The Amalfi Coast Travel Guide

When it’s time for a break from Italy’s art museums, Roman ruins, and churches filled with Old Masters paintings, sunseekers flock to the Amalfi Coast to hobnob with the glitterati in Positano, drink in the maritime memories of the proud old republic of Amalfi, and get lost in the fragrant hilltop gardens of Ravello. These pastel fishing villages cling to hillsides or lie in deep green valleys, strung along a dramatic coastline of plunging cliffs connected by the breathtaking Amalfi Drive: a gravity-defying thrill ride of a road stretching from the Bay of Naples to the Gulf of Salerno.

The beauty of southern Italy’s Amalfi Coast is legendary, and has inspired artists, writers, and such illustrious musicians as Richard Wagner. And it’s little wonder why: Here, vibrant, village-strewn cliffs jut into the sea. During the summer, notes of lemon hang in the air and festivals enliven hamlets along the drive from the Bay of Naples to the Gulf of Salerno, making it the ideal time to travel to the Amalfi Coast.

Things Not to Miss on the Amalfi Coast

Equal parts culture and nature, this stretch of coastline draws sunseekers to its hilltop gardens, art collections, green valleys, music performances, and the glitzy see-and-be-seen resort town of Positano. Highlights of T+L’s Amalfi Coast travel guide include:

• Touring the Villa Cimbrone
• Museo Correale (Neapolitan arts housed in an 18th-century villa)
• The Sant’Antonino Festival
• Sagra del Tonno
• Africana Club (fish swim beneath its glass dance floor)
• Shopping at Antonello della Mura
• Touring Duomo

When To Visit the Amalfi Coast

Spring is the best time to visit the Amalfi Coast. July and August are high season for Amalfi Coast travel; temperatures can creep quite high and parking can be a challenge. Fall (especially November) and winter are rainy. The Ravello Festival, an annual arts and music festival, takes place throughout the summer in the town of Ravello.