Amalfi Coast Guide
I truly cannot stop thinking about how incredible our Amalfi Coast trip was and daydreaming of the gorgeous views, delicious food, and incredible weather. In an effort to share as much as possible in terms of recommendations, I’m going to lay out a lot of information for you all in the most organized manner as possible (hellooooo Virgo). I also want to shoutout Beyond Travel Company that helped us pick the location and plan this trip!! Emily was so incredible to work with.
This post is sponsored by Seed #seedpartnerLogistical Details
Timing & Weather: We went in October (October 11-17) and the weather was absolutely incredible. This is technically the end of their ‘season’ and definitely on the shoulder side of the peak. While most people tend to pick the July/August high-season timeline, we were soooo happy we went in October. Not only was the weather amazing with sunny 70-degree days (don’t hold me to that, obviously, but that was our experience!), but it was way less crowded than what I’ve seen / heard. Personally, the sun felt strong, and I can’t really imagine wanting it any hotter. The evenings were high 60s, which was perfect to just throw a light jacket on top and call it a day. Almost everything was open (minus one restaurant we wanted to go to) and there were still people there, just not the insane tourist crowds I’ve seen in photos. Even when we went to Positano and after speaking with hotel guests who did the Path of Gods hike, it felt crowded and I honestly can’t imagine it being much more crowded (which we for sure know it was based on speaking to staff).
Q: Did it feel like enough time? For us; yes! Obviously this depends on every person’s situation and needs / desires, but this was the perfect amount of time for us. We had time to really feel relaxed and enjoy ourselves and by the end we were ready to get home to our son. In total it was 5 full nights at the hotel.
Travel & Hotel: We flew direct from Newark to Naples (United) and did the red eye to get there and the early morning flight to get home. I personally am not a red-eye girl so that part sucked, but in the grand scheme of things doesn’t matter. The drive from the airport to our hotel was around 90 minutes and we had a private car service arranged beforehand. We stayed at Casa Angelina in Praiano and it was truly magical. While definitely expensive, it lives up to the dollar price. The staff was so incredibly attentive and amazing, the rooms are gorgeous, the food and beverages are delicious, and the views are simply stunning. It has a gym, spa, pool, delicious breakfast included, and access to a beach club down (a lot of) steps.
Q: Why Praiano? Where you stay on the Amalfi Coast definitely depends on what you are looking for. For us, we really wanted to simply relax, rest, eat delicious food, rejuvenate, and just chill. As parents, this was what we were looking for. Because of that, we chose the quiet town of Praiano that is midway between Positano and Amalfi. While there is a small town, walking distance from the hotel, with some restaurants, it is not nearly as lively or bustling as some other Amalfi Coast towns. That was what we were going for. We visited Positano for a day trip and, afterwards, felt really confident with our decision in Praiano based on our vacation needs as Positano felt way more tourist-y and busy.
Q: Why only one place? Personally, we don’t love hotel-hopping. Especially since we only had 5 nights, we didn’t want to spend a ton of time traveling, packing, unpacking, relocating, etc. While I think most people visit more than one spot on the Amalfi Coast (and I totally 110% understand why), the goal of this vacation was really just to relax and unwind so we wanted to pick one place and stay there for the entirety of the trip. I’m a firm believer that you need 3 nights somewhere to really feel ~settled~, so if our trip was one or two days longer we probably would’ve split it between two places!
Packing: I was adamant about not checking a bag because I always get nervous it will be lost and with all the horror stories I’ve been hearing lately about luggage and international travel, I didn’t want to risk anything. As I mentioned, the weather was absolutely ideal, so it made packing clothing wise pretty simple. I leaned in towards packing mainly dresses that I could pair with either sneakers or sandals and then a white jean jacket to throw on top for the cooler nights. I packed a pair of heels but, honestly, because everything includes soooo many steps (something I don’t think you can fully comprehend until you’re there), they weren’t really necessary. In terms of toiletries, that is where it can get tough with carrying-on versus checking. However, since we seem to travel all the time, I have a fully stocked travel toiletry kit ready to grab-and-go for whenever I am heading out. The star of this show is my Seed travel vial filled with Seed’s DS-01™ Daily Synbiotic, a plant-based prebiotic and 24-strain probiotic that I take every morning. I have been taking their synbiotic now for over 3 years and it is not only essential in my daily routine, but also my number 1 packing requirement. Seed’s DS-01™ supports my digestive health to maintain regularity and ease bloating, which is essential for someone who leans on the more constipated side of things. It also helps support health gut immune function and has a 2-in-1 ViaCap delivery technique, which uses a capsule-in-capsule to protect against stomach acid, digestion enzymes, and bile salts for viability through digestion. While I dislike stomach pain and discomfort on a typical day, I dislike it even more when traveling. I want to enjoy myself and actually poop – not feel like poop! Seed’s DS-01™ helps me do just that.
