Buy the National Geographic Traveler: Naples & Southern Italy guidebook The road along the Amalfi Coast is one of Italy's loveliest but also one of its busiest, at least in summer. It is also often tortuous and hair-raising, the price for sublime views being numerous switchbacks and plunging drops to the sea, often with only flimsy-looking roadside barriers between you and oblivion. Writer John Steinbeck and his wife Elaine Scott described a ride along the road in 1953, when they "lay clutched in each other's arms, weeping hysterically," as their driver guide, Signor Bassani, one hand on the wheel, blithely regaled them with tales of the region's history.
As ever here, try to travel in the off-season (April-May or September-October) and avoid morning, lunchtime, and evening rush hours. Allow plenty of time to explore the smaller roads at the peninsula's westernmost tip and the mountain roads that climb from the coast. Note, too, that although the drive may seem relatively short, the many bends and switchbacks make it feel longer. The best bet is to break the drive with overnight stays or allow plenty of stops for exploration en route.
Start at Sorrento (1), a genteel town of sedate hotels popular with families and mostly British and German visitors on package tours. Although larger and less dramatic than towns on the peninsula's southern coast, it makes a good, homey, and less expensive base for exploring the region than Amalfi, Ravello, or Positano. The main things to see are the cloister of San Francesco(Piazza San Francesco Saverio Gargiulo); the Museo Correale di Terranova(Via Correale 48, tel 081 878 1846, closed Tues. & p.m. daily), a small villa museum of local art and artifacts; and the Museo-Bottega della Tarsia Lignea(Via San Nicola 28, tel 081 877 1942, closed Mon.), devoted to a large private collection of intarsia (inlaid wood) furniture. Contact the visitor center (Via Luigi de Maio 35, tel 081 807 4033, www.sorrentotourism.com) for further information.
Leave Sorrento not on the main SS145 highway, but on the minor coastal road that leads to Massa Lubrense, where you can pick up the little road and its spurs that provide access to Punta Campanella, the Sorrentine Peninsula's ruggedly spectacular western tip. Compared to much of the coast, this is beautiful, empty, and mostly undeveloped country, all lemon trees, olive groves, sea views, and coastal trails.
The road out of Sorrento leads first past the villages of Capo di Sorrento and an attractive turnoff right (north) down to the sandy beach at Marina di Puolo. Once in Massa Lubrense (2), enjoy the view of Capri and the Bay of Naples from the belvedere in Largo Vescovado and drop into the town's visitor center (Viale Filangieri 11, tel 081 533 9021, closed Sun. Nov.-March & Sun. p.m. April-Oct.) for details of the 20 or more marked and maintained hiking trails on and around Punta Campanella.
By car, continue on the road above the coast past the hamlet of Marciano, taking the dead-end road just before Termini to Punta Campanella (3), named after its 1335 watchtower and bell (campana), once rung to warn of imminent pirate attack. The cape offers more delightful views of Capri. Return to the Termini road, pausing at Termini itself—a panoramic hamlet perched on a natural terrace at 1,059 feet (323 meters)—and then perhaps take the twisting right-turn diversion (5.5 miles [9 kilometers] round-trip) just beyond the village to the largebeach and burgeoning resort at Marina del Cantone. En route you pass through Nerano, where an hour's hike on local Trail 39 (from the church) takes you to the Baia di Ieranto, a stunning sandy bay otherwise accessible only by boat.
Retrace your tracks to Termini and drive onward (east) to Sant'Agata sui Due Golfi (4), a village that, as its name suggests, commands views over two gulfs (due golfi): those of Naples to the north and Salerno to the south. The best views are from the roof terrace of the convent of Il Deserto(irregular hours, usually closed a.m. daily, donation), about half a mile (1 kilometer) to the northwest. If the convent is closed, take the little road in the opposite direction to Torca, a hamlet with more glorious panoramas and a trail (No. 37) to the cove below at Marina di Crapolla.
Sant'Agata marks the start of the Costiera, or coast road proper, the SS145 (Strada Amalfitana), originally built in 1853 on the orders of the Bourbon ruler Ferdinand II to link the town with Salerno. Before this date, local villages and hamlets were accessible only by boat or mule-track.
From Sant'Agata follow the SS145 then the SS163 to Positano (5), with views en route of the tiny islands of Li Galli (the Cockerels). The islets were once known as Le Sirenuse (the Sirens), after the notion that they were home to the Sirens of Homeric myth.
Beyond Positano, the road—now likely to be busier—stays closer to the coast, passing through Vettica, whose church, San Gennaro, has the colorful tiled dome and bell tower typical of churches in the region (the church square offers good views). Then comes Praiano, a quieter alternative to Positano, which marks the start of the road's most rugged reaches.
You'll reach some spectacular scenery at the Vallone di Furore, a dramatic gorge that opens to the sea 1.25 miles (2 kilometers) beyond Marina di Praia. A short distance farther is the Grotta dello Smeraldo, or Emerald Grotto, a lesser (but less expensive) rival to Capri's Blue Grotto. The cave, a popular visitor sight, is reached by elevator or steps from the road and parking lot, and then by a short boat ride. It can also be reached on boat tours from Amalfi.
Continuing east, you pass the town of Conca dei Marini and then a junction for the minor road (SS366) north over the mountains to the peninsula's northern coast. You probably won't want to make the entire detour, but if time allows, it is well worth following this steep road through Furore (noted for its wines) and onto the high plateau around Agerola. This is a different world from the coast, a pastoral upland of dispersed hamlets such as San Lazzaro, which offers more magnificent panoramas (make for the ruins of the Castel Lauritano for the best).
Returning to the coast the way you have come, continue east on the SS163 to Amalfi (6), Altrani, and the junction for the SS373 to Ravello (7). If you wish to cut your drive short, continue on the SS373 north from Ravello and loop back to Sorrento (or continue to Naples) via Angri. Alternatively, return to the coast and follow the coast road through Maiori, which has one of the area's largest and most developed beaches, and past the Capo d'Orso. A protected reserve, the cape is one of the loveliest parts of the coast, with a tempting trail to the Capo d'Orso lighthouse and nearby Abbazia di Santa Maria Oleria (also known as the Catacombe di Badia), a rock-cut abbey dating from the tenth century.
The drive then passes Cetara, a town known for its tuna industry, and concludes near Salerno at Vietri sul Mare (8), widely celebrated for its ceramics, available in stores around town, and for the view from the church of San Giovanni Battista.
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