My best friend and I spent a glorious week in the Summer a few years back travelling around the area, and managed to see so much in a week. It’s a trip that many dream of so here’s how to make the most out of a limited time in the region.

Contents

1. Contents
2. How to get to the Amalfi Coast
3. Amalfi Coast: 2 Week Itinerary
   1. Itinerary Day 1: Naples
   2. Itinerary Day 2: Sorrento
   3. Itinerary Day 3: Positano and Amalfi
   4. Itinerary Day 4: Pompeii
   5. Itinerary Day 5: Ravello, Maiori and Minori
   6. Itinerary Day 6: Capri
   7. Itinerary Day 7: Mount Vesuvius and Herculaneum

How to get to the Amalfi Coast

The best option for arriving to the Amalfi Coast is to fly (or get the train if you’re in Italy or central Europe already) in to Naples. From Naples, many of the attractions are within easy train or driving distance.

We decided to make Sorrento our base for this trip and were so glad we did as it meant we were only staying in one place, but were perfectly located for wonderful days out without wasting loads of time travelling between places, checking in and out of hotels etc.

To get from Naples to Sorrento is simple. On arrival at Naples, we headed to the main train station to catch the Circumvesuviana train – a train which goes from Naples to Sorrento directly regularly throughout the day and takes about an hour. We then stayed in Sorrento for the whole week and branched out around the Amalfi car by train, bus, boat and car.

Amalfi Coast: 2 Week Itinerary

Itinerary Day 1: Naples

Detailed post: Naples

Arrive early in Naples, store your luggage in the station, and explore the city. Naples is often seen as a bit of a ‘bad boy’ of Italy, with a reputation for the Mafia and Diego Maradonna. However, I was pleasantly surprised by the glorious open piazzas, the interesting streets and buildings, castles on the waterfront and of course – incredible pizza.

If you don’t have time to do this on arrival, book a late flight home on the last day and do it then instead.

Itinerary Day 2: Sorrento

Detailed Post: Sorrento

Spend a day exploring your base for the trip, Sorrento. It’s a beautiful town with lots of quaint shops, a lovely marina to enjoy, some beautiful churches, a lemon grove, lots of Gelato, Limoncello and of course pasta! We spent the day happily walking around, taking in the view of Vesuvius and enjoying the wine and food. It’s a great choice for a laid back day to start your trip.

Itinerary Day 3: Positano and Amalfi

Detailed Post: Positano & Amalfi

On day 3, we hired a car and drove to Positano and Amalfi, around an hour’s drive away from Sorrento.

Positano is literally one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen. Ever. But my gosh there are a LOT of steps. We walked all the way down from the road to the beach (and back up again), stopping for lunch and enjoying the incredible views. After lunch we then headed to Amalfi, where we enjoyed the gorgeous Byzantine church, picturesque beach and a Paper Museum, before heading back to Sorrento for the night.

Itinerary Day 4: Pompeii

Full Post: Pompeii

From Sorrento, we took the Circumvesuviana train to Pompeii to explore the site. The train only takes around 30 minutes so is really easy to do. In AD79, Mount Vesuvius erupted in one of the deadliest European volcano eruptions ever. Around 1,500 bodies have been found so far in Pompeii – a Roman city destroyed by the eruption and preserved by ash. The site is still being excavated, and gets bigger all the time. I visited Pompeii as a child, and enjoyed retracing my steps back through the city.

Itinerary Day 5: Ravello, Maiori and Minori

Full Post: Ravello, Maiori & Minori

On day 5, we headed out in the car again to travel back along the Amalfi coast and visit Ravello, Maiori and Minori, three more beautiful towns just East of Positano and Amalfi.

Ravello was definitely the highlight, and absolutely beautiful. We drove out to it, parked easily in an underground carpark and it was pretty quiet. We spent a morning there visiting the 13th-century, Moorish-style Villa Rufolo which has amazing views from its terraced gardens. We also walked around the town, discovering the many beautiful ceramic shops (Pascal was our favourite), before having a late lunch and then heading on to the towns of Maiori and Minori.

Again these quaint little towns were fairly quiet so we enjoyed exploring the shops, beaches, views and delicious foods.

Itinerary Day 6: Capri

Full Post: Capri

We visited Capri on a boat tour from Sorrento. We were picked up from our hotel on a bus and taken to the boat stop, where we boarded a speed boat to the island. We laid out on the boat and sunbathed as we raced through the water! We even went through the ‘love arch’ which is fabled to bring you good luck with your significant other if you kiss them whilst under it.

Capri itself is split in to two parts – Capri and Anacapri – with Anacapri being the ‘old’ town and home to the Villa San Michele with epic views reachable only by chairlift, and Capri being the area with the marina, restaurants and more shops. Both were beautiful. You can see why this is a playground of the rich and famous!

Itinerary Day 7: Mount Vesuvius and Herculaneum

Full Posts: Vesuvius & Herculaneum

On the final day of our trip, we visited one of the most dangerous volcanoes in the world, which scientists say is due another eruption. So, is it safe to climb? Well….I guess nothing is ever completely safe, but before a volcano like this has any activity, there are warning signs. Technology these days means you’re going to be able to predict an eruption before it happens, so you can be safe in the knowledge it’s not going to erupt while you’re half way up it.

To get to Vesuvius, we again hopped on the Circumvesuviana train again and exited at Pompeii. From there is a bus which takes you directly to the start of the climb to the crater. The hike takes a couple of hours so easily fills a morning.

After lunch we then visited Herculaneum, a much smaller town which again was covered by ash when Vesuvius erupted in AD79. I personally thought this site was better preserved than Pompeii and liked that it was smaller so you could see everything.

And that concludes a week on the Amalfi coast. We found having one base and branching out by train, car and boat made for a varied and interesting week. We felt we saw most of the main sites in the area and at a leisurely pace as well.

Thank you for reading and I hope this post has brought back happy memories, or inspired new ones. Stay safe and happy travelling!

