The Towns of the Amalfi Coast

Thirteen comuni sit on this coast, west to east from Positano to Vietri sul Mare, and one of them — Tramonti — is not on the water at all. They are listed here in the order the coast road takes them, with the same four facts for each so you can compare them at a glance.

What grows on those terraces, and why the pergolas are there at all, is on the food and wine page. The one thing the table cannot show is the vertical. Ravello and Scala sit hundreds of metres above the sea with no direct route up from it, Tramonti is behind the mountain altogether, and the rest are wedged into ravines at sea level. That is why an itinerary that looks reasonable on a map takes twice as long as you expect — the coast map sets the geography out properly.

Positano — the town that is all steps

The westernmost town on the coast and the one on every postcard: houses in pink, ochre and cream stacked up a ravine, with the majolica dome of Santa Maria Assunta at the bottom of them.

What you see: The Spiaggia Grande and its boats, the church and its dome, the lane of Via Positanesi d'America cut into the rock, and the smaller Fornillo beach round the headland.

How long you need: Two hours to walk down and back up; half a day to swim as well.

Getting there: Boat departures from Spiaggia Grande, buses on the SS163 above, and about 45 minutes from Sorrento in light traffic.

Praiano — the sunset town between the two

A quieter village strung along the road between Positano and Amalfi, without a single centre and with a west-facing aspect the others do not have.

What you see: Marina di Praia, a cove at the foot of a gorge with a few boats in it; the beach at La Gavitella, which faces west and therefore keeps the sun longest; and the ridge path above the town.

How long you need: An hour on the way past, or a whole afternoon at La Gavitella.

Getting there: On the SS163, and served by boat from Positano and Amalfi in season.

Furore — the town with no centre, and its fjord

Furore is scattered up the mountainside with no piazza to speak of, and it is famous for something at sea level instead.

What you see: The Fiordo di Furore: a narrow inlet under a stone bridge, with a fishermen's beach at the back of it. Every boat tour on this coast slows down here.

How long you need: Twenty minutes from a boat; longer if you stop to swim.

Getting there: The inlet is under the SS163 bridge; the village itself is up the mountain road behind it.

Conca dei Marini — and the Grotta dello Smeraldo

A small comune between Furore and Amalfi, built around a cove and a headland.

What you see: The Grotta dello Smeraldo, a sea cave lit an odd green from below, reached by lift from the road or by boat from the water.

How long you need: Twenty to thirty minutes for the grotto, plus the queue in high season.

Getting there: The grotto's entrance is on the SS163 and by tender from the sea; the fee is paid on the spot and is not part of any tour fare here.

Amalfi — the old capital, and the flattest town on the coast

The town the coast is named after: population 4,611, six metres above the sea, and the seat of a republic that governed itself from 839 to 1073.

What you see: The cathedral of Sant'Andrea, 11th century, its nave and two aisles divided by twenty columns and holding relics brought from Constantinople in 1206; the Chiostro del Paradiso beside it; the paper museum up the Valle dei Mulini; and the medieval Arsenal on the seafront.

How long you need: Two hours for the Duomo, the square and lunch; half a day with the paper museum.

Getting there: The hub of the ferry network in season, on the SS163, and the departure pier for several boat tours.

Atrani — the smallest comune in Italy

Round the headland from Amalfi and ten minutes' walk away, Atrani covers 0.12 square kilometres, which makes it the smallest comune in the country by area. Its population was 832 in 2020 and it has been documented since 596.

What you see: One piazza opening straight onto a beach, the arches of the coast road overhead, and a set of stairs going up into the Valle del Dragone.

How long you need: Half an hour, and worth it precisely because the coaches do not stop.

Getting there: Walk from Amalfi in ten minutes along the shore road.

Ravello — 350 metres up, and worth the climb

The hill town above Amalfi, at 350 metres, with about 2,500 inhabitants and a reputation out of all proportion to its size.

What you see: Villa Rufolo, built in 1270, whose garden Richard Wagner visited in 1880 and took for Klingsor's in Parsifal; Villa Cimbrone and its Terrace of the Infinite; and the Ravello Festival, which has run since 1953 in Wagner's honour.

