaduct.

Ravello and Scala

There's a lot to be said for leaving the best until last, and for many Ravello is the jewel in the coastal crown. This ravishing town sits on a mountain buttress 350 metres above sea level, removed from the frantic hubbub below. If Positano is the glamour-puss of the costiera , Ravello is its refined, aristocratic cousin. Like Amalfi, the town used to be much larger and richer. Its once-elegant palazzi, secluded villas, dreamy gardens, magnificent views and romantic sense of faded glory have inspired a steady stream of A-list writers, artists and musicians since the days of the Grand Tour. Even now, once the tour groups have gone, there's a real feeling of otherworldliness here, and you really should stay the night (there's no shortage of excellent hotels). Most people come to Ravello to see its two magnificent garden estates.

In 1880 Richard Wagner famously drew inspiration for his opera Parsifal from the romantic garden of Villa Rufolo, restored in the mid-1800s by the Scotsman Francis Neville Reid. Another Brit, Lord Grimthorpe, bought Villa Cimbrone in 1904 and created an extravagant garden with dizzying views. The villa was a hangout for the Bloomsbury set in the 1920s and a love nest for Greta Garbo and the conductor Leopold Stokowski in the 1930s; it is now a hotel. Ravello is also home to the coast's most beautiful church, the refreshingly spare 11th-century Duomo di Ravello, and its only distinguished example of contemporary architecture: Oscar Niemeyer's futuristic New Energy Auditorium, a dazzlingly white, concrete-and-glass structure overlooking the Gulf of Salerno, designed to reflect the swell of the sea.

Just beyond Ravello, balanced on the opposite side of the Valle del Dragone, lies sleepy Scala. It is a real little charmer and was once an important outpost of the Amalfi Republic, evidence of which can still be found in its faded palazzi and disproportionately large 12th-century duomo. Steinbeck's observation that 'Positano bites deep; it is a dream place that isn't quite real when you are there and becomes beckoningly real after you've gone' could well be applied to the Amalfi Coast as a whole. In the height of summer, when sandwiched between two fume-belching coaches on the SS163, it's tempting to dismiss the whole experience as being simply too much like hard work. But as the inimitable Gambardella sisters (doyennes of the Hotel Santa Caterina in Amalfi) point out: 'There are bits of the old life left on the coast, but you have to know where to find them.'

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