Traveling to the Almafi Coast together was one of our pre-baby bucket list items. While we didn’t necessarily expect it to be a babymoon, it was an incredible trip and we loved every minute. After our original cruise plans got derailed, we ended up keeping our flight to Barcelona, spending 3 nights there, 3 nights in Positano and 2 nights in Capri.
We flew from Barcelona to Naples on Sunday morning, despite a 90 minute delay after boarding (super fun in the middle seat), we got to Naples around 1:15 in the afternoon. I had booked an excursion through Sorrento Top Excursion for later in the week, and the owner emailed to see if we needed a transfer to our hotel from the airport. I decided to take him up on it, since the train to bus to bus route seemed like a lot of transferring and coordination. We stepped off the plane and Giovanni was there waiting. Definitely a good call to splurge on car service (which was the same cost as a taxi). We hit a bit of traffic but still made it to Positano in an hour and a half.
We stayed at the Hotel Marincanto…and oh my god, it was amazing! It had the most stunning views of the sea and the cliffs, plus it’s the only hotel with private beach access. I came across the hotel via We Are Travel Girls blog, and I can’t thank them enough for the recommendation. It was incredible! It’s set on a hill about a 10 minute walk from the center of town, which makes it a bit quieter and also enhances the views.
It was basically an apartment (it actually had TWO bathrooms) minus the kitchen. But the best part was the terraces, we spend on them a ton of time enjoying the great views!
Second to the terraces was the jetted spa tub. Amazing! I need one in my next home.
Positano is relatively small, but it has a lot to offer, including great restaurants. We had some truly amazing pizza while we were there. My favorite was from Buca di Bacco, which seemed like a touristy place on the beach, but ended up being delicious. After ordering two pizzas for our first lunch, we knew to order a salad and share a pizza moving forward. The pizzas on the Almafi Coast are large (and pricey).
We had dinner at La Sponda our first night. It’s in the fanciest hotel on the island, Le Sirenuse. The atmosphere was beautiful with plants and candles (over 400!) covering every inch of the romantic space.
This is a just a small sample of what we had…
Amuse bouche – shrimp and ricotta on toast
The chef’s play on pasta carbonara (also complimentary)
Lobster spaghetti
Strawberry and gelato – yum
If you’re in Positano and want to splurge on a special dinner, I definitely recommend La Sponda, it has to be one of the most romantic restaurants around.
The breakfast at our hotel was wonderful. While it was on the chilly side a few mornings, when it was warm enough to sit outside, it was spectacular.
Most days we wandered the streets of Positano, enjoying the hills, shops, beach and hiking trails along the sea.
Enjoying afternoon espressos or hot chocolate
I even got a pair of handmade sandals!
Our other top restaurant pick was Max. The food was excellent! Definitely the best gnocci I’ve ever had. It really exceeded my expectations.
We booked a day tour that picked us up at our hotel and took us to Sorrento. We spent some time wandering the streets and doing some shopping. Then we went to Mt. Vesuvius! The hike to the crater was short, but tough! It’s so amazing to me that this is an active volcano that has exploded multiple times. It’s incredible that people live so close to it!
Next up was lunch at a winery. The wines in this area are planted in volacanic soil, so they take on ashy, minerally undertones. Generally, wines from Vesuvius are called Lacryma Christi. I had researched a different vineyard for our lunch, but our guide and driver suggested Sorrentino Vini as it was often less crowded. I’m so glad he suggested the change, as Sorrentino was fabulous. We were in for way more food (and wine) than we expected. Despite being hungry upon arrival, we were stuffed when we left.
First up was an antipasto plate, paired with their sparkling Lacyma Christi. I did try a sip of each wine, except the dessert wine. There was so much food to offset the ounce or two I consumed that I wasn’t worried about it in the least. I haven’t missed alcohol at all in everyday life, but being on vacation makes a glass of wine much more enticing.
Up next was a giant plate of pasta. So simple, but so so so very delicious. The tomato sauce was so fresh, I could have eaten it out of the pot. The next two courses were paired with red wines-sorry I don’t have more of a description.
While I was basically past the point of no return after the pasta, the next course was lovely, provolone with honey and walnuts and eggplant parmesan.
And finally a cake filled with apricot grown on the vineyard. This came with a dessert wine.
Our last stop of the day was Pompeii. I had been there once when I was 15, and it was just as impressive as I remembered. We didn’t leave much time to explore and we both would love to go back with hours to explore and wander the uncovered city.
The next day we said a sad goodbye to Positano and hopped on the hydrofoil (fast ferry) to Capri.
Our hotel, Relais Maresca, was steps from the port in Marina Grande. While this isn’t the prettiest area of Capri, it actually worked out well since we were there at the very start of the season and a things in Capri Town and Ana Capri shut down on the early side. It was also very close to the buses, taxis and the funicular (gondola). If we had stayed more than two nights and at a slightly busier time of year, we likely would have stayed in main area of the island, Capri Town.
April is apparently the first month of the “summer” season. During the day, Capri is packed with people there for day trips, but at night it’s actually quite quiet in early April. In fact, a lot of the restaurants I wanted to try were still closed or only open for lunch.