How long you need: Two hours for both villas and the square; an evening if there is a concert.

Getting there: Twenty-five minutes up the valley road from Amalfi, by bus, taxi or tour vehicle. There is no way up from the sea.

Scala — the oldest settlement, facing Ravello

Across the Dragone valley from Ravello and generally held to be the oldest settlement on this coast.

What you see: A quiet piazza, a Romanesque cathedral, and the view back at Ravello from the other side of the gorge — which is the view Ravello itself cannot have.

How long you need: An hour, and almost nobody else there.

Getting there: Above Amalfi on the Ravello road; the same bus serves both.

Minori — the Roman villa and the pastry

A flat-bottomed town on a small bay east of Atrani, with a beach that fills with Italians rather than coaches.

What you see: The remains of a first-century Roman maritime villa, a broad seafront, and the pasta and pastry the town is known for locally.

How long you need: An hour, or a whole lazy afternoon on the beach.

Getting there: On the SS163 and served by the seasonal ferries.

Maiori — the long beach

The next bay east, and the town with by far the widest beach on the coast, rebuilt after a flood in the 1950s and consequently more modern-looking than its neighbours.

What you see: A kilometre of sand, a promenade, and a hillside of lemon terraces behind.

How long you need: Half a day if you came to swim; twenty minutes if you did not.

Getting there: On the SS163, with ferries in season and boat pickups from the tourist port.

Tramonti — the coast's vineyards, inland

The one comune of the thirteen that is not on the water: Tramonti sits behind the ridge in the Lattari mountains, spread across thirteen hamlets.

What you see: Old vines — some ungrafted — and the Tintore di Tramonti grape, which is grown almost nowhere else and gives its name to a Costa d'Amalfi subzone.

How long you need: Half a day, and it needs a car or a tour.

Getting there: Up the mountain road from Maiori, or over the pass from the Naples side.

Cetara — anchovies, and Italy's first DOP fish sauce

A working fishing village near the eastern end, with a fleet that still goes out and a product nowhere else has.

What you see: Colatura di alici, the amber sauce pressed from salted anchovies, which in October 2020 became the first Italian fishery product to be granted DOP status.

How long you need: An hour and a plate of spaghetti.

Getting there: On the SS163 near Vietri, and served by ferry in season.

Vietri sul Mare — the ceramics town and the eastern gate

The last comune before Salerno, and the coast's gateway from the east.

What you see: Hand-painted ceramics in every shop window, a dome tiled in the same glaze, and the first view of the coast for anybody arriving from Salerno.

How long you need: An hour, usually at the start or the end of a day.

Getting there: Four kilometres from Salerno and the closest town on the coast to a railway station.

Which of them to give your day to

If you have one day, the standard answer is Positano, Amalfi and Ravello, because they are the three that most repay a short visit and every road tour runs between them. If you have been before, swap one of them for Atrani, Scala or Cetara, all of which the coaches pass. If you are on the water, the towns you actually get ashore in are decided by the boat, so read the itinerary before the price.

The one walk everybody asks about

The Path of the Gods runs about 7.8 kilometres from Bomerano, in Agerola, at roughly 635 metres, down to Nocelle at about 430 metres, along the ridge above Praiano and Positano. From Nocelle you either take the local bus down into Positano or you walk the staircase, which is over 1,500 steps. It is the single best view of this coast that does not involve a boat.

Days that reach the most towns

Day Tour to Positano, Amalfi & Ravello from Sorrento

Positano, Amalfi and Ravello with a guide and a boat leg in between.

From $109 per person

Check Availability

Amalfi Coast Shared Small Group Tour from Sorrento

The same three towns in a group of eight, with two full hours in Ravello.

From $112 per person

Check Availability

Private Amalfi Coast Boat Trip from Positano, Praiano or Amalfi

Your own boat, and a pier of your choosing between Positano and Salerno.

From $1,053 per group, up to 5

Check Availability

Comparing Amalfi Coast day trips town by town takes about a minute, and the full list is on Amalfi Coast Italy Tours.