Praiano and Positano
Praiano
During a trip with two of my girlfriends Laura and Hanna we decided to add the Amalfi Coast as a stop. In order to get to the Amalfi Coast though we had to fly into Naples and then hired a driver through Transferrelax (about 40 euros each with tip) to take us to the coast. Everything I had seen online though had been about Positano and where to stay there…and it was all a bit pricey. We were looking for a bit more budget friendly place to stay on the coast and we hit the jackpot when looking in Praiano. La Barbera is the cutest bed and breakfast I have ever seen and had the kindest and most caring staff. I found them through Booking.com (pro tip - if you have an American Airlines account you can book through the airline affiliate link and earn extra miles) and we paid about 200 euros per night. Each room has a breathtaking view of the coast and you can see Positano out in the distance (only a 10-15 minute bus ride or taxi away). For breakfast there was an assortment of freshly made pastries, cheeses, meats (hello give me all the prosciutto and mozzarella!) and fruits. Coffee and espresso drinks were available upon request, to which I ordered a cappuccino each morning to sip while taking in everything. You could also get some refreshing cocktails made at any point throughout the day, which we had a delicious limoncello cocktail after a long afternoon in the sun. The hosts were everything though. They made you feel like family while you were there. Quick little story to show how amazing they were: I accidentally left my sunglasses at the restaurant we ate at the first night and Roberto offered to go to the restaurant to find them, which he did! I just could not get over their generosity.
We went for a drink down by the water, which was about a 10 minute walk from La Barbera, at Trattoria Da Armandino. After a round of Aperol Spritzs, we decided that we needed a little bite to hold us over until dinner, so we also ordered a margherita pizza. The pizza was so-so, tasted probably better than it was due to how hungry we were at that point. After looking around the marina though we decided to go to Il Pirata for dinner. Our table was right on the water, the meal was delicious and the service was great. Laura and I decided to split a seafood pasta dish and a bottle of wine. It was a little on the pricier side, but I thought it was worth it and would go back.
The next day we decided to explore more of Positano and the “beaches” that they had to offer. If you look at my picture below you will see what I mean by that. We walked for about 30 minutes down a bunch of walkways and stairs to sea level at Lido One Fire Beach. We decided that we were not going to stay too long as there were other things that we wanted to fit into our day, so we did not rent a chair. However if you wanted to, it’s only 25 euros to rent a chair, umbrella and towel for the day. After a quick dip in the water we had to hike back up to La Barbera to get ready to head over to Positano.
Positano
Since we stayed in Praiano we had to venture on over to Positano either by taxi or bus. The budget friendly option is definitely to go by bus, which was about 2 euros per person for a round trip ticket. There were little shops throughout Praiano where you could buy a ticket and plenty of bus stops. It was really easy to follow the map and know where to get on and off. If you do not feel like waiting for the bus or are worried that there may be too many people during peak times, you can also take a 10-15 minutes taxi ride. Our bed and breakfast scheduled a taxi for us when we did not want to worry about the bus and it was about 15 euros each way. Anyway, when we took the bus into town we decided to stop at one of the earlier stops before getting into the middle of town so that we could take in this view! It was then only about a 10 minute walk down to the middle of Positano.
After walking around for a little bit and popping into many shops to look around we decided to stop for lunch at Ristorante Buca di Bacco which was right on the water so the views were amazing! I ordered the mussels thinking I would get a little bowl of them…nope. They came out on a GIANT platter with this amazing sauce and bread to dip into the sauce. My mouth is watering thinking about this. Everyone else enjoyed their food as well and it was nice place to sit and enjoy the views of Positano while letting our feet rest for a bit.
After lunch we had to get something sweet. At the bottom of Hotel Covo Dei Saraceni there is a little shop where they serve lemon sorbet in lemons. Now these are not your normal sized lemons by any means. These lemons are large enough to fit two big scoops of lemon sorbet in them. Pretty cool way to enjoy a cold treat on the streets of Positano if you ask me!
Later that evening we headed to Franco’s Bar for some cocktails and gorgeous views before dinner. The seating is limited so we had to wait in line for about 15 minutes before we could be seated. We were worried that we were going to miss the sunset, so be sure to arrive with enough time as it is a popular destination. The cocktails were delicious (I had a bellini) and no more expensive than a cocktail bar in the states. We were able to snap a few shots with the classic Positano landscape in the background before the sun went down and then just enjoyed each other’s company and the music before heading to the beach to eat dinner.
We found our way down to L’Incanto, which was recommended to us by our bed an breakfast hosts. It is located right on the beach, which was about a 10 minute walk from where we were at Franco’s Bar. We ordered the Fritto Misto to share and of course a bottle of wine. I stuck with my seafood theme (I mean how can you not when you are in a place like this!) and ordered the seafood pasta. Everything was amazing and our waiter was so much fun. Definitely recommend and would go again.
We all agreed that this stop on the Amalfi Coast was one of the highlights from our trip. From the best bed and breakfast to the amazing views it really is hard to beat. I hope everyone gets to go experience the Amalfi Coast at some point in their life and if you do, please tag me so I can see any of the recommendations that you used and so I can pretend that I am back there!
Ciao, Madison
