Campania & Amalfi Coast Sorrento Peninsula

[Pauline]

Summer In Italy had a good article in today’s newsletter about the walking trails on the Sorrento peninsula. Maybe @Valerie wrote it? She recommended this area to me recently as having good walking and being a bit less insane than the Amalfi Coast.

The Summer In Italy Newsletter: The Walking Paths of Massa Lubrense, The Shortest River in Italy

Newsletter about The Walking Paths of Massa Lubrense and The Shortest River in Italy

www.summerinitaly.com

Hiking information:

Trekking in Massa Lubrense - Pro Loco Massa Lubrense

The network of trails that cross the entire territory allows hikers to choose from many trekking options in Massa Lubrense.

www.massalubrenseturismo.it

We’ve stayed in Sorrento but 20 years ago. On day trips recently it seemed very crowded. We’ve stayed in Positano twice and Praiano once. I loved our Amalfi Coast trips but it is difficult to get around there. The buses can be crowded to the point of standing for an hour on a bus racing along winding roads. Driving worked better for us but that is intense too. Ferries are probably a good alternative.

This area suited us better when I was able to walk straight uphill for an hour or more to get to the high level footpaths. Not sure up I am up to that now.

I would love to return to this area. A few days in Naples, a week in the Sorrento/Amalfi Coast area, then down to Basilicata. Travel dreaming!

Any suggestions?

 

[Ian Sutton]

Hi Pauline
Sorrento is the busiest tourist destination on the coast, so not a place that appealed to us. I think there's merit in trying the peninsula and using Sorrento merely as a local convenience (food shopping and maybe some evening meals with the option of a taxi home).

Thoughts for Amalfi coast?
1. Grab the Tippett guide if you don't already have it. Use it in this instance as a way to ensure you have interesting walks on your doorstep, generally not requiring taxi, bus or a huge uphill hike.

2. We've stayed mostly in Ravello, and it's an option worth considering. If you make like easy for yourself by booking a taxi from airport or Napoli itself, then it should be manageable.
- There is a lovely walk, not in the Tippett book, heading inland, following the contours of the hill, along a well maintained wood chip path. As it follows the contours, it avoids the usual plethora of steps, and as it's in woodland it's cool when the weather is hot. I think we saw a single other person in 2 hours walking... and we never reached an end to the path, so you can simply choose when to turn back
- Make use of the varying demand for buses... more people day trip to Ravello than day trip from Ravello, so aim to get the bus back from (say) Amalfi later in the day. I'm not saying it won't be crowded, but it should be less crowded
- Walking down to Amalfi's road tunnel is quite a steep way of doing it, which can (over)exercise the calves. Consider a fast but less steep alternative way down to Minori and hop on the bus to get to Amalfi (after a gelato stop of course). Alternatively for a longer walk, I recall the Valley of the Mills walk wasn't overly steep and it's a lovely walk for the changing scenery.
- Villa Cimbrone is wonderful to wander through, being much more natural than Rufulo's formal gardens.
- The mindset for Ravello has to be relaxation with as much walking as you want, rather than a base from which to 'see everything'. Evenings and mornings in the main square have a wonderful feel and the views can keep me captivated longer than most others.
- Nearby Scala could make a nice alternative, quieter than Ravello, but walkable and on the same bus route.

3. Pogerola was a pleasantly humdrum place we stayed a couple of times, the latter in a modern apartment block we rented via l'altracostiera agency in Amalfi itself. Similar but not as special views, a shallower walk into Amalfi, but also with a frequent bus service that wasn't overcrowded. A place to consider if you want the coast, but a very much less touristy perspective on it. Oddly, the modest-sized supermarket halfway up the bus route was the first place I discovered (wet) smoked mozzarella. Quite impressive that they had something that was still rare in places like Bologna a decade later.

4. Minori (mentioned above) impressed me more than I expected (I expected it to be more like Maiori). Superb location for exploring the coast, but misses out on the calm joy of watching the coast from up high.

5. Food-wise there are great fruits and veggies there, but not sure what the veggie options are like on the menus. Always going to be lots of pasta options, but hopefully good choice on grilled veggies (including local speciality Aubergine / Melanzane) and maybe even some thoughtful veggie dishes. Andrea Pansa in Amalfi should still be the temple to cakes it used to be.

 

[ellen]

One of the walks on my "to do" list is to take the funivia up to Monte Faito, walk around the area, then walk back down to the coast. I'm not home so I don't have access to my book on hikes in the area but I remember reading about them.

Orario Funivia

www.eavsrl.it