Anyone been to the Amalfi Coast?

[ilovethiswebsite]

Hi guys,

Has anyone been to the Amalfi Coast in Italy? FI and I are looking into Sorrento for our honeymoon. Any advice would be great!

 

[LaurenThePartier]

Yes, in March, DH and I went to Positan . . . I''ll find the link to my thread in a moment.

 

[LaurenThePartier]

Here is a link to my thread with pics of our entire Italy trip.

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/back-from-italy-with-loads-of-pics.82143/

This view was STUNNING!!!! We wish we had stayed for an entire week.

 

[neatfreak]

I have! One of the most beautiful places around IMO.

 

[JulieN]

it''s really beautiful.

 

[ilovethiswebsite]

Date: 12/7/2008 9:08:08 PM
Author: LaurenThePartier
Yes, in March, DH and I went to Positan . . . I''ll find the link to my thread in a moment.

OMG Lauren - ur pics are making me want to go so bad! So would you recommend it for a honeymoon? Any hotels you suggest? Are the people friendly? Neither of us speak any italian.... I have been to Italy before though but never south of Naples.... Is the food good?

 

[marchswallowbird]

ilovethiswebsite, go to www.slowtrav.com. And go to the slowtalk forum. You will find out anything and everything about all parts of Italy, including the Amalfi coast; including hotel & restaurant reviews etc.

I''ve not been there, but from what I know it is the PERFECT place for a honeymoon (expensive, though).

 

[kittybean]

Date: 12/7/2008 11:33:50 PM
Author: ilovethiswebsite

OMG Lauren - ur pics are making me want to go so bad! So would you recommend it for a honeymoon? Any hotels you suggest? Are the people friendly? Neither of us speak any italian.... I have been to Italy before though but never south of Naples.... Is the food good?

I''ve been too! I would definitely recommend it for a honeymoon. It''s so picturesque and romantic.

When I went with my family, we stayed in a town outside Sorrento called Massa Lubrense. There were gorgeous views of Capri and Ischia from our hotel, and the town was very nice and quaint. We got excellent restaurant recommendations from the owners of our hotel, and we loved the food. I can look up specific restaurants we went to if it would interest you.

Although I speak Italian, I didn''t think it was really necessary to get around or to have a good time. A lot of people wanted to speak English to us!

I would recommend taking the hydrofoil out to Capri (and Ischia, if you can) and spending at least a day there. It is unbelievably beautiful. When you get there, you can walk around the port area a little, grab a cappuccino, then head up the funiculare (mountain train) up to the top of the island. There are amazing boutiques there that sell everything from typical pottery to Prada. Then, you can walk down the winding streets back to the port. From there, rent your own little boat or hop on a small tour boat that goes around the island. My family and I rented our own boat, and we loved it. We motored around the island in about 2-3 hours, which included lots of swim breaks (the Blue Grotto is a must) and yacht-watching. It was one of our favorite days in Italy.

From Sorrento, you can also go visit the ruins (gli scavi) of Pompeii or Ercolano (Herculaneum), both of which were covered when Vesuvius erupted. We liked Ercolano best because of how well-preserved the city was, and you can walk right through it!

When my FI and I go on our honeymoon, I think we''re going to plan to stay in Positano and Capri for a couple days. It''s like heaven on earth.

 

[ilovethiswebsite]

holly crap kitty bean - u just sold me!!! now i need to convince my FI it's affordable... i think 2 weeks will run us 5g for decent accommodations and flight.... jeeeez. we were originally thinking maui but this is so much more original... i have traveled a lot but i always thought Europe was perfect for a romantic honeymoon. when are you planning on going for yours kittybean? im thinking we should fly in to Rome for a few days, then train to positano and stay there for a week, and maybe a few days in capri and in sorrento? are there other cities near by we could visit during day trips? where would be the best location as a "homebase?" i'm getting way excited.

 

[ilovethiswebsite]

there is a vacation package leaving from toronto going to sorrento to this hotel

http://hotelraito.readytec.it/luoghi.page

has anyone ever heard of it?

others i have heard are great in positano and capri are:

http://www.villarosapositano.it

http://www.bucadibacco.it/

http://www.laminervacapri.com/

If anyone knows anything about these hotels please let me know! thanks!!!

 

[TravelingGal]

I''d recommend the other coast cities over Sorrento, which IMHO is the least romantic. Positano is a good bet, as previously mentioned.

And if you do go to Positano, splurge and either take a taxi or arrange transportation. You do not want to deal with the bus (especially in summer) with your luggage.

