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Is a stunning beauty with its steep sloped lemon tree gardens and coloured terrace houses and stunning views and azure sea..
The places, immersed in a charming scenery, have in common a crystal blue sea, wild nature, maiolic dome churches and houses clunged to the rocks.
Fourteen spots in total, each with its traditions and pecularities, worth visiting at least once in a lifetime.
The places, immersed in a charming scenery, have in common a crystal blue sea, wild nature, maiolic dome churches and houses clunged to the rocks. The coast takes its name from Amalfi, since it is positioned in the center, and due to the town’s historical role during the centuries. In the IX century the town, with the rest of the Marine Republics, influenced the Mediterranean’s future. The Dome with its Paradiso Cloister, the Basilica del Crocifisso and the precious Carta d’Amalfi are the main attractions of the place.
The itinerary that starts from Positano with its narrow streets, the clothes boutiques and the beaches, and that then passes through Furore’s Fjord, the Grotte dello Smeraldo at Conca dei Marini, the square in Atrani and the steps in Raito, without mentioning Ravello and the other pearls of the coast, is a continuous of emotions, a journey to discover.
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Sita buses go along the coast from Sorrento to Amalfi and from Amalfi to Salerno. Choose the region “Campania” from the website to find the timetables. Tickets cannot be purchased on board but are very easy to find in bars, newsagents, etc. Many people opt to rent the ubiquitous scooters, which is a indeed a good option, if you have previous experience, otherwise the heavy traffic and narrow roads makes this a bad place to learn.
Most trips to Amalfi are done by boat, commonly people use Pompeii as a transit point, but you can also take ferries from Capri, Salerno and Paestum during the summer months. If you get easily sea sick, or would just rather take the bus, there are regular services by Sita Coach to Amalfi (1h50) about 6 times per day.
Taking your car is discouraged because of the road size and lack of parking. During the summer there may be limitations on the road for tourist buses: e.g. sometimes the road along the coast is one way only for tourism buses from Sorrento to Salerno.
The Amalfi coast is renowned for its diversity; every town has its own character and interesting sites. The most noticeable places to visit on the Amalfi coast are:
– Vietri sul Mare, the gateway to the Amalfi Coast, coming from Salerno, famous throughout the world for the production ofceramics, with its intense and vivid colors, and the beautiful hill towns of Albori and Raito;
– Cetara, a small fishing village, that has become famous over the years for its fishing related products, creating culinary specialties appreciated world-wide, such as the salted anchovy sauce and red tuna, for example;
– Maiori, the ancient Reghinna Major, which, despite the wide promenade and appearance of the new town, hides a very charming old town, made up of narrow streets and alleys, dominated by the imposing castle of San Nicola de Thoro Plano, to the north, and the Collegiate Church of Santa Maria a Mare, to the west;
– Tramonti, a group of villages and districts set among the green mountains, covered withvineyards, away from the clamor of the other coastal countries, well known for its authentic flavors, the excellent wines and dairy products;
– Minori, the ancient Reghinna Minor, with the remains of the Roman Villa of the I century A.D., the magnificent Basilica of Santa Trofimena and the tasty hand-made pasta, gastronomic specialty of the town;
– Atrani, one of the smallest municipalities in Southern Italy, with its picturesque square and the ancient church of San Salvatore de’ Birecto (X century), where during the times of the ancient Maritime Republic of Amalfi, the Dukes (Dogi) received their official investiture;
– Ravello, which, with its breathtaking views, at the top of its 350 meters above sea level, with its beautiful patrician villas (Rufolo and Cimbrone), the cathedral of San Pantaleone and its architectural treasures, have enchanted over the centuries important writers, artists and chiefs of state, such as: Boccaccio, Wagner, DH Lawrence, V. Woolf, Gore Vidal, Ingrid Bergman, Greta Garbo, Humphrey Bogart, JF Kennedy and his wife Jacqueline, and many others;
– Scala, full of fascinating corners over the coastline and important monuments. It is the oldest town of the Amalfi Coast and was the birthplace of Fra’ Gerardo Sasso, founder of the Knights of Malta;
– Amalfi, the first of the four Maritime Republics in Italy, with its imposing Cathedral entitled to St. Andrew, preceded by an imposing staircase, the ancient arsenals of the Republic, the Cloister of Paradise and the Paper Museum, in which tourists and curious can admire the antique methods of production of the precious handmade paper of Amalfi;
– Conca dei Marini, a village overlooking the deep blue sea with the spectacular Emerald Grotto, the scenic church of San Pancrazio, the austere convent of Santa Rosa, perched to the rock, where the famous “sfogliatella Santa Rosa” was realized for the first time;
– Furore, also known as “the town that does not exist”, with its deep fjord characterised by a wild beauty, the “en plein air” murals and the small villages scattered along the slopes of the mountain;
– Praiano, with its narrow streets scented of geraniums, the beach of La Praia, the Saracen towers, the majolica dome of the Church of St. Luca the Evangelist, the impressive Monastery of Santa Maria a Castro and its romantic sunsets, admiring the bay of Positano, the Sorrento Peninsula and the Faraglioni of Capri;
– Positano, the pearl of the Divine Coast, with its typical “Moda Positano” sandals andlinen clothes craft shops, the charm of its old noble palaces, the Church of the Assumption (near which were recently unearthed the remains of a Roman villa) and the charming panorama of the “Li Galli” islands in the background.