Why visit Murano?

Murano is a beautiful little island, with a whole lot less tourists than Venice itself. It’s also famous for its glass blowing history, as it became the glass blowing centre of the world. This tradition is still the main draw of the island today, with multiple factories, furnaces and beautiful glass souvenirs to browse.

So how did glass blowing arrive in Murano? Well, at the end of the 13th century, the Venetian government determined that it was too dangerous to have glass-blowing furnaces continue to operate in Venice due to the many wooden buildings in Venice. So they moved it to the less important island of Murano where the glass blowers honed their trade to become the world standard in glass. Another benefit to Murano was that being a small island, it meant that the traditional processes and trade secrets could be maintained.

Nowadays, other places in Europe have great glass blowing reputations, but Murano still holds strong. Major glass-makers in Murano have banded together and developed a trademark that certifies glass made in Murano using traditional techniques in order to distinguish it from that made elsewhere in the world.

My living room has a beautiful certified glass dish in it, and every year both my Mum and I hang our Murano glass Christmas trees up as decorations to remember our trip together to the island.

How to get to Murano

Murano is easily accessible by Vaparetto. Vaparettos are effectively water buses that run through Venice to multiple stops. Buying Vaparetto tickets can sometimes be a bit confusing, so if you plan to use the service multiple times during your stay, then consider buying daily (or multiple day) passes. That way it works out much cheaper, and you don’t have to wait in line for tickets each time you want to ride the Vaporetto (plus, not every Vaparetto stop has a ticket machine if you’re boarding at a smaller stop).

You can take Vaparetto lines 12, 4.1 or 4.2 to Murano. I recommend getting off at the first stop in Murano, Murano Faro (lighthouse) to start wondering from there. Alternatively, you could get off at the Museo stop for the Duomo, or the Colonna stop to go straight to the glass factories.

What to do on a visit to Murano

Browse the beautiful glass shops

You can’t visit Murano and not enjoy all of the glass it has to offer. There are countless gorgeous shops filled with elaborate and ornate glass ornaments, bottle stoppers, Christmas decorations, lights, photo frames, jewellery and everything else that can be made from glass!

2. Watch a glass blowing demonstration

Exploring a bit more of the glass blowing history, Murano offers multiple glass blowing demonstrations where you can have a tour of the furnace and watch the glass blowers at work. You can either book an official tour, or do what we did and just drop in (oh the heady days when COVID wasn’t a thing!)

3. Wander the canals

Murano’s canals aren’t as famous as Venice’s but are still beautiful. It has its own Grand Canal which is lined by nice restaurants and glass shops. Pop in to the museum of the history of glassmaking, pay a visit to the Church of Santa Maria, eat lunch in a traditional Trattoria or just stroll and enjoy the colourful houses.

4. See the Comet Star sculpture

The Comet Star sculpture was created by master glassmaker Simone Cenedese, who is actually based on the island. It was assembled from 500 individually blown glass elements in 6 colours. It’s quite a striking monument!

5. Visit the Duomo di Murano

Last but not least on the list is a visit to the beautiful Duomo. This church was built in the 7th century and is one of the oldest in Venice. It is known for its Byzantine mosaic pavement outside,  and is said to contain large bones behind the altar belonging to a dragon slain by a saint.

Thanks so much for reading. Have you ever visited Murano and what did you think? Despite our choice to visit on a gloomy day, I’m really glad we did. I never thought I’d know so much about glass blowing!! Stay safe and happy travelling.

We were in Venice for 3 days, which was a good amount of time to explore the city. This itinerary post covers the core 2 days in Venice, with day 3 used as a day trip to some of the neighbouring islands, including Murano and Burano. You can also view my post on visiting Murano here.

So, how do you see all the amazing sights of Venice in just 2 days?

Contents

1. Contents
2. Venice Itinerary Day 1: The main tourist sites
   1. Start the day taking in the views in St Mark’s Square
   2. Climb the Campanile
   3. Visit The Basilica
   4. Explore The Doge’s Palace
   5. See the Bridge of Sighs
   6. Relax on a Gondola Ride
   7. Check out the views from the Ponte dell’Accademia
   8. Marvel at the Rialto Bridge with some traditional Gelato
3. Venice Day 2: Taking it slow exploring the lesser known regions of Venice
   1. Explore the oldest Jewish Ghetto in Venice
   2. Wander the San Polo area
   3. See the notorious Ponte delle Tette
   4. Visit the Mercato
   5. Enjoy the pews of the famous I Frari
   6. F. Explore Dorsoduro
   7. G. Visit one of the museums or galleries

Venice Itinerary Day 1: The main tourist sites

Start the day taking in the views in St Mark’s Square

This is always the busiest area of Venice, being the main square of the city and home to some of the most well known sights. My advice is to beat the cruise ships and day trips to get there early and get your photos of the glorious Basilica, Doge’s Palace and The Campanile. I don’t recommend eating breakfast there as it’s extortionate, so grab something on the way.

View of St Mark’s Square and a Venetian mask shop just off it

Climb the Campanile

The Campanile is a tall tower in St Mark’s Square, which is actually the bell tower of St Mark’s Basilica (see below). The tower was reconstructed in 1912 following damage and at almost 100m high, is the tallest structure in Venice. I definitely recommend going for when it opens. We did, and still had to queue for 30 minutes. By the time we got down, the queue was 2 hrs long! The views over Venice are well worth it though, providing glorious scenes of the lagoons below.

Views from the Campanile

Visit The Basilica

St Mark’s Basilica is the cathedral of Venice – it’s main structure dates back to the 11th century with clear Byzantine elements which mean you can see the influence of other incredible churches like the Hagia Sophia in it.

Many of its rich artifacts and relics were plundered from Constantinople (now Istanbul) in around 1204 on the Fourth Crusade, including from the Hagia Sophia itself. Even the four horses above the door were plunder from this crusade, although today only replicas are above the door. For anyone who doesn’t know about the early religious Crusades, Italy and Venice played a huge role and it’s well worth researching ahead of a visit.

