After I read Elena Ferrante’s My Brilliant Friend -the whole series, I started dreaming of visiting Naples and the surroundings. The books describe the life of a young girl and her family in Naples. They capture her youth experiences with friends in a way that makes you want to experience it all. If you want to listen to the series, you can have a 45-day free trial on Bookbeat at this link. When I did some research around the area I found Sorrento and Ischia, Amalfi and Positano. We actually did one trip to Naples and Sorrento, so I will write about that later. More recently, we went to the Amalfi Coast. Let me first write a couple of tips about visiting the Amalfi area.
Salerno and Positano
First, flying to Naples might be a better idea. It is closer to the Amalfi coast. However, we found cheaper flights to Rome. We then took the speed train to Salerno. We stayed in Salerno right next to the train station at hotel Plaza. The staff, breakfast, and location were all very good. We took the lovely cruise ship Travelmar from the harbour. We sailed all the way to Positano. We enjoyed the mountain views from the sea. We then spent the day in Positano. We relaxed on the Fornillo Spiaggia, 
This is the smaller beach to the left from the main beach. We also wandered around the beautiful streets. We had lunch paninis in the centre and gelato at the harbour.
Maiori and Minori
After two nights in Salerno we moved to Hotel Pietra di Luna in Maiori. It was easy and very affordable to just take a bus from the railway station. Our partial seaview was wonderful from a little terrace.
The breakfast was lovely with coffee served to the table. We also enjoyed home-made sfogliatelle. My son tried cappuccino. It was not his favourite. So the friendly waiter brought him a steaming cup of hot chocolate. There was something old-school about this 4-star-hotel with the waiters changing their outfits for each serving. The location was right on the beach and it was easy to take the local bus to Amalfi and back.
We enjoyed a lovely little hike on the lemon path from Maiori to Minori. This path is also known as Sentiero dei Limoni 
The hike up the stairs was not bad at all for the footballer of the family. However, it was quite the challenge for the mother in the summer heat. Going down was easier and after enjoying Minori we took the bus back.
Consider staying in quieter places instead of the busy Amalfi and Positano. This is worth it if you want to enjoy spending time more with the locals. This way, you can connect with them rather than fellow tourists. Also, I think renting a car is not necessary. The local buses run so frequently on the coast. Then you don’t have to worry about parking.
Amalfi
One day we took the bus to visit Amalfi. The drive was beautiful with the winding roads. We enjoyed amazing views from the mountains to the sea. The views are dramatic but I find that in Norway you can find equally dramatic sceneries. You can read about our roadtrip to Norway here: Exploring the Norway Fjords. In Amalfi you can visit the Duomo of Sant’ Andrea with its gilded splendor. There are many tourist shops. You can easily spend a day wandering around. Stop for a bite or a drink whenever you like. A couple of years ago, I tried an Aperol Spritz for the first time in Florence. Since everybody was having these Limoncello Spritzes, I had to try one. It is a refreshing drink if you squeeze some extra lemon in it.
Rome
On our way back home,we stopped over in Rome for one night. We took a photo by the Colosseum, Spanish steps, and Trevi fountain. We had a lovely dinner close to our accommodation Roman Terrace. I made a booking for this via Hotels.com. The small hotel was close to the railway station and the metro and we slept well in the air-conditioned room. It was easy to take the train to the airport and make our way back to Finland.
Afterthoughts
I think the best thing about this trip was the “dolce far niente”, in other words, the sweet idleness. Positano and Amalfi were quite crowded with tourists, but we were able to find quieter spots. In Maiori there were plenty of restaurants to choose from for evening meals. The gentle sea breeze and sun made the holiday perfect together with the food and gelato, of course!
Take a look at our Blog Posts for more tips for your travel plans!
As an Amazon and Hotels.com associate I may earn from qualifying purchases.
If you are looking for a seasonal getaway, Hotels.com is offering excellent hotel prices so take a look! Just change the language on the site to your liking and you are all set to browse different hotels. Also if you want to book a cheaper holiday deal you can check out this Traveup link. With Travelup you can save up to 40% + £60 extra with code TU60. This means bookings over £1299. These are affiliate links. I may earn a commission from any qualifying purchases. There is no extra cost to you, so thank you for your support!