Also, if you''re the adventurous type and one of you have a motorcycle license, rent a scooter and see the coast on two wheels. It''s a bit dangerous and you may not come back alive, but boy...you sure feel ALIVE when doing it.

Breakfast in Positano, lunch in Amalfi, coffee in Ravello - ahhhhhhhhhh, that''s the life.

 

[TravelingGal]

Oh, and if you haven''t already, try the travel talk forum at fodors. Do a search for all you posted...I am sure you will find more info there than you ever need. I have never gone on a trip without researching there first.

 

[ilovethiswebsite]

Date: 12/8/2008 2:17:53 AM
Author: TravelingGal
Oh, and if you haven''t already, try the travel talk forum at fodors. Do a search for all you posted...I am sure you will find more info there than you ever need. I have never gone on a trip without researching there first.

Yeah! Thanks travelling girl! I will check out fodor!

 

[espressa]

We were just in Positano in October for our honeymoon, and we loved it. We spent 4 weeks in Europe, and of all of the cities we visited, Positano was by far our favorite. I loved it so much I wanted to stay a few more days instead of going to Venice, but we had already bought our train tickets so we left after 5 nights. It truly is heaven on earth. I have never been in a more relaxing place in my life.

We stayed at Hotel Villa Gabrisa in the suite Sirene. http://www.villagabrisa.it/welcome_uk/index.htm It doesn''t have a kitchen but it''s got a jacuzzi tub in the bathroom and the terrace is HUGE (it has a table and chairs, lounge chairs...). Gorgeous view, beautiful room, and the staff was fantastic. After we checked in they brought up a bottle of champagne to our room since it was our honeymoon.

Breakfast is included, and we were very happy with it. For I think 5 euro you can have breakfast brought up to your room instead of eating in the dining room downstairs (nice for those lazy mornings). You get a bit of a smaller selection when they bring it up but when we asked for something specific they always accommodated us. The breakfast downstairs had a selection of coffee, cappuccino, tea, orange juice, rolls, croissants (still warm from the oven most of the time!), yogurt, cereal, and maybe a few other things, I can''t exactly remember.

They also have one of the most reasonably priced minibars I''ve ever seen (I''m pretty sure everything was under 5 euro, including the small bottles of wine, and most things were 2 euro and under).

Can you tell I LOVED this hotel? hehe

We were so impressed with it, especially given the price (we got it for 185 euro a night but their website is showing more now). We contacted them directly and got the best price I could find.

The only downside is that getting to the beach and main shopping areas involves walking down a lot of steps (and by a lot, I mean a whole heck of a lot - many many flights), which you then have to walk back up to get back to the hotel. But pretty much anywhere you stay will require walking up and down a lot of steps, unless you''re right on the beach, which I would not recommend because it''s more crowded and you don''t get the great views.

Since we were near the top of Positano things were cheaper, and there were a few grocery stores very close by where we bought bottled water (which is dirt cheap at the grocery stores but restaurants and places near the beach will charge you 2-5 euro for one bottle!), cheese, snacks, and best of all, Paprika Pringles, which are sadly not sold in the U.S. I swear we went through over 15 cans of those darn things while we were in Europe...

Anyway, we used DriveAmalfi (private driver) to get from the Naples train station to the hotel, and then back, and I wholeheartedly recommend them. Salvatore was fantastic and spoke wonderful English.

If you have any questions about Positano or the hotel, just let me know.

 

[ilovethiswebsite]

Date: 12/8/2008 3:59:39 PM
Author: espressa
We were just in Positano in October for our honeymoon, and we loved it. We spent 4 weeks in Europe, and of all of the cities we visited, Positano was by far our favorite. I loved it so much I wanted to stay a few more days instead of going to Venice, but we had already bought our train tickets so we left after 5 nights. It truly is heaven on earth. I have never been in a more relaxing place in my life.

We stayed at Hotel Villa Gabrisa in the suite Sirene. http://www.villagabrisa.it/welcome_uk/index.htm It doesn''t have a kitchen but it''s got a jacuzzi tub in the bathroom and the terrace is HUGE (it has a table and chairs, lounge chairs...). Gorgeous view, beautiful room, and the staff was fantastic. After we checked in they brought up a bottle of champagne to our room since it was our honeymoon.

Breakfast is included, and we were very happy with it. For I think 5 euro you can have breakfast brought up to your room instead of eating in the dining room downstairs (nice for those lazy mornings). You get a bit of a smaller selection when they bring it up but when we asked for something specific they always accommodated us. The breakfast downstairs had a selection of coffee, cappuccino, tea, orange juice, rolls, croissants (still warm from the oven most of the time!), yogurt, cereal, and maybe a few other things, I can''t exactly remember.