We started our day by venturing to town. I had forgotten how many high end designer stores there are in the immaculate center of Capri. It’s like Madison Ave to the umpteenth degree. All the white buildings flanked by beautiful flowers are stunning.
Our taxi driver had given us good directions to Villa Verde, which was one place I wanted to try, as per Kelly Golightly’s recommendation. It was delicious, although sadly I don’t have any photos. It was also on the quieter side for lunch, whereas a lot of other areas of Capri were packed.
After lunch, we took a long walk along the seaside paths. There are several paths that you can walk or hike on for hours and hours, and they all offer sweeping views of the seas along flower lined paths.
After heading back to the hotel to relax for a bit, we headed out to the Capri Wine Hotel. We had seen good reviews of this when were looking at hotels and had almost stayed there. The staff could not have been more welcoming and accommodating. They gave us our choice of three seating options, near the wine bar, under a covered patio, or in the garden overlooking the water. We went with the garden. We were lucky that while it was overcast most days of our trip, it was always pleasant to be outside (especially with a light jacket) and we managed to never get any rain.
Frank enjoyed a flight of wines and we shared an antipasto platter. Talk about cheese boards, this was a work of art!
The next day was a special one because Frank’s dad was meeting up with us. His cruise ship was docked in Naples for the day.We could see his ferry pull in from our balcony and quickly met up with him and hopped in a taxi to town.
We wandered the streets and showed him the height and sights. After that we took another taxi to Ana Capri and spent a good deal of time exploring. We had a lunch reservation at Da Gelsomina. It’s basically on the edge of the island, so they have a shuttle that picks you up from the town center. Like the Capri Wine Hotel, the hospitality they showed was incredible. For a place that must get tired of constant tourists, we really felt the Italian hospitality, the owner told us all about the wineyards, the winemaking and the restaurant.
We ordered quite a bit of food, which was being made in the kitchen by his mother-in-law, all while enjoying great views of the vineyards.
I had the zucchini and squash blossom pasta and it was amazing.
After lunch, we were encouraged to walk through the gardens to the end of the island. The walk was welcome after all the food! Then they shuttled us back to town, where we were able to catch a bus back down the island.
For our final dinner in Italy, we selected a place that had been highly recommended by locals, Verginiello. We were happy we made a reservation because this seem to guarantee us a window seat. This restaurant was probably one of the few where we were far outnumbered by Italians. I actually think we were the only Americans in the room! All around us, large parties enjoyed family style platters of delicious food and bottles and bottles of wine. It felt like a real life Olive Garden commercial. While it wasn’t the most glamorous restaurant we ate in, it was probably the most authentic.
I couldn’t leave Italy without one last pizza…and it may have been the best of all.
Heaven.
La Dolce Vita! I hope to come be able to visit again!
Recommendations for Positano and Capri
Ideal time to visit: late April, May, early June – the weather will be nice enough that you can still enjoy a beach day or two, but you’ll miss the crushing crowds and brutal heat of July and August. My first trip was in July and it was 100 degrees every day and so crowded you could barely move.
Be prepared for high prices: Capri and Positano were pricey. Restaurants in the most touristy areas charge covers for you to sit down. Also check to see if servicio (tip) is already included, so you don’t pay gratuity twice. From my research, if tip isn’t included around 10% is generally fine.
To Do:
Stroll the streets, shop the shops, wander down the narrow alleys and take advantage of the beautiful hiking paths along the sea. The more hills you climb, the more gelato you can eat!
Have lunch on the beach. If you’re a beach person, you’ll be able to rent a chair and umbrella at any of the beaches.
Take home a local product, whether it be linen, handmade sandals or a lemon product –perhaps limoncello!
Day Trip, schedule a day to visit one of the other other islands or towns along the Almafi Coast. Check out the castles and galleries in Naples. Climb Mt. Vesuvius and have lunch on a vineyard. Explore Pompeii or Herculean. I recommend Sorrento Top Excursions!
Restaurant/Drink Recommendations:
Positano: Max, Buca de Bacco, Chez Black and La Sponda
Capri: Villa Verde, Capri Wine Hotel (for drinks and apps),Da Gelsomina, Verginiello. I really wanted to try Da Paolina, but it wasn’t opening for another week.
Hotels
Whereever you stay, make sure you have a water view.
Positano: Hotel Marincanto
I’m in the third trimester! I’m excited, but surprised by how quickly time has passed. I probably won’t be saying that a few months from now!
I had the short ribs for dinner, which were served with polenta. Roasted, caramelized vegetables with tender short ribs is pure comfort food for me.
Since all food was included and you could order as much as you wanted, we ordered the cauliflower steak with lentils as a side to share.
While it doesn’t photograph well, this was amazing, so many great textures and flavors! I’ve never been able to make a good cauliflower steak at home, I don’t know how they do it!
After that I enjoyed the paparadelle pasta with lobster.
To finish everything off, I had a chocolate cookie gelato.
I also had one of these edammame dumplings.
And a few pieces of caprese flatbread.
It was a wonderful weekend and I was sad when it came to an end. Woodloch ended up being perfect because there was time to relax and enjoy great spa treatments, and there was also plenty to do. Actually there were more activities I wanted to try than we could even fit in our schedule. Plus, the food ended up being great and quite plentiful!