Today, the queues to go inside the Basilica are long but move fairly quickly and it’s well worth a look. You can also go up to the roof for views out over the square, and to see the infamous four horses above the door.

Explore The Doge’s Palace

The Doge’s Palace was the residence of the Doge of Venice, the supreme authority of the former Venetian Republic. It’s an incredible building and is the symbol of Venice as one of the richest republics in the world at the time it was built. It’s stunning inside and out – and we spent about 2 hours looking around it and found it very interesting. Follow it up with a late lunch at a traditional Trattoria.

See the Bridge of Sighs

This bridge runs from the interrogation rooms in the Doge’s Palace to the Prison. It’s known as the bridge of sighs due to the sighs the prisoners made as they went over it. I thought it was beautiful and a must see, just off St Mark’s Square.

Relax on a Gondola Ride

Are they a rip off? Yes. Do they last long? No. Are they worth it? ABSOLUTELY. Ours was so much fun. We booked in advance to save some money with Gondolieri Travel and did the route starting from Bacino Orseolo, not far from St Mark’s Square. It was expensive, and you may get a cheaper price on the day if they aren’t fully booked, but we both loved it. And hey, you’re in Venice.

Aboard the Gondola!

Check out the views from the Ponte dell’Accademia

A short walk from the bridge of sighs, head round to the Ponte dell’Accademia for beautiful views down to the Santa Maria Basilica. One of the most perfect Instagram shots!

Marvel at the Rialto Bridge with some traditional Gelato

As the day draws to a close, meander back across Venice with a Gelato in hand as you head to one of Venice’s most famous sites to finish the day – the Rialto Bridge. Stroll down the Grand Canal to get the best views of it, and then cross if for the picturesque views out across the Grand Canal itself.

Admiring the Rialto Bridge and views of the Grand Canal

After this, there are plenty of options for drinks and dinner in the area. There is a great wine bar called Vineria all’Amarone and for food, we particularly loved Ristorante San Silvestro.

Venice Day 2: Taking it slow exploring the lesser known regions of Venice

Explore the oldest Jewish Ghetto in Venice

Situated in the Cannaregio district, learn about an area of Venice which is much lesser visited. Today this area is the hub of the Jewish community, home of synagogues and other religious institutions, as well as heritage restaurants and shops.

The formation of the Jewish Ghetto in Venice happened in 1516, originally formed as a way of placating the Roman Catholic Church, which had already driven the expulsion of Jews from Western Europe. Immediately after, about 700 Jews were taken to this area, and the word Ghetto soon gained popularity throughout Europe to refer to areas for isolated minority communities. By 1600, the community had grown to over 5,000 people and Christian guards kept everyone locked inside the area.

You can visit the Jewish Museum, Museo Ebreico, or take tours of the historic Ghetto when you visit today. This fascinating area is well worth a couple of hours of your time.

Exploring the historic region of the city (L) and Memorial wall (R)

Wander the San Polo area

The San Polo area of Venice (north of the Rialto Bridge) was the most beautiful area of intricate alleys and canal ways to explore. I loved just walking about in the morning without anyone else for company, not really knowing where I was going. Feeling lost was actually a treat! Eventually I also found a lovely spot called Dolce Vita Coffee which served lovely cake – a perfect morning snack.

See the notorious Ponte delle Tette

The Ponte delle Tette, literally the bridge of tits, is a notorious bridge previously frequented by topless prostitutes! I had to pay it a visit!

Visit the Mercato

Just down the road from the Ponte delle Tette, is the Mercato. You can smell this area before you see it, what with all the fish – and it’s filled with lots of goodies, from dried fruits, to nuts, to eggs and meat. Perfect for a snack or to stock up for dinner.

Enjoy the pews of the famous I Frari

In 1231, this site was created as a monastery, though it quickly became too small, and by the end of the 1300s work was completed on the current, much larger, church. It’s now deisgnated as a minor basiliaca, and Titian (the most famous Venetian painter of the 16th century) is interred in the church. For me, the highlight was the incredible gothic pews.

Inside and outside of the church

F. Explore Dorsoduro

Another lovely area of Venice worth exploring is the beautiful Dorsoduro. This felt really ‘authentic’ Venice – no tourists, just locals, and lots of lovely streets and restaurants. This area is also home to some great museums and galleries, like Ca’ Rezzonico and the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, as well as famous churches such as Angelo Raffaele.

G. Visit one of the museums or galleries

To finish off your leisurely day of exploring, visit Ca’Rezzonico to learn about the history of Venice, focused on the 18th Century. Or if history isn’t your thing, explore the art on display at the Peggy Guggenheim Collection. After a busy day of more walking and sight seeing you’ll be ready for a special dinner before returning home.

And that concludes my itinerary for 2 days in Venice. I absolutely fell in love with the city, and would love to be able to go back some day and explore further. If you have longer in Venice, you can also check out my post on visiting the island of Murano here (post coming soon).

Thank you for reading everyone! I hope you enjoyed the post – stay safe and happy travelling!

For our week, Sorrento was our base to explore and were so glad we chose it as such. Sorrento is a coastal town which faces the Bay of Naples, perched on top of cliffs that separate the town from its busy marinas. I found the historic centre to be picturesque, full of nice restaurants and an interesting warren of narrow alleys which were fun to explore.

We used one day of our week long trip to explore Sorrento itself and here are my top 5 highlights of the city, all do-able in one day.

1. The Marina

One of the prettiest corners of Sorrento, the marina is a lovely area to stroll around. There are lots of restaurants around this area as well, and we ate at both Porta Marina and Bagni Delfino. Both were absolutely delicious.

2. I Giardini di Cataldo & Limonoro

A unique spot for a little stroll is a traditional lemon grove which sits in a park just outside the centre of town. There is also a little café in the park which sells delicious Limoncello and other lemon goodies. If you want to find out more about Limoncello, then Limonoro is an amazing lemon based store where you’ll learn a little more about the process of creating Limoncello, the varieties, and its origins too.