They also have one of the most reasonably priced minibars I''ve ever seen (I''m pretty sure everything was under 5 euro, including the small bottles of wine, and most things were 2 euro and under).

Can you tell I LOVED this hotel? hehe

We were so impressed with it, especially given the price (we got it for 185 euro a night but their website is showing more now). We contacted them directly and got the best price I could find.

The only downside is that getting to the beach and main shopping areas involves walking down a lot of steps (and by a lot, I mean a whole heck of a lot - many many flights), which you then have to walk back up to get back to the hotel. But pretty much anywhere you stay will require walking up and down a lot of steps, unless you''re right on the beach, which I would not recommend because it''s more crowded and you don''t get the great views.

Since we were near the top of Positano things were cheaper, and there were a few grocery stores very close by where we bought bottled water (which is dirt cheap at the grocery stores but restaurants and places near the beach will charge you 2-5 euro for one bottle!), cheese, snacks, and best of all, Paprika Pringles, which are sadly not sold in the U.S. I swear we went through over 15 cans of those darn things while we were in Europe...

Anyway, we used DriveAmalfi (private driver) to get from the Naples train station to the hotel, and then back, and I wholeheartedly recommend them. Salvatore was fantastic and spoke wonderful English.

If you have any questions about Positano or the hotel, just let me know.

Wow thanks Espressa. That was really informative! Do you think it would be too boring to spend 2 weeks straight in Positano? Or is Positano a good home base to travel to the other cities for day trips? I like the idea of going to Pompei, Sorrento, Capri, Ravello and Ishia for day trips or overnights.

 

[LaurenThePartier]

Date: 12/7/2008 11:33:50 PM
Author: ilovethiswebsite

Date: 12/7/2008 9:08:08 PM
Author: LaurenThePartier
Yes, in March, DH and I went to Positan . . . I''ll find the link to my thread in a moment.

OMG Lauren - ur pics are making me want to go so bad! So would you recommend it for a honeymoon? Any hotels you suggest? Are the people friendly? Neither of us speak any italian.... I have been to Italy before though but never south of Naples.... Is the food good?

YES! I wish we had known about Positano when we got married.

We stayed at Le Sirnuse http://lesirenuse.it/ and we had the most luxurious room, ever! The hotel staff was amazing, the concierge blushed when I told him I remembered him from the Amalfi Coast episode of Passport to Europe, and I''m not sure if that''s what got us the upgrade to the one bedroom suite, but something helped, because we paid for a standard sea view room, and ended up with a HUGE suite with a HUGE bathroom! We were also there during low season, so the prices were much more affordable than high season, but it''s your honeymoon - SPLURGE! It''s so incredibly worth it!

If you''re interested at looking into other hotels in Europe, I live and die by Small Luxury Hotels( www.slh.com ).

As far as the people, my husband and I only had a small guide book with Italian phrases, and we got around ok with it. Most people would speak english, and if they didn''t they would give you a hearty grin an say "Ciao, bella!" and we would operate by sign language. If you know any Spanish, you should be able to manage ok in Italian. On our trip, we felt that we had so many more open and good experiences with Italians in the South than we did with Italians in the small villages in Tuscany.

The food in the south was among some of the best we had in Italy, but honestly, our favourite meals were in and around Florence. If you like seafood, Positano is for you!

 

[LaurenThePartier]

Date: 12/8/2008 4:24:31 PM
Author: ilovethiswebsite

Date: 12/8/2008 3:59:39 PM
Author: espressa
We were just in Positano in October for our honeymoon, and we loved it. We spent 4 weeks in Europe, and of all of the cities we visited, Positano was by far our favorite. I loved it so much I wanted to stay a few more days instead of going to Venice, but we had already bought our train tickets so we left after 5 nights. It truly is heaven on earth. I have never been in a more relaxing place in my life.

We stayed at Hotel Villa Gabrisa in the suite Sirene. http://www.villagabrisa.it/welcome_uk/index.htm It doesn''t have a kitchen but it''s got a jacuzzi tub in the bathroom and the terrace is HUGE (it has a table and chairs, lounge chairs...). Gorgeous view, beautiful room, and the staff was fantastic. After we checked in they brought up a bottle of champagne to our room since it was our honeymoon.

