Amalfi Coast with the kids
Discussion
So, flights booked, accommodation almost. We're off to Amalfi/Sorrento/Positano later this year.
Any tips or pointers gratefully received - best beaches and other things to do with the kids; things to consider etc.
Whilst it would appear that there are plenty of beaches in the area, I can't seem to get any detail. Grazie.
Any tips or pointers gratefully received - best beaches and other things to do with the kids; things to consider etc.
Whilst it would appear that there are plenty of beaches in the area, I can't seem to get any detail. Grazie.
Wife and I have been to the Amalfi Coast area several times. We always go somewhere in Italy for at least a week each year.
Around the Amalfi Coast just about all of the beaches are pebbles and if you use sun beds etc you have to pay for them. There's no beaches in Sorrento: there's floating pontoons which you pay for along with the beds, umbrellas etc.
We don't rate Sorrento. Too many cruise ships means that the town is swamped every day and the prices are high. One point to note: Pompeii is easily got to by train from Sorrento: it stops virtually outside the Pompeii entrance. Something to consider for the kids maybe. If you go, allocate a full day.
Positano is nice, small place, always crowded. Good place to visit by ferry and have lunch while you're there.
Amalfi is the hub. All the ferries and buses congregate here, so if you're in town you can get a ferry to Capri, Sorrento, Positano, Maoiri, Minori, Salerno, etc. You can get a bus to these places too (not Capri!), plus Ravello which in the hills above Amalfi.
Beaches at Maori and Minori are pebbles. Maoiri is small, Minori a bit larger. Both have all the facilities you need for the day. It's good to go to/from either by the short ferry trip from Amalfi.
Ravello is well worth a visit. In fact, we have stayed for a week in Ravello three times now; we love it. Mind you, the tourists do turn up just for the day between maybe 10:00 and 16:30, but aside from these times the place gets back to a more leisurely pace. Ravello is good for wandering around, great views, good gardens to visit and excellent restaurants. If you're there the second week of September there is a really spectacular fireworks display on the Saturday, which is probably the 10th this year.
How are you planning to get around? Hiring a car? Good luck and make sure you're fully insured as you're bound to get some dents. Find out what the ZTL road sign means. The Amalfi coast area driving is like nothing else and it will keep the kids entertained. And if you have a car and need to get it back to Naples Airport, good luck finding the Airport!
Ask here if you need more info such as hotels,restaurants etc.
R.
Around the Amalfi Coast just about all of the beaches are pebbles and if you use sun beds etc you have to pay for them. There's no beaches in Sorrento: there's floating pontoons which you pay for along with the beds, umbrellas etc.
We don't rate Sorrento. Too many cruise ships means that the town is swamped every day and the prices are high. One point to note: Pompeii is easily got to by train from Sorrento: it stops virtually outside the Pompeii entrance. Something to consider for the kids maybe. If you go, allocate a full day.
Positano is nice, small place, always crowded. Good place to visit by ferry and have lunch while you're there.
Amalfi is the hub. All the ferries and buses congregate here, so if you're in town you can get a ferry to Capri, Sorrento, Positano, Maoiri, Minori, Salerno, etc. You can get a bus to these places too (not Capri!), plus Ravello which in the hills above Amalfi.
Beaches at Maori and Minori are pebbles. Maoiri is small, Minori a bit larger. Both have all the facilities you need for the day. It's good to go to/from either by the short ferry trip from Amalfi.
Ravello is well worth a visit. In fact, we have stayed for a week in Ravello three times now; we love it. Mind you, the tourists do turn up just for the day between maybe 10:00 and 16:30, but aside from these times the place gets back to a more leisurely pace. Ravello is good for wandering around, great views, good gardens to visit and excellent restaurants. If you're there the second week of September there is a really spectacular fireworks display on the Saturday, which is probably the 10th this year.
How are you planning to get around? Hiring a car? Good luck and make sure you're fully insured as you're bound to get some dents. Find out what the ZTL road sign means. The Amalfi coast area driving is like nothing else and it will keep the kids entertained. And if you have a car and need to get it back to Naples Airport, good luck finding the Airport!
Ask here if you need more info such as hotels,restaurants etc.
R.
I admit its a stunning place to visit, the galaxy chocolate advert gets me back there.
As what to do with children is age dependent and I hope yours don't get seasick.
There is a grotto to visit along the coast but will take you an hour at the most. It was as much amusing as amazing .Can be visited via road ( lift by the road side) or sea.
Capri also offers more Grotto boat tours and a chair lift to a high point. Allow a full day for this, and an early start.
The towns along Amafi are busy. We went the end of September 2015. We are fortunate enough to have been able to hire a driver as parking was awful then. As regards to beaches I agree with the above poster.
On a brighter note the Foreigners Club in Sorrento has some children's springy playground rides when you need some adult time. The views from there are good too.
Visits to Veseuvius Pompeii etc could be very hot during your stay. Go early and consider the train.
As what to do with children is age dependent and I hope yours don't get seasick.
There is a grotto to visit along the coast but will take you an hour at the most. It was as much amusing as amazing .Can be visited via road ( lift by the road side) or sea.
Capri also offers more Grotto boat tours and a chair lift to a high point. Allow a full day for this, and an early start.
The towns along Amafi are busy. We went the end of September 2015. We are fortunate enough to have been able to hire a driver as parking was awful then. As regards to beaches I agree with the above poster.
On a brighter note the Foreigners Club in Sorrento has some children's springy playground rides when you need some adult time. The views from there are good too.
Visits to Veseuvius Pompeii etc could be very hot during your stay. Go early and consider the train.
thismonkeyhere said:
Well, we're in Italy in August, so I am starting to wonder whether Amalfi etc is a good idea.
I'd guess that August is probably the worst time to go. Hotels will be full and charging treble rates. Traffic will be grid locked. Restaurants rammed. Very hot with no sandy beaches to cool off on.
I buckled to pressure from the wife a few years ago - the year Liverpool won the champions league which we watched in a bar in Sorrento - and teh two of us went to the Almafi coast.
The main good thing about it was that it was close to Pompeii. Subsidiary posive things were that the weather was good, it was nice to walk around, and the place was different to anywhere else I'd been. The obligatory strike at Naples meant we were diverted to and from Rome.
But wouldn't go back, certianly not with kids. It's a tourist trap for old folk and honeymooners. And people who love huge traffic jams of coaches, and pollution from two stroke engines.
The main good thing about it was that it was close to Pompeii. Subsidiary posive things were that the weather was good, it was nice to walk around, and the place was different to anywhere else I'd been. The obligatory strike at Naples meant we were diverted to and from Rome.
But wouldn't go back, certianly not with kids. It's a tourist trap for old folk and honeymooners. And people who love huge traffic jams of coaches, and pollution from two stroke engines.
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