3. Villa Comunale

This park sits atop of the cliff and provides spectacular views out across to Mount Vesuvius and down to the beaches and marinas of the city. It’s a lovely spot to sit and enjoy a traditional Gelato while watching the world go by.

4. Basilica di Sant’Antonino

Named after Sorrento’s patron saint, the town’s oldest church barely looks like a church from the outside. The interior is stunning though with Roman artefacts, medieval paintings and ornate ceiling. It’s a lovely place to take a moment of contemplation, or just get out of the blazing sun for 15 minutes or so.

5. Piazza Tasso

Piazza Tasso is the central point of the city, and is named after the poet Torquato Tasso. In the main square is the baroque Church del Carmine, and also lots of yummy ice-cream shops where you can sample traditional Gelato. We also went inside a couple of the churches on the square, and visited a nearby Leonardo da Vinci inventions museum which was interesting.

6. Explore the Amalfi Coast

Sorrento is the perfect place to explore far and wide up and down the Amalfi Coast. There are lots of excellent options for day trips, including:

• Pompeii
• Positano & Amalfi
• Ravello, Mairo & Minori
• Capri
• Naples
• Mount Vesuvius
• Herculaneum

Sorrento was a beautiful place to have as a base for our Amalfi coast trip, and a full day in the town was enough to do it justice. We combined a visit here with multiple other places along the Amalfi Coast. Thank you for reading – Stay safe and happy travelling!

Like Pompeii, Herculaneum has been preserved, more or less in tact and is a fascinating place to visit to step back in history. The UNESCO World Heritage Site is definitely worth visiting – you can cover most of it in half a day and a lot of the murals, houses and streets are better preserved than in Pompeii.

Contents

1. Contents
2. History of Herculaneum
3. How to get to Herculaneum
4. Herculaneum Site Information
5. What to see at Herculaneum
   1. House of the Neptune Mosaic
   2. House of the Relief of Telphas
   3. Hall of the Augustals
   4. The Food Bars
   5. Roman Baths
6. Which is better: Herculaneum or Pompeii?

History of Herculaneum

Like Pompeii, Herculaneum is famous as one of the few ancient cities to be preserved by the thick layer of ash that blanketed it from the explosion and protected it from the elements, and time itself. The material that covered Herculaneum also carbonised and so preserved wood in objects such as roofs, beds, doors and papyrus.

The city was then rediscovered in the 1700s, and unfortunately the early digs were completed by treasure hunters who removed many artefacts without authorisation. Regular excavations began in 1738, and have continued ever since. Today, only part of the ancient site has been excavated and in many ways I found it to be much better preserved than Pompeii. This is because Herculaneum was a wealthier town, so there was far more lavish use of coloured marble and luxurious murals which are beautiful to visit.

How to get to Herculaneum

Getting to Herculaneum is easy from the nearby towns of Naples or Sorrento. The easiest and fastest option is to take the Circumvesuviana train from either town to the stop Ercolano, which takes about 30 minutes. It’s then a short downhill walk to the site.

If you are visiting from Rome, you would have to get the fast train in to Naples first, with the full journey to Herculaneum taking around 2.5 hours.

You can also drive to Herculaneum if you have a car available, and there is an underground car park at the site which costs only 2 Euros per hour. Compared to driving in some parts of Italy, it’s a fairly easy drive.

Herculaneum Site Information

Herculaneum is a relatively small site and you can easily walk around it in a couple of hours. The entrance fee to the site is 11 Euros and it opens at 8.30am. In the summer months it stays open until 7.30pm, so there is plenty of time to fit in a visit. At the entrance, maps and guides in various languages are available, so there is no need for a guided tour given you can follow it yourself and follow the map round.

What to see at Herculaneum

There are lots of beautiful things to see at Herculaneum, but here are my 5 favourite:

House of the Neptune Mosaic

Named for the well-preserved, vivid, glass wall mosaic of Neptune and Amphitrite, this house also has a courtyard with a Nymphaeum, a grotto-like alcove with a fountain.

House of the Relief of Telphas

It’s not every day you get to stand in a house built between 27 BC and 14 AD! This three-story home was decorated with a number of sculptures, including one of Telephus, son of founder of the city, Hercules. The atrium is lined with columns supporting the upper floor, which I thought were particularly jazzy.

Hall of the Augustals

This hall was the seat to the College of the Augustales, free men who were devotees of the cult of the Emperor Augustus. The highlights are two beautiful frescoes – one with a depiction of Hercules entering Mount Olympus accompanied by Jupiter, Juno, and Minerva, and another depicting Hercules wrestling Achelous. Interestingly, the skeleton of the building’s custodian was found laid out on his bed.

The Food Bars

One of my favourite things in Herculaneum was the really well preserved food bars. From here, food and drink would have been served to people, like a modern day restaurant or shop.

Roman Baths

These are well-preserved thermal baths, and there were separate ones for men and women. The water was fed via a deep well which was heated by a furnace. It’s amazing how well preserved the mosaic floors were.

Which is better: Herculaneum or Pompeii?

The easy answer is that if you have time – do both! Spend a day in Pompeii and then a half day in Herculaneum. However, if you only have one day there is no way you want to try and do both – you will have site fatigue and may as well do one properly, rather than rush around both and not appreciate it. Which one I think depends on your interests.

Pompeii Benefits:

• Much bigger site, with more things to see
• More famous
• Can easily spend a day there
• If you’re a real historian with an interest in a the Roman era, then visiting Pompeii is a must

Herculaneum Benefits:

• Smaller, more manageable site where you can see everything
• Only need half a day there
• Much better preserved
• WAY less people
• If you want to get a feel for what ancient Rome was like, without spending a whole day or dealing with the crowds, with better photos, then Herculaneum is probably the option for you.

Thank you for reading. I hope you found this post helpful if you’re planning a visit to Italy, or are just interested to learn about such an historic site. Stay safe and happy travelling!

