Sorrento, Positano and the Amalfi Coast, Italy

Sometimes, the best trips are those that are unplanned. It was my final night in Capri, with 2 more nights remaining on my trip before I had to fly back to South Africa. I was planning on spending those 2 nights in Rome, but the accommodation I wanted  was not available for the first night. So, I started to look at alternatives. To get from Capri to Rome, I would need to return by ferry to Naples on the mainland and then take a train to Rome. I considered staying in Naples for the night, or somewhere close by. I had a look at the ferry schedules in Capri and saw that ferries do travel to Positano and Sorrento. After reading up on the places online (wikitravel) I decided to spend a night in Sorrento and booked my hotel at 2 am before going to bed.

The next morning I asked the receptionist at my hotel whether it would be better for me to take a ferry with my luggage to Positano for the day and then the bus to Sorrento in the evening. She advised that I proceed directly to Sorrento, leave my bags and then buy a return bus ticket to Positano. Good advice indeed! I headed to the port in Capri, and found that there was a fast ferry ready to depart for Sorrento – perfect timing!

At Sorrento port I took a short bus trip to Piazza Tasso (the main square) for +-EUR 1.50.

From Piazza Tazzo, it was a short walk to my B & B / hotel. I found the accommodation on a last minute discount site for EUR 65, and what a great pleasure it was to book into this Michelin Star rated, modern urban-chic designed establishment.

This was the coolest B & B room I have ever seen. The blinds and window on the loft roof could be opened by remote control.

After leaving my bags at the hotel, collecting a bus schedule and receiving plus advice from the friendly English owner of the hotel I headed to the bus station just in time to get a SITA bus to Positano.

The bus afforded me an opportunity to experience the drive on the Amalfi Coast – a breathtaking ride between small coastal towns.

Reaching Positano I was in total awe. This was an amazing town that was built off the side of a mountain.

After a short lunch break, I headed down towards the beach for a swim.

The beach is full of pebbles that were not too kind to my feet but once I got into the water I could enjoy some short calm waves (in relatively deep water).

I took some nice pictures of the beach until it was almost sunset, before deciding to take the bus back to Sorrento for the night.

The bus pickup point is at the top of the cliff, which means a nice long walk uphill. I was glad not to have my luggage with me. From this bus stop, you can head back to Sorrento, or travel to other towns on the Amalfi Coast.

I saw many restaurants in Sorrento offering cooking and pizza baking courses. I did not have time to do any of these courses, but I did eat a pizza that night at one of the restaurants that serves as a cooking school.

There are quite a few flea markets and shops open in Sorrento at night although I did find the prices quite high.

The next morning I took a local train from Sorrento to Naples and purchased a regional train ticket from Naples to Rome. That was about 5 hours of train travel but I did see great scenery on the journey back to Rome.

If you are ever in Italy, it’s easy and worth spending time in the south exploring the towns and cities of Campania. Make a trip there if you can!

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