The Amalfi Coast has so much to offer!! From amazing architecture, to beautiful coastlines, to delicious food. If you’re looking to get a bit of everything, keep reading on how to spend 4 days on the Amalfi coast!
Best time to visit the Amalfi Coast
The Amalfi Coast is a super popular tourist destination. This means, that during peak season mass tourism is a real problem, and really takes away from the beauty of the place. Therefore, I would highly recommend to avoid the Amalfi Coast during summer. Additionally, I would also avoid public holidays, such as Easter.
The “tourist season” starts at the beginning of April, and roughly lasts until October. That means, that most restaurants, shops and public transportation routes are operating normally during these months.
Late April until Mid-May, as well as Mid-September to Mid-October is probably the best time to visit. Trust me, if you can avoid the crowds, do it!! Your experience will be SO MUCH BETTER.
How to get to the Amalfi Coast from the Napoli Airport
Bus to Sorrento
If you plan on basing yourself in Sorrento, this is the best way to reach your accommodation. There is a direct bus leaving from the Naples Airport to Sorrento city center a couple of times a day. You can check out the timetable and book your tickets here. A one way ticket costs 10 euros.
Train to Sorrento
Should the bus schedule not work for you, your second best affordable option is taking the train. The train to Sorrento leaves from Napoli Centrale, which means you will either have to take a taxi or the airport bus first.
Once you reach Napoli Centrale, there are two kinds of trains going to Sorrento. One of them is a faster tourist train with very few stops. While this is more efficient and comfortable, it is also more expensive. A one way ticket here costs 20 euros.
The local train takes slightly longer, but is a lot more affordable and costs only 5 euros.
I would check the timetable using Google Maps, it worked quite well for us.
Taxi or Rent a Car
This will be your fastest, but also the most expensive option. There are plenty of websites where you can arrange a pickup in advance. I’ve personally used booking.com’s taxi service before and it worked well, so I would recommend doing this.
Where to stay
This is a highly debated topic online, and one that I was researching myself quite intensively before booking our accommodation. My conclusion is the following.
Positano
If money is not an issue, then you should definitely stay in Positano. Positano is located quite centrally on the Amalfi coast, and it’s a great base for exploring both cities to the east and west of Positano. For example, you’ll have an approx. 1h drive to reach Sorrento, and also roughly a 1 hour drive to reach Amalfi. However, I would only recommend this if you have a private driver, or maybe if you rent your own car. If you’re planning on taking the bus, basing yourself in Positano will make things complicated. Buses tend to fill up quickly, and don’t follow a specific schedule. If you want to hop on the bus in Positano, you might be greeted with a full bus that is incapable of taking on more passengers.
Sorrento
This was the case with us. That means we wanted a somewhat affordable hotel, and we wanted to use the public buses. Based on my internet research, we decided to stay in Sorrento, and I am happy to report that I would choose this option again. Sorrento is the starting point for the buses, which means that once you get on the bus, you’ll definitely make it to your destination of choice. It’s also a good starting point for visiting Capri, and the city itself is also really pretty.
If you are also interested in staying in Sorrento, here are some accommodation options:
Budget: Sorrento Deluxe B&B
Mid-range: Sorrento Comfort Rooms con piscina
Luxury: Palazzo Marziale
There are many more smaller towns located along the coast. However, unless you rent a car or have a private driver, I would not recommend staying in these smaller places.
How to get around
By bus
This is by far the cheapest option to get around! There are buses that can take you to all the major tourist towns along the coast, and even up to Ravello or the starting point of the Path of the Gods up in the mountains.
You can either buy single rides, or 24 hour tickets. A single ticket will cost anywhere between 2-4 euros, depending on the distance travelled. A 24h ticket is 10 euros.
For more information on the ticket prices and timetable check out this website here.
By car
Renting a car will give you full flexibility for your sightseeing. However, be prepared to drive along very narrow and winding streets, with some more or less aggressive local drivers. I also need to mention that parking is notorious on the Amalfi Coast, and also ridiculously expensive.
Private Driver
If I had the money, I would have loooooved this option. There are plenty of operators that offer private tours for the day, which basically means you will have a dedicated driver at your disposal. This gives you full flexibility over your time, without the hastle of looking for parking…
By boat
I would highly recommend to take a boat ride for at least one part of your journey. There are multiple ferries running between Amalfi and Positano, for example. I personally know of this ferry company, but if you go down to the port in Positano/Amalfi you might find other offers as well.