The Amalfi Coast seduces its visitors not only for the wonderful panoramas and the intense blue sea, but also for the flavours and tastes of the local traditional gastronomy.Each town and village features typical specialties from the local products.
Scala offers tasty proposals such as: orecchiette pasta and beans, spaghetti with pork blood sauce, spaghetti with nut sauce, fried polenta, tied (in “rezza”) and baked liver with bay leaves, fried broad beans in suet, red marrow and beans, cakes with local chestnuts, “black and white” (marble cake) and tart with pork chocolate (“sanguinaccio”).
Amalfi proposes a memorable hand made pasta, the Scialatielli, a mix of flour, bran, finely cut parsley, pepper and grana cheese, usually served with a fresh cherry tomato sauce with clams, savory chicory soup, chicken broth with cabbage, various vegetables, “pezzenta” (a local spicy salami), rolled pork skin and interiors, profiterole cakes with lemon sauce and lemon cake with different preparations (all flavoured with the famous Sfusato Amalfitano IGP lemons).
The typical dish of Atrani is the “Sarchiapone”, stuffed cylinders of long marrow (a fruit of July), filled with minced meat and cheese and cooked in a rich tomato sauce, the cassata Atranese, the pasticciotto (a delicate short crust pastry cake filled with cream and cherry marmalade) and lemon cake.
Tramonti is famous for specialties with goat meat, served in all kinds of sauces, chiodini mushrooms fried in a corn flour, fresh mozzarella cheese, an excellent pizza (a cultural tradition which the locals have proposed World-wide through its emigrants) and a series of good wines (Tramonti Costa d’Amalfi DOC).
Furore proposes a traditional specialty of squid and potatoes in tomato sauce, and not to miss: a timbale of pork meat and bran, the “caponata” a cold plate of softened bread biscuits called “freselle”, covered with cherry tomatoes, anchovies, aubergines, and other vegetables preserved in olive oil. The final touch is certainly a glass of a good Furore Costa d’Amalfi DOC.
Conca dei Marini is famous for the pennette (pasta) with a cherry tomato “piennolo” sauce, baked rabbit in lemon leaves and the fragrant Santa Rosa sfogliatella cake, a product with local origins created in the ‘ 600 by the nuns of the Convent of Santa Rosa: a thin sheet of pastry wrapped in a shell-shape form, filled with cream and decorated with black cherries.
Praiano proposes typical fish dishes like tubetti (pasta) with squid sauce, spaghetti with clams and spiny shell fish, sardines and potatoes. Famous are also the cakes: the “pizze roce” (a crown of pastry with cream and fresh fruit) and the lemon cake in its different ways.
Typical of Vietri sul Mare (famous for its ceramics) is the lien filled with parsley, mint and hot peppers, cooked in a oil and vinegar sauce and fried ox interiors.
Not to miss in Cetara the anchovies, main ingredient in most sauces here, Tunna fish preserved in olive oil (Cetara is a fisherman town with one of the most equipped tuna fish fleets of the Mediterranean) and the famous “colatura” of anchovies (an elixir extracted from the pressing of salted anchovies).
Ravello offers a mix between fish and meat proposals: tasty folkloristic pastries and a selection of lemon cakes to taste with a glass of special Ravello Costa d’Amalfi DOC.
The traditional dessert of Maiori are the fried aubergines (egg plant), covered with a thick chocolate sauce, the almond paste biscuits and the “sospiri” (a soft Spanish cake filled with lemon cream and covered with icing. Other delicatessen are: the ravioli with fish filling in a cherry tomato and prawn sauce; the avannotti (small fish) cooked in lemon leaves, warm or cold hors d’oeuvre with finely cut octopus and linguine (pasta) with sea food. The local suggestion to complete your meal is a fresh lemon sorbet which offers great digestive purposes.
Minori is famous for the fresh hand made pastas still prepared in each Family, like the “scialatielli” served with vegetable or seafood sauces or the “ndunderi” a sort of gnocchi made of a mixture of flour, bran and local ricotta cheese served in a fresh tomato sauce. Not to miss: the tagliolini (pasta) with a lemon sauce and the risotto with citrus fruits.
Limoncello is served at room temp. or cold, like digestive or aperitif. It’s an optimal digestive when it comes served in a cold glass. By adding some tonic water it becomes, also, a good drink. Best is to add it in the champagne or prosecco in order to prepare long-drinks. It’s very good on the ice
cream, the Macedonian or the strawberries. We suggest you to put the bottle in freezer, so to being able to fully taste it.
The recipe
Ingredients: 15 lemons (sfusato amalfitano from Amalfi) with a thick peel, 2 x 750ml pure alcohol, 4 sugar cups, 5 water cups.
Preparation: Wash lemons by using warm water and a vegetable brush. Dry them and remove the rind by using the special tool to get long and wide piece of rind. Fill up one water jug of alcohol (750ml) and rinds. Limoncello must macerate at room temp. for 80 days in the covered jug without light. It is not necessary to churn. After approximately 40 days prepare a syrup by joining water and sugar, carrying them to boiling and keep them boiling for approximately 5 minutes until they are not gotten thicker. When the syrup is cold join it to the water jug and the remaining alcohol (750ml). After others 40 days filter the compound and pour it in the bottles.
