Amalfi Coast Holidays BLOG

Positano is known as one of the most beautiful jewel on the Amalfi Coast.

It is a vertical town where instead of roads visitors explore along steep flights of steps.

It was a relatively poor fishing village during the first half of the 20th century. It began to attract large numbers of tourists in the 1950s, especially after John Steinbeck published his essay about Positano in Harper’s Bazaar in May, 1953.

Steinbeck wrote: “Positano bites deep. It is a dream place that isn’t quite real when you are there and becomes beckoningly real after you have gone.”

Its enchanting position, the beautiful houses and narrow streets give you an idea of Mediterranean harmony and charm. Beloved by artists from everywhere, it has enchanting views, shopping and strolls by the sea. Its wonderful boutiques have made Positano fashion internationally renowned.

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Ravello, concerts, artistic treasures, and fabulous cliffside gardens overlooking the sea.

It is perched on top of the mountain cliff situated above Amalfi and Atrani and is being famous for its breath-taking views.

Ravello natural beauty and ancient monuments are presented at their best in the gardens of Villa Cimbrone and Villa Rufolo. In high season, these gardens are rich in sweet secants of blooming flowers, shadows of flora and perfume of lemons.

The town has served historically as a destination for artists, musicians, and writers. The list of artist that visited Ravello is very long and includes Boccaccio, Wagner, Toscanini, Leonard Bernstein, Rostropovich, Bruno Walter, Mirò, M.C. Escher, Turner (whose Costiera’s paintings are at the Tate Gallery), Ruskin, Forster, D.H. Lawrence (who wrote here many pages of his Lady Chatterley’s lover), André Gide, Virginia Woolf, Paul Valéry, Graham Greene, Tennessee Williams, Rafael Alberti, Sara Teasdale, Gore Vidal, who actually lived in Ravello in a breathtaking villa, ‘the pigeon nest’.

Every year in the summer months, the “Ravello Festival” classical concerts are held in the gardens of Villa Rufolo in honour of Richard Wagner.

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Nestled between the cliffs and the water, two historic seaside towns rich in history and tradition.

“Sweet the memory is to me/Of the land beyond the sea,/ Where the waves and mountains meet; Where amid the mulberry-trees/Sits Amalfi in the heat,/ Bathing ever her white feet/In the tideless, summer seas ...” ( Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Amalfi, 1875 )

Amalfi is the largest town on the coast and is famous for its glorious history as a maritime republic when it rivalled Pisa, Genoa and Venice from the 9th to 11th centuries.

It has some spectacular scenery, and great weather conditions. Anchored to the stair-stepped mountainsides are villas, gardens, convents dating from medieval times, and relics of once-omnipotent ancient Rome. The white, pink and yellow cottages are surrounded by whitewashed courtyards and winding alleys that makes a walking tour a pleasant experience.

Amalfi also has several historical monuments that are worth visiting, such as the cathedral, the old dockyards and the old paper mills where the famous paper of Amalfi was made in the past. Set atop a flight of 62 steps, with a a porch covered in Byzantine-style mosaic, an Arab-Norman cloister dating from 1268, and bronze doors cast in Costantinopoli , the cathedral testifies to the wealth of Amalfi while its trade flourished with Tunis, Tripoli, Algiers and many other ports to the east.

Ships to Positano, Salerno and the island of Capri leave from the harbour. Some boats also offer to take you on a few hour-trip tour of the famous Grotta Smeralda (the green grotto), or to shuttle you to nearby beaches.

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The remains of the ancient Greek town of Paestum are some 40 km south of Erchie.
Take a trip to Paestum to see the Greek temples and taste some of the finest ‘bufala’ mozzarella in the whole of world!

Paestum contains some of the most well-preserved
ancient Greek temples in the world.

After its foundation by Greek colonists under the name
of Poseidonia, Paestum was eventually conquered by the Lucanians and later the
Romans. The Romans gave the city its current name. The ruins of Paestum are
notable for their three ancient Greek temples which are in a very good state of
preservation.

The Temple of Hera, built around 550 BC is the oldest
surviving temple in Paestum. The second temple to Hera also called of Neptune,
was built around 460–450 BC. The third temple is the Temple of Athena. It was built
around 500 BC, and was for some time incorrectly thought to have been dedicated
to Ceres.

On the way to Paestum, it’s well-worth stopping off in the Piana del Sele, where some of the Campania region’s finest dairies are located, and purchase what is likely to be the best mozzarella you’ll ever taste (the Vannulo and Rivabianca dairies are the most famous).

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Pompeii is just half an hour drive from Erchie. To see
all Pompeii main attractions you need to plan at least a four hours excursion.

In the first century the Roman Empire contains many
cities, but none in a more beautiful setting than the cities and towns lining
the Bay of Naples. Among those is Pompeii, a lively town prospering in the
shade of Mt. Vesuvius.

On the 24th of August, 79 A.D., volcanic ash spews
from the mouth of the active volcano. Pompeii disappears from the face of the
earth. Gradually grass and vines cover the land where the town stood. The local
people eventually forget even the name of the buried town. In 1748 Pompeii is
rediscovered, almost intact after 1700 years. After more that two centuries the
excavation of Pompeii still goes on.

To date, about three-fourths of the ancient town has
been excavated. Pompeii affords researchers and visitors a wonderfully
intricate view of ancient Roman life. Although a quarter of it remains
unexcavated, archaeologists have discovered a wealth of information about
everyday life in Roman times.

The remarkable preservations of the commercial
buildings, the homes, the art, the architecture and even the people themselves,
present the modern world with an unprecedented and unparalleled look at the
details of an ancient Roman town. The charm of these ancient ruins make Pompeii
the most visited archaeological site in the world.

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From the Amalfi Coast, the Island of Capri is just a 35 minute or 50 minute boat ride away depending from where you embark. In the summer months, high speed ferries operate direct from Amalfi and Salerno.

If you want to spend an evening in Capri be aware that public ferries between the island and the mainland do not run after 8pm.

Capri, with its incomparable beauty, is one of the most beloved spots in the world. It enchanted Roman Emperors: both emperors Augustus and Tiberius chose Capri as their island retreat and, to this very day, it is possible to admire the remains of the sumptuous villas built for their vacations on the Isola Azzurra.

Nowadays Capri attracts artists and the international jet set. Capri’s fame as an exclusive destination initiates at the start of the nineteenth century when it was “discovered” by the travelers participating in the Grand Tour. Intellectuals, writers, painters, poets, artists and the wealthy unemployed all traveled to the Isola Azzurra, drawn to Capri by its exquisite beauty and seduced by the hospitable spirit of the islanders. Numerous illustrious names frequently chose the island as their retreat, others were never again to leave.

Visitors to Capri are surprised by the quantity and variety of walking routes on such a small island. Along these pathways, tourists can choose to immerse themselves in the authentic atmosphere of a coastal village, inhabited by fishermen and sailors, explore the marine caves, walk through masses of sheer rock and peer over precipices which drop dramatically into the sea, or stroll through the center of Capri with its ostentatiously luxurious boutiques, elegant hotels, artists studios, churches, and the remains of Roman villas.

A tour around the island of Capri by boat is, without doubt, a unique and truly exhilarating experience. The spectacularly dramatic coast of Capri is characterized by numerous creeks, tiny bays and caves. Capri’s Blue Grotto is known throughout the world for its size, the intense blue tones of its interior and the magical silvery light which emanates from the objects immersed in its waters.

Read more about Capri