Breakfast is included, and we were very happy with it. For I think 5 euro you can have breakfast brought up to your room instead of eating in the dining room downstairs (nice for those lazy mornings). You get a bit of a smaller selection when they bring it up but when we asked for something specific they always accommodated us. The breakfast downstairs had a selection of coffee, cappuccino, tea, orange juice, rolls, croissants (still warm from the oven most of the time!), yogurt, cereal, and maybe a few other things, I can''t exactly remember.

They also have one of the most reasonably priced minibars I''ve ever seen (I''m pretty sure everything was under 5 euro, including the small bottles of wine, and most things were 2 euro and under).

Can you tell I LOVED this hotel? hehe

We were so impressed with it, especially given the price (we got it for 185 euro a night but their website is showing more now). We contacted them directly and got the best price I could find.

The only downside is that getting to the beach and main shopping areas involves walking down a lot of steps (and by a lot, I mean a whole heck of a lot - many many flights), which you then have to walk back up to get back to the hotel. But pretty much anywhere you stay will require walking up and down a lot of steps, unless you''re right on the beach, which I would not recommend because it''s more crowded and you don''t get the great views.

Since we were near the top of Positano things were cheaper, and there were a few grocery stores very close by where we bought bottled water (which is dirt cheap at the grocery stores but restaurants and places near the beach will charge you 2-5 euro for one bottle!), cheese, snacks, and best of all, Paprika Pringles, which are sadly not sold in the U.S. I swear we went through over 15 cans of those darn things while we were in Europe...

Anyway, we used DriveAmalfi (private driver) to get from the Naples train station to the hotel, and then back, and I wholeheartedly recommend them. Salvatore was fantastic and spoke wonderful English.

If you have any questions about Positano or the hotel, just let me know.

Wow thanks Espressa. That was really informative! Do you think it would be too boring to spend 2 weeks straight in Positano? Or is Positano a good home base to travel to the other cities for day trips? I like the idea of going to Pompei, Sorrento, Capri, Ravello and Ishia for day trips or overnights.

What month will you be traveling?

 

[ilovethiswebsite]

Date: 12/8/2008 8:30:14 PM
Author: LaurenThePartier

Date: 12/7/2008 11:33:50 PM
Author: ilovethiswebsite

Date: 12/7/2008 9:08:08 PM
Author: LaurenThePartier
Yes, in March, DH and I went to Positan . . . I''ll find the link to my thread in a moment.

OMG Lauren - ur pics are making me want to go so bad! So would you recommend it for a honeymoon? Any hotels you suggest? Are the people friendly? Neither of us speak any italian.... I have been to Italy before though but never south of Naples.... Is the food good?

YES! I wish we had known about Positano when we got married.

We stayed at Le Sirnuse http://lesirenuse.it/ and we had the most luxurious room, ever! The hotel staff was amazing, the concierge blushed when I told him I remembered him from the Amalfi Coast episode of Passport to Europe, and I''m not sure if that''s what got us the upgrade to the one bedroom suite, but something helped, because we paid for a standard sea view room, and ended up with a HUGE suite with a HUGE bathroom! We were also there during low season, so the prices were much more affordable than high season, but it''s your honeymoon - SPLURGE! It''s so incredibly worth it!

If you''re interested at looking into other hotels in Europe, I live and die by Small Luxury Hotels( www.slh.com ).

As far as the people, my husband and I only had a small guide book with Italian phrases, and we got around ok with it. Most people would speak english, and if they didn''t they would give you a hearty grin an say ''Ciao, bella!'' and we would operate by sign language. If you know any Spanish, you should be able to manage ok in Italian. On our trip, we felt that we had so many more open and good experiences with Italians in the South than we did with Italians in the small villages in Tuscany.

The food in the south was among some of the best we had in Italy, but honestly, our favourite meals were in and around Florence. If you like seafood, Positano is for you!

Hi Lauren,

We will be travelling in early July. We both speak French so we might be able to get by since it is so similar to Italian... I would love to splurge but the hotels are like 300-500 euro a night, and for 2-3 weeks it would be insanely expensive... I am currently looking into cruises in Italy/Croatia/Greece and maybe spending 1 week or so in the Amalfi coast. It''s so $$$ to stay for longer, unless we stay in Sorrento (where there seems to be better deals). We LOVE seafood

 

[Skippy123]

I have been to Sorrento and Capri. Sorrento was gorgeous but it has been almost 9 yrs since I have been (was for our honeymoon)!!! The Amalfi coast is to die for!!

 

[Harriet]

Yes. By ship and by car. The Hotel Caruso is probably my favourite hotel, even though I almost drowned there!