We were in the region for a week and one of the areas I enjoyed most was the absolutely stunning Ravello, and the small towns of Minori and Maiori. These places were more off the tourist track than Positano or Capri, and I found them to be the most authentically beautiful part of our trip.

How to get to Ravello, Minor & Maiori

The best way to get to Ravello is by car, especially if you want to visit other places near by too. We hired a car in Sorrento and drove to Ravello in around 1.5hrs. The parking was easy as there was a huge underground car park, though the drive itself wasn’t – the roads were windy, narrow and absolutely insane.

If you’re not a confident driver, then there other options – the SITA bus can get you from Sorrento or Naples to Ravello, or you could hire a private driver or join a tour to visit. I’m glad we drove though to make the most of our time there.

Ravello

Ravello was definitely the highlight of the trip, and is worth a full morning of your time. We started by visiting the gorgeous Villa Rufolo which is a private residence built in the 13th century – the highlight of which is the stunning terrace garden with incredible views out over the sweeping coast line.

There is also a little exhibition on site, and you can also do a guided tour to learn more about the history and current use of the Villa.

After a couple of hours at the Villa Rufolo, we headed to the main square where we visited The Duomo. It’s a simple church but beautiful and peaceful. The main square is also home to a number of restaurants so we treated ourselves to some lunch.

After lunch, we strolled round Ravello town, and visited some of the many ceramic shops – our favourite was Pascal. We also perused the shops and enjoyed a final drink in the sunshine before heading on to our next destination at about 2.30pm.

Maiori and Minori

Maiori is a fishing town, and is famous for its beach – one of the largest on the whole of the Amalfi coast. In 1954, the town was flooded and the city centre destroyed but it’s been beautifully rebuilt. The whole town is Maiori is dominated by the Castle of San Nicola de Thoro-Plano, rebuilt in the 15th century and which is well worth a visit. In total we spent about 2 hours in Maiori.

Just down the road is Minori – another beautiful little town, which is home to the Villa Marittima Romana, an ancient Roman villa which is an important monument and still conserves a number of its original frescoes and mosaics.

There is also a lovely cathedral in the town, but the main draw of Minori is its famous pasta so we finished our day off with an incredible dinner served in a small restaurant between brightly painted houses as the sun went down- it felt so authentically Italian and there wasn’t another tourist in sight.

This was one of my favourite days on our Amalfi coast trip because it was so nice to get off the tourist crazy path. My photos really don’t do justice to the beauty of the region.

Thank you for reading and I hope this post has inspired you to visit some of the lesser known places on the Amalfi coast if you’re planning a visit one day. But for now, stay safe and happy travelling!

Italy is one of those countries which I could go back to time and time again. It’s blessed with great weather, great food and great history. I actually went on this trip before joining Instagram or starting this blog, and I wasn’t really that caught up in taking photos and documenting my travels like I am now. Oh how I wish I’d taken more photos to do its beauty justice – the Amalfi Coast is one of the most stunning places I’ve ever visited. It’s breathtakingly beautiful round every corner.

Why visit Positano and Amalfi?

• Quite simply, it’s one of the most beautiful areas of Europe
• The colours are stunning – all the houses are different colours and vibrant
• The weather is great pretty much all year round
• The food is mouth-wateringly good
• There are plenty of beaches to relax on

How to get there

By car

Sorrento was our base for our Amalfi coast trip, which is about an hour’s drive from Positano. We chose to hire a car and drive to Positano first, then on to Amalfi (a further 45 minutes). I liked this option as we got the incredible coastal views along the route. You could also stay in Amalfi, but would still need a car to get to Positano.

That said, there is no parking in Positano. We found ourselves having to parallel park on a hairpin bend on a cliff. Thank god it was my friend driving and not me. We also ended up parking across a driveway which meant we got a parking ticket (in Italian, which we had no idea how to pay…..turns out you have to physically go to a post office and join the right queue to pay parking fines…cue lots and lots of google translate and confusing discussions with any local we could find).

By Bus

If you don’t fancy that headache, then there is a bus service (Sita) which runs between Sorrento and Amalfi, including a stop at Positano. However, if you’re scared of heights or of hurtling round those bends on a coach, then being in control of your own car is actually a better option. In fact, the thought of those coaches brings me more dread than paying a parking ticket so I’m glad we chose the option of a car.

Positano

After the 1 hour drive and hairpin bend parallel park, we arrived in Positano at about 10am. I recommend getting there as early as possible, because at that time it was already bustling with tourists.

We parked up on the cliff and admired the views of the incredible surroundings, then sauntered on down to the beach, winding through steps and colourful houses as we went. There was also a beautiful church in the middle of the town.

At the bottom we explored the Instagram famous (not that I knew it at the time) beach – Positano Spiaggia, enjoyed cocktails with our delicious lunch and strolled around the little shops on the beach front. We also walked around the windy coastal path for more stunning views until we reached Fornillo Beach.

Now, this is where the problem started. We had to walk back up again. It took us about 3 times as long to get back up to the road as it did to get down to the beach. The steps really hurt my legs and there are a LOT of them. There is no road access and taxi services are seriously limited, so if you struggle with mobility or climbing stairs, then Positano is not for you.

After a pretty strenuous hour of climbing steps, we eventually got back to the car, changed our clothes because of all the sweat and drove on to Amalfi, hoping it wasn’t quite so step intense.

Amalfi

Driving on from Positano to Amalfi took about 45 minutes, and this time parking was much more straight forward as there were spaces in the car park. It was also great to see very few steps in sight.

My initial impression of Amalfi was that it was very touristy, but I was glad to have seen it. The main draw to the town is the incredible cathedral. The Arab-Norman Sant’Andrea cathedral lies in the heart of town, and its striped Byzantine facade, survives from the 10th century.