Here’s the perfect 4 day itinerary
Day 1
9 am – Bus to Positano
If you’re like me, then your main motivation for visiting the Amalfi Coast is all the pictures you’ve seen of Positano! Hence, this is where you are headed first!
As I’ve mentioned, buses tend to get crowded quite fast. Therefore, I would highly recommend to start your day as early as possible, to avoid the crowds as best as possible. The bus ride will take approx. 1 hour. Make sure to get a seat on the righthand side, which offers you better views of the sea and the coast.
10 am – Explore Positano
Now that you’ve made it, it’s time to explore the city. Here are some things you shouldn’t miss:
- Take a picture on your way down with the famous colourful hill in the background
- Visit the ceramics shops and buy something lemon themed as a souvenir
- Chill, swim and take a ton of pictures by the Spiagga Grande
- Have a limoncello Spitz on the beach
- Check out the Chiesa di Santa Maria Assunta church
- Have the black pasta at Chez Black
- Go on a boat tour to see Positano from the water
4 pm – Ferry back to Sorrento
After the long bus ride to reach Sorrento, take the luxury and return to Sorrento by ferry. Not only will this be a more pleasant journey, but it will also give you the opportunity to see Positano from a water perspective.
If ferries should not be available (in early summer 2023 the port is being renovated!!!!), you can still opt for the bus. In this case I would definitely not wait to take the last bus back!
Once you arrive back in Sorrento, spend the rest of the evening exploring the city.
8:30 pm – Dinner at master hosts
My boyfriend and I were traveling somewhat on a budget. Hence after our lunch splurge in Positano, we wanted to find a more affordable place for dinner. And by chance we came across this gem of a restaurant called Master Hosts. When we arrived, the restaurant was buzzing with locals! You want to know why? 5 euro pizzas!! For 8 euros you could get a meal, including a limoncello and soft drink! What a steal, truly.
Step count day 1: 16’379 steps
Day 2
9 am – Bus to Amalfi, then Ravello
Today’s first stop is Ravello. Again, I would recommend to get on the bus in Sorrento as early as possible, since you have a long drive ahead of you. It’ll take approx. 2 hours to reach Amalfi. In Amalfi, you’ll need to change onto another bus (there are signs immediately after you get off the bus indicating where you need to go). This ride will take another 30 minutes.
12:00 pm – Visit Ravello
Unlike Positano or Amalfi, Ravello sits high up in the mountains. The vibe is completely different, with a lot of stone structures. I might of course be completely wrong, but it was giving medieval vibes in my opinion – in a good way haha!
So things you might want to visit while you’re here:
- Villa Cimbrone
- Villa Rufolo (I would personally choose one of the two)
2 pm – Lunch at Trattoria Pizzeria Cumpa’ Cosimo
To my surprise, i felt like there are not too many restaurants to choose from in Ravello. Because it started raining quite heavily we had to quickly find refuge in a restaurant close to us. We found Trattoria Pizzeria Cumpa’ Cosimo and we really had a lovely lunch there. The baked macaroni with meatballs are delicious!
3 pm – Walk down to Amalfi
Now, this might be a controversial step in the itinerary that will not be for everyone. But because we REALLY didn’t want to wait around for a bus to eventually come around, we decided we will walk back down to Amalfi. This turned out to be one of the best things during our trip! The walk is roughly about an hour long, and you just get to enjoy the views of the Amalfi coast without any of the tourists!
Along the way, we also passed by Atrani, which is definitely worth a stop as well!
4 pm – Explore Amalfi
You’ve made it to Amalfi! Personally, after Positano, Amalfi really didn’t blow me off my feet. Nevertheless, here are some things you should definitely not miss:
- Admire the Duomo di Amalfi
- Get lemon sorbet inside a real lemon (there are tons of shops that sell this, just follow the crowd!)
- Spend some time looking at the different scenes at the De Cape ‘e Ciucci Fountain Presepe (Nativity Fountain)
Once you feel like you’ve had enough of the city, take the bus back to Sorrento 🙂 As I’ve mentioned many times before, don’t wait to take the last bus, you WILL regret it!!