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Recommendations
Here are the activities / restaurants we did while there and some recommendations sent by friends that we didn’t have a chance to see. If you feel passionately about a restaurant or activity on the Amalfi Coast, please comment on this post so that others can see!
Praiano:
Activities:
Boat day – the absolute highlight of our trip and one of the best days of our lives. Cannot recommend enough. We had a private charter through @ytour_boat that picked us up at the beach club at the base of our hotel, went around the coast, stopped for lunch at Lo Scogolio (one of the best meals we had during our trip and gorgeous views), took us to Capri and dropped us off for a little stroll around town, and then did a sunset cruise back to Praiano. Overall we did an 8-hour boat day and, while it was a big investment, was such an amazing experience
Day trip to Positano – we went for an afternoon lunch and a few hours to explore and it felt like the perfect way to see / experience Positano while not staying there. Personally, that period of time was enough for me in the town! While the hotel offers a free shuttle there and back, the roads are windy and my carsickness was not having it, so we used this guy (+39 371-188-7269) for a water taxi. Was super quick, affordable, and A+ views!
Walking around Praiano – as I mentioned, there isn’t a huge town (at all), but you can still walk around and check out some shops / restaurants
Beach Club – at the base of Casa Angelina and included with your stay is access to this beach club that has chairs, umbrellas, water access, and beautiful views. I believe they serve food and drinks during peak season, but not while we were there. A great option in addition to the hotel pool!
Restaurants:
Kasai – definite favorite of Praiano!! Highly recommend and the tiramisu is to die for
La Brace – delicious casual spot right in town with great pizzas and pastas
M’ama – in another hotel in town and the food was good, but not our favorite spot
Positano:
As I mentioned, I personally wasn’t the biggest fan of Positano. It felt very touristy to me and this wasn’t even peak season, so I can’t imagine what summers there are like. We only spent a short amount of time there, but here is what we did…
Activities:
There is a ton of town to explore, so we simply just walked around for 2+ hours popping into shops and exploring
Lots of leather shops to make custom sandals!
Path of the Gods hike could start/end here, but we decided not to do that as we were looking for more of a chill, relaxing, vacation
Restaurants:
Where we ate:
La Sponda – inside Le Serinuse Hotel (extremely beautiful 5 star hotel) that was more upscale than the other meals we had during our trip. Food, service, and views were great and interior is gorgeous. There is the famous Franco’s Bar next door for pre-dinner drinks, but it was closed the day we went since it was raining so we had a drink at the covered patio bar, Aldos
Collina Positano Bakery – delicious pastries and amazing gelato
Le Tre Sorrelle - kind of touristy spot, but right by the beaches and where we were dropped off by the water taxi so it is at the base of the city and all outdoor seating
Recommended by others but ones we did not go to:
Da Adolfo – a huge recommendation by many that we absolutely wanted to make it to, but unfortunately it was closed for the season
Donna Rosa
Da Vincenzo
La Tagliata
Saracena d’oro
Il Tridente
Zass
Capri:
We didn’t spend long, at all, in Capri since it was just a quick pit-stop on our boat day, but I absolutely loved it. While I didn’t see Amalfi or Revello so I can’t say for sure, if we didn’t stay in Praiano I think I would’ve wanted to stay in Capri. It felt like it had some of that city-feel with restaurants and shops and things to do but wasn’t overwhelmingly tourist-y or packed (in my opinion). Definitely worth a stop!
Restaurants recommended by others that we did not go to:
Ristorante Mammà
Ristorante Le Monzù
Monzù Gin Club & American Bar
Paolino
Le Grottelle
Ristorante Terrazza Brunella
Torre Saracena
Buonocore Gelateria Pasticceria Gastronomia
Revello / Amalfi:
We didn’t get a chance to visit either of these, but I’ve heard incredible things! Maybe we’ll be back one day. Here are recommendations I was sent (but since we did not go I cannot speak to them!)
Amalfi:
Pizzeria Donna Stella
Al Mare
Glicine
La Caravella dal 1959
La Terrazza Bar @ Hotel Santa Caterina
Da Gemma
Lido Azzurro
Sensi
Marina Grande
Ristorante al Mare
Da Ciccio Cielo Mare e Terra
Revello:
Trattoria Cumpa Cosimo
Belvedere
Il Flauto di Pan