Strolling around the town, we also noticed that paper was a huge thing – there are loads of paper shops. The paper of Amalfi, Bambagina, is a very thick, soft paper that is still appreciated by artists around the world. We decided to visit the Museo della Carta (Paper Museum) to find out a bit more, which was really interesting.

We then strolled round the town and down to the beach, before finishing our day with a delicious dinner and driving back to Sorrento.

Have you been to, or would you like to visit Positano and Amalfi? Hopefully once the COVID restrictions are lifted, we can all get back to exploring and discovering beautiful new places again. Thanks for reading, stay safe and happy travelling!

So to cheer myself (and hopefully you) up, I’m continuing with my recaps on past trips to remember happier times and dream of when we may be able to get back to travelling again.

So, this post we’re off to Naples. This post covers spending a day in Naples, but my visit to the city was part of my week long trip to the Amalfi coast. The full trip details and itinerary can be found here (coming soon).

Naples is often seen as the bad boy of Italy. All I really knew about it before I went was that it was famous for the mafia, Diego Maradona and crazy football fans. That was my ignorance and no reflection of Naples. Yes it’s a bit noisy and dirty and less picture perfect than some other Italian cities, but did you know it’s actually the birth place of pizza? And my goodness, they know how to make pizza. It’s also home to great architecture, a lovely coast line, and is close to historic architectural sites like Herculaneum and Pompeii.

Here are my top 5 things to do there in a day.

1. Eat lots of pizza. Amazing, incredible, delicious pizza.

I don’t even really know where to start. If, like me, the pizza you normally eat is either frozen or from Dominos, you haven’t really eaten pizza. Pizza in Naples is an institution, and I can honestly say they are just delicious. We were planning to eat at Sorbillo, but the queue was over an hour long, so we ate at Gorizia and Pizzeria Oliva da Salvatore. Both were absolutely delicious…and absolutely heaving.

2. Castel dell’Ovo

Probably the best named castle ever. Egg Castle (in English), sits right on the sea shore. The castle’s name comes from a legend where the Poet Virgil put a magical egg into the foundations of the castle. It was said that if the egg had been broken, the castle would have been destroyed and a series of disastrous events for Naples would have followed. Luckily, it remained unbroken, and the castle and Naples still stand!

You can now visit the castle, walk the walls, and get some beautiful sea views.

3. Piazza del Plebiscito

This fancy Piazza is home to the Royal Palace, Church of San Francesco di Paola and some lovely collonades to each side. We enjoyed visiting the palace and discovering a lot of ornate rooms and frescoes (plus an awesome staircase), and then sitting down with some drinks (and pizza of course) to watch the world go by.

4. Castel Nuovo

This Castle was built in 1279 and was a royal seat for the kings of Naples, Spain and Aragon until the 1800s. It is currently home to two historical societies, and there is also a museum inside which displays some frescoes, paintings and cultural exhibitions. Well worth a couple of hours of your time.

5. Explore the busy streets

Naples isn’t beautiful like picture perfect Amalfi or Capri -it’s noisy and dirty and busy. But it’s also real, and there’s something about the hectic busy streets that I quite liked. It’s worth exploring to see a bit of reality and not just the postcard perfect Amalfi coast.

Also walking around Naples and exploring, you will discover the Duomo di Napoli – an impressive cathedral housing lots of lovely paintings and treasures, as well as Castel Sant Elmo – a medieval fortress on the hilltop, looking down over Naples.

Thank you for reading! We enjoyed our trip to Naples, but wouldn’t put it top of our places to visit in Italy. What did you think? Are you planning to visit Naples? Let me know in the comments below.

We visited the island on a day trip by boat from Sorrento. The boat sped across the water and we laid out in the sunshine topping up our tans. However, the boat then stopped so people could go swimming. Unfortunately, I can’t swim and I also get sea sick still in water. So after an hour rocking about on the water while everyone else swam, we got to shore promptly enough for me to throw up in a bin.

After finishing with the bin, the day only got better. And here are my favourite things to do on the island in a day. Also – fun fact before I start- did you know Capri is twinned with Crosby, Merseyside in the UK? I can’t think of two more different twins…

1. The Faraglioni

The Faraglioni are rock formations around the coast of Capri. The best way to see them is to get on a boat – even better a speed boat – and take to the water. One of the rocks is known as the ‘love arch’, and it’s said that if you kiss someone whilst riding through the arch, you will be with them for ever. Cue cheesy playing of ‘It’s Amore’ on board whatever boat you are on!

2. Augustus Gardens

The Augustus Gardens are a beautiful view point on the island. You have to get up to the summit by taking the cable car. Now my advice for this ride is – take your shoes off if you’re wearing flip flops or sandals not secured to your feet. My flip flop fell off while on the cable car, in to some poor local’s garden and never to be seen again. I had to share flip flops with my friend the rest of the day until we got to a shop! The views were worth it though…A perfect place for a (very expensive) drink looking out to Vesuvius.

3. Piazza Umberto

Capri island is split in to two towns – Capri and Anacapri. Capri is where the majority of the shopping and restaurants are, and Piazza Umberto is the main square in the town. It also comes complete with this view down to the marina. Not a bad place for lunch!

It’s still a lot of steps to walk up though from the marina – so I don’t recommend doing it in the heat of the day, and take a cab if you’re not up for the thigh burn! The Aperol Spritz and view at the top makes it worth it though, I promise.

4. Anacapri

Anacapri is the old town area of the island, and is situated higher up than Capri town. The ascent there is steep and not walkable (it’s bad enough getting to Capri, above). We therefore chose to take a cab. It was around a 20 minute journey, and was a lovely area to stroll around eating gelato and finding souvenirs.

5. The Blue Grotto

The Blue Grotto is a sea cave on the coast. The amazing shimmering blue colour of the water is created by sunlight passing through an underwater cavity and shining through, creating a blue reflection.

For me this attraction was over rated and waiting in a queue of boats to get a glimpse was way too commercialised. Still, when in Capri and all that…

Thanks so much for reading! Capri is a beautiful place, and well worth a visit if you’re in Italy. It is expensive, but definitely worth at least a day trip. Stay safe and happy travelling!