Step count day 2: 18’793 steps
Day 3
10 am – Ferry to Capri
Today you’ll be leaving mainland Italy to explore the nearby island of Capri! As the whole Amalfi Coast, Capri is another popular escape for the rich and famous! As always, I’d recommend to get on a Ferry quite early, to beat at least some of the crowds! A return ticket costs approx. 40 euros. However, since there are so many (large) ferries every day, I’d recommend to get a one-way ticket first, so that you are flexible in your return time. You can literally walk up the ticket booth and get any ticket, from what I can tell all tickets are for all ferry companies. At least in the off season this is the case!!
The ferry will take you to the Marina Grande. From there, I would recommend to take the funicular to reach the city of Capri. A one-way ticket only costs 2 euros 🙂
11 am – Explore Capri
Once you are up, just forget about everything for a while and just wander the streets as you feel fit. There are several smaller and larger streets, with all kinds of different shops and cafés. Once you’re done with that, here are some more specific things that you might want to look up and also visit:
- Arco Naturale
- Giardini di Augusto (for stunning views of the Via Krupp and the famous Faraglioni)
- The Capri Rooftop bar for some slightly overpriced cocktails but with STUNNING views
I would recommend to hold off with lunch until you reach Anacapri, which is your next stop!
1:30 pm – Take the bus to Anacapri
The bus to Anacapri departs very close to where the funicular station is. Hence, you just need to return to where you initially came from. The bus ticket is again super cheap, I thinkit was even less than 2 euros. The drive will take around 15 minutes.
Anacapri is often considered the “little sister” of Capri. But personally, I almost preferred the vibe in Anacapri. There are slightly less people here, and the whole city is a little less pretentions and flashy.
Once you arrive, you will immediately see tons of restaurants. We decided on Casa Orlandi Ristorante e pizzeria, which drew us in with all the colourful tables outside. I would hiiiiighly recommend this place, the pizza was some of the best I’ve ever had! You’ll also see tons of people drinking something out of humongous lemons. For the pictures and the vibe, get one as well. It’s a limoncello spritz inside and big enough to share 🙂
If you’re looking for something a little more fancy, we came across a restaurant called La Zagara that also looked STUNNING.
3 pm – Take the chairlift up to Monte Solaro
This is such a unique and cool experience! The chairlift taking you up to Monte Solaro (the highest point of Capri island), is a one seater! A ONE SEATER! How fun is that?
The ride will give you insane views over the ocean and the city of Anacapri. At the top, you can walk around a bit and enjoy the scenery. In the distance, you’ll even get another glimpse of the Faraglioni.
There’s also a café at the top, in case you want to get a drink 🙂
4 pm – Walk back to Marina Grande
Once you’re back down in Anacapri, you can either take the bus back to Marina Grande, or (surprise surprise!) you can walk back. The walk gives you again nice views of everything, and gives you a bit of a rest from all the tourist crowds. The walk is approx. 30 minutes and is all downhill!
Once in Marina Grande, it’s time to take the ferry back to Sorrento.
6:30 pm – Sunset in Sorrento
On your last evening in Sorrento, you have to see the sunset! Our favourite place to watch the sunset was at Villa Comunale di Sorrento, which has a very large viewing platform and a little park facing the ocean. If you feel like getting a drink, there is also a casual café right there on the terrace, we loved it here!
Step count day 3: 24’582 steps
Day 4
If your flight is departing late in the afternoon or at night, you still have a whole day at your disposal! I suggest to visit Pompeii during this time, since you will be heading towards Naples anyhow and Pompeii is right on the way.
We went there by train. Once again, you can either take the tourist train (approx. 20 euros) or the local train (approx. 5 euros). The ride takes maybe 30 minutes, and the museum entrance is right by the train station. The entry costs approx. 20 euros.
They do offer luggage storage, in case you want to put something away.
The amount of time you have to explore this fascinating city will depend on your departure time. We managed to see everything in about 2 hours, albeit rushing a little bit.
I think retrospectively I would opt for a guided tour of some sorts, since there is so much history here and it is a shame if you don’t hear about it from an expert.
Warning: The local trains also tend to fill up quickly and are often delayed. If you need to catch a plane, make sure to leave plenty of time for getting to the airport!!!
Step count day 4: 15’931 steps
This is how I would recommend to spend 4 days on the Amalfi Coast! If you’re wondering what kind of budget you need for this trip, check out this post! Let me know your thoughts in the comments below, I’d love to chat!!