Next up, and my favorite destination of our recent trip, the Amalfi Coast! In case you missed it, I posted the first of three travel guides from this trip last week, which you can find here (Nice, France Travel Guide). When Matt and I left Nice, France, we had a super early flight (7:00am) from Nice to Naples, Italy. The flight was just over an hour and the easiest way to get from Nice to Positano. From the airport we hopped into a cab and had about a 45 minute drive into Positano, which cost $130 Euro. I was so tired from the jetlag and getting up early I slept most of the ride, but Matt said that as we got closer to Positano it had some beautiful landscape views, including views overlooking Sorrento.
DAY ONE:
We got dropped off at our hotel and checked into Hotel Poseidon. Matt did a bunch of research on hotels and we decided we wanted to stay up higher with a view instead of being down by the beach. This hotel was BEYOND incredible and surpassed all expectations. It was so easy to walk everywhere, had the coziest nooks, open air feel, complimentary breakfast with a view, a pool and so much more. The staff was amazing and always went out of their way trying to help us and make sure we were having the best experience.
After checking into our room and freshening up we couldn’t wait to get out and explore – and get out hands on some Italy pizza! We walked all through town and eventually made our way to the beach. It looked like a quick rainfall was about to hit, so we popped into Chez Black for lunch and to hide from the rain. We were able to sit right in front and had the best view of the beach and to watch the rainfall. We split the burrata appetizer, pepperoni pizza and stuffed peppers (which were my absolute favorite) and enjoyed some red wine.
We waited until the rain passed and then made the journey back up through town popping in and out of shops along the way. We heard Collina bakery had good coffee and since we both needed a pick-me-up we stopped in. I had the best cappuccino and yummiest pistachio cannoli! When we made it back to the hotel the rain had started again so we decided to take a quick nap, especially since we knew we had a really fun and long dinner ahead.
If you take one thing from this post, let it be this dinner recommendation. Our friend’s told us about it and we had the hotel call and make us reservations the second we arrived. La Tagliata is located high up on the hills, but they send a car to your hotel to take you there and back. There is no menu, it is essentially an “all you can eat and drink” menu (with about 6 courses of the most authentic food), it has a true family feel, live music and overall incredible time. Plus it was a very good deal, at only $40 Euros per person (plus tip). They have one nighttime seating (around 7:30pm) and we were there until about 11:00pm. If you look on my Positano highlights on Instagram story you will find a bunch of snaps from this night! I kept calling it a tree-fort in the sky. Needless to say, we rolled out of there and into our beds right when we got back home!
DAY TWO:
After breakfast at our hotel we headed down to the beach to take a ferry over to Amalfi for the day. Make sure to arrive a little early to guarantee your spot . It was a quick, and beautiful, 15 minute boat ride. When we pulled in, Matt and I decided to head up to the town of Ravello and check that out first. We opted for the bus to get to the top (just a warning, the bus ride is a bit frightening due to the windy roads and very crowded). You can purchase bus tickets right in town when you get off the ferry at a spot called Tabacchi, which is to the right of Hotel Fontana. Bus tickets were about $1 Euro each, definitely the most cost effective way to get to Ravello (I think a cab was like $30 Euro each way).
When we got to the quaint little town we walked around for a bit and checked out the luscious gardens and stunning views. Neither of the two main gardens were huge or overwhelming, so you could spend as much or as little time as you like.
After walking around for a bit we worked up an appetite and were excited to grab lunch at a super authentic spot in town called Cumpa Cosimo. We split the Bolognese and lasagne, two dished that this restaurant is known for! While we were there the chef herself came out, said hi and made sure everything was okay, she was utterly adorable and you could tell put her heart (and family recipes) into each dish.
Once we wrapped up lunch we wanted to check out two swanky hotels that were nearby Belmond Hotel Caruso and Palazzo Avino. We heard their properties were beautiful and they did not disappoint. Matt and I love walking around swanky hotel properties and soaking in the views and grabbing a drink, anyone else?!
Later that day we took the bus back town to the town of Amalfi and walked around for about an hour until our ferry back to Positano. We grabbed some gelato and paid $3 Euro each to look inside the main cathedral. Afterwards we headed back near the ferry and grabbed a drink on the water at Ristorante Marina Grande. I will say, Amalfi was my least favorite of the towns we saw along the Amalfi Coast, this may be because this is where the cruise ships let out, so it was much more crowded than Positano or Ravello.
When back at our hotel we quickly got ready for dinner, but knew we wanted to spend some time hanging by our hotel patio/pool, grabbing a drink, and watching the sunset. This was one of my favorite things to do because Positano is quite honestly picture perfect! We ended the evening by grabbing a late dinner at da Vincenzo, a two minute walk from our hotel and served very yummy fresh seafood, a welcomed change from all the pasta and pizza we had been consuming. The octopus was out of this world and a must!
DAY THREE:
Our last full day in Positano started with ordering a pot of coffee to our room and enjoying a cup of it out on our balcony as the sun came up. Later on we headed to breakfast at my favorite spot (and one of the best meals), Casa e Bottega. It was a quick walk from our hotel and I was craving anything fresh, healthy and delicious. The restaurant was adorable with lots of neutral colors and vibes and Matt and I both agree that the Açaí bowls were the best we have ever had.
After breakfast we continued heading down to the beach and explored the area and discovered a small beach club, La Scogliera and hung out for awhile. In the back of the beach club there were steep stairs that looked like they led up to a hotel so Matt and I of course started walking them up. We stumbled upon Hotel Marincanto and walked around their property for a bit. I snapped some pictures of what may be one of my favorite views from the trip.
We wanted to continue our pool hopping and both agreed that we had done a ton of exploring, so we went back to our hotel for some quality pool time, light bite and a glass of rosé. After soaking up the sun for a while we decided to check out a nearby beach club called Da Adolfo that was known to have the best mussels around. If you have a reservation in advance, they will send a boat to come pick you up as well as drop you off. We did not have a reservation, but paid $10 Euro to grab a water taxi there. The mussels were out of this world as well as the octopus and this spot was a GEM! Super low key and relaxed and an overall good time. Definitely one of my top recommendations of the trip. We ended up meeting a few other couples there and hung out a bit and then grabbed a drink together at Franco’s Bar back in Positano. Franco’s is a wonderful spot to enjoy a drink and watch the sunset. It has a gorgeous view of the side of Positano, so definitely try and make it there.
For our final night, Matt and I had dinner reservations at La Sirenuse. It was our fanciest meal with incredible service and romantic vibe. Make sure you book in advance because it fills up! We were worried we wouldn’t get in, but the front desk staff at our hotel was incredible and pulled some strings to make it happen. It is a long meal, so make sure you aren’t in a rush. For us, it was the perfect relaxing ending to our evening and time in Positano before we left for Capri the next morning (that post to come).
Overall, Positano was absolutely incredible. Hands down one of my favorite places I have ever been – if you have not been there, hopefully this post will convince you to add it to your travel bucket list!