Vesuvius is the centre piece of any view out from the section of coast that runs from Naples to Sorrento, and you can visit the volcano easily from either city. It really is special to hike up the volcano, and it has been one of my favourite experiences of my many trips to Italy. I visited Vesuvius as part of a week long trip to the Amalfi coast, the full itinerary for which can be found here (post coming soon).

Is hiking up Vesuvius safe?

Well, it can never be 100% safe given nature is involved, but scientists are constantly measuring and observing the volcano and will detect signs of an eruption well before it happens. So rest assured it’s not going to erupt as you’re half way up it with no warning.

How long do I need to hike the volcano?

Hiking up Mount Vesuvius takes a couple of hours, so can be done in half a day. Many people combine the hike up the volcano in the afternoon with a visit to Pompeii in the morning, and there are lot of great tours which combine these two attractions. I personally felt that Pompeii warranted more than a morning, so chose to spend a whole day there and then do a separate trip to Vesuvius not held to any time limits and avoiding the big crowds of early afternoon.

How long you have will be determined by your itinerary and base location, but as a minimum you need to set aside a couple of hours for the hike, plus travel time.

How to I get to Mount Vesuvius?

I really don’t recommend driving; traffic is awful and driving up Vesuvius to the hike start point is quite complicated and pretty terrifying. Local buses direct from Naples do run, but infrequently and often unreliably.

The most simple option is to visit from a base of either Naples or Sorrento. From either city, I recommend taking the Circumvesuviana train to the Pompeii Scavi stop. From just outside the train stop at Pompeii, there is a bus which runs from Pompeii to Vesuvius, and takes about 40 minutes. You can either visit Pompeii in the morning and Vesuvius in the afternoon, or just get on one of the first buses of the day and avoid all the crowds if you’re heading straight to Vesuvius. Perfect.

Be warned though, the drive is twisty turny up a volcano – if you get travel sick you might struggle. The bus had to pull over for me to be sick three times; what a kind bus driver! And on the plus side I got to take a photo at this pretty lookout spot.

What do I need to take with me?

If you’re visiting Pompeii as well, don’t take a huge rucksack as they don’t allow them in the site. But do take water, some sun cream and comfortable shoes. Walking up Vesuvius (and around Pompeii at 44 hectares) is not an easy stroll. My friend did the climb up Vesuvius in sandals and hugely regretted it (she was also cleaning ash of her feet for at least 3 days afterwards) – my trainers were a much better choice.

Vesuvius can actually get quite cold the higher you get. So also check the weather and be prepared for both boiling heat and feeling cold in one day and take a jumper if there’s any risk of cloud cover. If it’s raining, they also often close the crater so check ahead there too. We visited on a bit of a misty day and our views from the top were a bit spoiled, but fun never the less.

What is the hike like?

The hike up can be done in around 30 minutes by someone pretty fit. It’s quite a steep climb, and a lot of it is just an ashy surface. For someone of moderate fitness, taking a few breaks, it will take about an hour. It’s then the same to get back down – so in total around 2 to 2.5 hours once you’ve stopped at the top as well.

Can you see inside the crater?

Yes you can! It’s normally smoking a bit which is pretty cool and you can see all the volcanic ash and particles – I was surprised by how red the rocks were, and that there was plant life growing in there!

Should I hike independently or with a guide?

I think there is value in having guides at most sites, including Pompeii. But at Vesuvius they literally just walk you up the same path as everyone else walks. They talk mainly about the history of the volcano and it’s geology which is interesting but was nothing I couldn’t find out from a quick internet search (or just listening to the guides walking right past us, one after another repeating the same information). It’s 10 Euros to enter the park, and I wouldn’t waste any money on a guide to supplement this unless geology and volcanoes are your passion.

Thank you for reading! I hope you’ve found this guide to hiking Vesuvius useful. And if you want to check out all of the destinations on my Amalfi coast road trip you can here. Stay safe everyone!

I found visiting Pompeii to be quite a thought provoking experience; not only do you get to learn a lot about ancient Rome, but even though it was thousands of years ago, seeing the body shapes preserved in ash also makes it incredibly human. How terrified these people must have been, and how scary it must have been to have no warning and for everything to be destroyed. It also makes you wonder when Vesuvius will next erupt, and what the impact on the world will be this time.

Pompeii is a huge site, covering 44 hectares and there is just no way you can see the whole thing in a day. A day is a good amount of time to see the main sites though, and hopefully my guide to visiting this historic place can help.

How to get to Pompeii

I recommend visiting Pompeii from either Naples or Sorrento; both are within an hour’s travel of the site. You can visit Pompeii from Rome in a day, but at around 2.5hrs of travel each way, it won’t maximise your time there.

You can of course get a taxi from your base location, but taxis aren’t cheap and with the traffic in the major cities (especially Rome) being chaotic at the best of times, it’s not necessarily quicker. Whilst there are buses that run to the site, again these run the risk of being the much slower option and instead I recommend getting the train to the Pompeii Scavi stop.

If you’re travelling from either Naples or Sorrento, you can get the regional train known as the ‘Circumvesuviana’ – literally meaning ‘goes around Vesuvius’. This train takes you from Naples to Pompeii in about 30 minutes, with trains running twice an hour, or from Sorrento to Pompeii in about 40 minutes, again with trains twice an hour. If you’re coming from Rome, you have to get a high speed train in to Naples first, which takes around 1hr 20 and run every hour.

Once you’ve arrived at the Pompeii Scavi stop, turn right out of the station, and the entrance to the site is a couple of minutes’ walk up the road. And if you’re hungry, there are a few restaurants on the site – we liked Hortus which served amazinggg food!

How to experience the site

The main question everyone asks is, do you need a guide? This totally depends on you. When I visited as a teenager I was with my parents – my mum is an ORACLE on Rome; she knew everything, she was so excited, she was the BEST guide for us (though I really didn’t appreciate it at the time, grumpy teenager as I was). When I visited last year, I was with a friend who knew absolutely nothing about it and just wanted a surface level taste.

So if you know about Rome, if you’ve got a guide book, if you don’t like trapsing round in big groups and don’t want to be held down to doing one route – then go it alone. Just get a map. If you just want to stroll around and get a bit of a feel for it, easily and with no hassle – then get a guide. Just get a good one.

How to explore without a guide

If you’re going it alone, a map is a must have. The site is 44 hectares, so you’re going to need to plan a route. It’s then obviously fine if you get diverted, but have a vague plan so you don’t miss all the main sites.

The first tip I have if you’re not in a tour group is to walk 10 minutes to the Piazza Anfiteatro (Amphitheatre) entrance gate. This is the secondary entrance to the site (the main one is called Porta Marina) so you don’t have to queue as long for tickets. The ruins open at 9am every day so if you really want to beat the crowds – get there for the opening time.

From here I then recommend a route which walks from the Amphitheatre, takes in the House of Sirico, House of the Fawn, The Forum, The Forum Baths, Via Stabiana, The Granary, The Basilica and The Theatre, plus anything else you fancy at your own pace.

Who runs the best tours?

Most tours are about 2-3 hours long, and do a quick whistlestop tour of the main sites above. If you don’t have a whole day to spare at the site (maybe you’re visiting Vesuvius too), or any time to plan your visit, then this may well be the option for you. Guides can also provide a bit more flavour to the sites, telling you the stories of the people that lived there or events that happened.

Some great tours run; I really liked the ‘Get Your Guide’ 2 hour tour which includes skip the line tickets and takes in The Forum, the amphitheatre and the smaller theatre. If you want a personal tour (rather than Group one) ‘Guide Pompeii’ also offer a good 3 hour private tour. And if you want to avoid the hassle of booking anything in advance and not commit to a time; you could just turn up and hire a guide at the entrance – there are loads!

The must see sites

The Gymnasium

The place the Romans came to keep fit! It has remnants of a swimming pool, exercise grounds and is the place where gladiators trained. Super cool.

The Forum

The hub of the city – the centre of religious temples, political life and social interactions. I particularly like the centaur statue.

The Temple of Jupiter

At the north end of the Forum is the Temple of Jupiter, and through the arches you can just about see Mount Vesuvius.

The Theatre

What an architectural feat; built in to a natural hill over 2,000 years ago, the theatre could seat 5,000 people and had marble seats. So impressive – and try the acoustics. If you’re with someone else, send them to the top of the theatre and then go and stand on ‘stage’ – then say something and see if they can hear you (they will be able to!)

The Thermopolium

The Romans had shops and food stalls just like we do. This is a good counter where chefs would cook and serve to people. Amazing.

Forum Granary

Previously a fruit and vegetable market, now home to a lot of cool vases and the occasional body shape preserved by the ash.

House of Sirico

One of the biggest houses on the main street (Via Stabiana) is the House of Sirico. Inside this house are some incredibly preserved decorations; isn’t the detail so intricate!

The Basilica

This was the seat of law courts, and was the centre of commercial and financial activity in Pompeii.

There is loads to see in Pompeii – too much to do everything in one day. But in one day you can really see all the main sites in a decent pace. My advice would be don’t try and see everything – you will hit site fatigue. Just do what you can and take it in for what it is – an amazing, historic site which is right up there as one of the most spectacular archaeological sites in the world.

Thanks for reading – if you’re planning visiting on Pompeii then I hope this guide is useful. Although for now as we’re in lockown, I hope it’s been interesting arm chair travel for all of you. Stay safe and happy travelling!

We flew to Milan on the Saturday and were only there until Sunday night so didn’t have loads of time in the city. That said, it’s a great weekend destination from the UK as it’s only a couple of hours’ flight from London, and the airport is about a 45 minute taxi ride out from the City Centre. You can also reach the centre by train on the Malpensa Express. A weekend was just long enough to see the main sights of Milan, and my top 5 highlights of the weekend are below.

Duomo di Milano

The Duomo is amazing. The cathedral took nearly 600 years to finish, and is the largest church in Italy, the third largest in Europe and the fifth largest in the world! It really is amazing to see. We decided to do the audio tour of the inside of the Duomo, the archaeological museum in the Duomo and climb up to the roof. In total, this took half a day – and I thoroughly recommend buying tickets in advance if you want to go in to the Duomo as the queue can get very, very long.

Shopping

We enjoyed spending our time exploring the beautiful shopping galleries of Milan. The Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II is right next to the Duomo and a great place to start. It’s beautiful just as a building itself!

Sforza Castle

This castle was built in the 1400s, and in the 16th and 17th century was one of the largest citadels in the world. It was extended in the late 1800s and now houses several of the city’s museums and art collections including The Museum of Ancient Art, The Museum of Musical Instruments, The Antique Museum and the Archaelogical museum. We chose to visit The Egyptian Museum and it was definitely worth a visit. The Castle also lies in Sempione Park which is well worth a walk around.

Take a traditional Italian cooking class

My highlight of the visit to Milan was a visit to a cooking class taught by an amazing Italian lady who teaches novices like us how to cook amazing authentic Italian dishes from her home. We made traditional Italian lasagne and bruscetta. It was delicious. The food in Milan is just amazing – from perfect pizzas to lovely markets. It’s nice just to flan around and eat! Preferably with wine as well.

Visit a local market or cheese bar

Milan is full of incredible culinary treats, including markets stacked with fresh produce – from fruit and veg, to cheese, to wine, to cakes and confectionary, and actual cheese bars – which in my opinion should be a thing everywhere. Just pull up a stool, order your cheese and wine, and spend a few hours watching the world go by in the sun!

And that bring to a close my top 5 things to do in Milan. Thanks for reading and I hope this post was useful if you’re planning a visit to this famous Italian city. Stay safe and happy travelling!