Hidden Gems To Explore On The Amalfi Coast

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Do you travel to see a main attraction or to come to know a local place? Is it a check off your bucket list or a trip to learn something? While there is nothing wrong with either approach, I have found that sometimes the more hidden, off the beaten path, local finds end up displaying the heart of a place most truly. It was in this vein that we experienced the Amalfi Coast. Our trip looked more like sunrise donkey calls, pasta making and paninis on a beach than the cliffside pools, yachts and day trips to Capri from Positano. Regardless of how you experience it though, the Amalfi Coast is known for its city spotted mountains plunging into the sea, harrowing roads  and beautiful water that certainly has been added to top sightseeing bucket lists around the world. While the pictures of Hollywood stars and millionaires vacationing would make it seem that you have to also be one yourself to visit, if you are willing to step off the beaten path to really begin to know the place and experience it as a local might, then visiting the Amalfi Coast can be quite achievable and even budget friendly. I am all in favor of saving for a vacation and even splurging a little, but when you can have a great, authentic experience without doing so, I’m in! This post isn’t so much about day trips to Capri, snorkeling tours or which leather sandal shop to stop at in Positano as plenty of others have written about those things, but instead more about the lesser known treasures of the Amalfi Coast that give an inside look to life in this slice of Italy. That being said, here are our favorite, off the beaten path, local hidden gems to explore on the Amalfi Coast. 

Towns Of The Amalfi Coast 

While famous for its most popular city, Positano, the Amalfi Coast is actually home to 13 small cities: Amalfi, Atrani, Cetara, Conca de’ Marini, Furore, Maiori, Minori, Positano, Praiano, Ravello, Scala, Tramonti, and Vietri Sul Mare. While Positano, Amalfi, Maiori and Minori are the most popular and touristy spots on the Amalfi Coast, we explored the most local (and budget friendly!) cities and villages of the area on the opposite side of the coast closer to Salerno: Raito, Vietri Sul Mare, Cetara and Erchie. Each of these small towns has their own vibe and special thing in which they are known for. 

Vietri Sul Mare 

As the biggest town of the four, Vietri Sul Mare is best known for its vibrant, colorful ceramics, long stretches of black sand beach and lively cultural scene. From clothes to home goods to ceramics, Vietri Sul Mare has great shopping and streets to explore. Likewise, many of the buses, shuttles and public transportation options run from this city to other stops along the coast so it is the most easily connected of the towns and villages surrounding it. 

Raito

A quiet spot about 15 minutes outside of Vietri Sul Mare, Raito is a quaint cliffside town that provides amazing views of the mountains, coast and water. Out of the hustle and bustle of tourist traffic, Raito offers a more local look at coastal living. If you are looking for a quiet but luxurious spot, this town is perfect as it is known for several nice hotels and holiday homes, including their 5 star hotel, Hotel Raito. With a restaurant, spa, pool and other amenities, Hotel Raito offers everything you might want for about 250 to 650 euros per night instead of the typical 1200 to 7500 euros per night of a similar hotel in Positano.

Cetara & Erchie

Known for their fresh Tuna fish, Cetara is another small, colorful town of the Amalfi Coast about a 15 minute drive or 30 minute bus from Vietri Sul Mare. Similarly, Erchie is slightly beyond Cetara (about a 10 minute drive or 15 minute bus) and is known for its local beach spots. Both of these towns were recommended to us by local staff at the agriturismo we were staying at as favorites of theirs for the beaches, lido prices and food. When visiting these towns, Italian was often the only language we heard around us as these cities seemed to be a favorite Amalfi spot of both locals and other vacationing Italians alike. 

Farmhouse Il Cavaliere dei Conti

While there are an abundant number of hotels or holiday homes to stay at between Vietri Sul Mare and Erchie (which, like Hotel Raito, are much more affordable than in the Positano area), we decided to stay at Il Cavaliere dei Conti Agriturismo. Like our agriturismo stay in Florence, this agriturismo was a working farm that had lemon groves and also raised a variety of animals ranging from donkeys and horses to birds and chickens. Perched on the edge of the mountain with a beautiful rooftop terrace, Il Cavaliere not only featured a hillside farm, but also three guest rooms (with breakfast!), a delicious restaurant and tours. 

As the farmhouse is set quite high above the sea, being able to enjoy a lovely breakfast and dinner with a view at our accommodation was such a treat. The food was fabulous and like a normal restaurant, was enjoyed not only by those staying at the farmhouse, but also by those throughout the entire area. Additionally, only slightly up beyond our agriturismo, we found a wonderful family run restaurant, Bruschetteria Albori, which we also thoroughly enjoyed for their large “bruschettas” (which resembled paninis) and seafood. 

Experiences 

Even if you decide not to stay at Il Cavaliere dei Conti, I highly recommend coming to visit for dinner or for one of their experiences. Not only do they provide a restaurant to the public, but they also offer lemon grove tours to learn about the classic Amalfi Limoncello production process, cooking classes, horseback excursions, and educational farm tours. 

Charlie and I both immensely enjoyed one of their cooking classes where their chef taught us how to make several types of fresh pasta. Following the pasta creation, they cooked the pasta in a variety of ways for us to enjoy as a wonderful lunch! Being able to have the experience to learn from a local Italian chef from the area who makes fresh pasta daily and enjoy our creations afterward was definitely a highlight of our trip! 

Hidden Beaches 

If you’re looking to visit the Amalfi Coast and understand how the cliffs dive straight into the sea, it probably won’t surprise you to learn that the beaches of the Amalfi Coast are tucked away between the ocean and mountainside, small and rocky. If you are looking for the endless stretches of white sand and blue water that characterizes much of Florida or the Caribbean coast, then you might be disappointed, but each of the beaches that we stumbled upon were beautiful in their own way. We visited:

Lido a’cartera / Chiosco Bar Mirra Giuseppina

The first beach we visited, the lidos next to Chiosco Bar Mirra Giuseppina, was a small local hidden gem about a 30 minute walk from Il Cavaliere dei Conti. We quite literally stumbled upon this beach after watching a few locals with beach gear disappear from the road down a long stretch of stairs. We decided to follow the stairs as well and to our happy surprise, found a sign for a public beach! The beach itself was quite small and rocky however the water was very pretty and the prices for chairs and/or an umbrella and food were reasonable for the area. I will mention though that getting to this beach (like most of the Amalfi Coast) requires an enormous amount of stairs, so be prepared for a little hike. Once you arrive though, you will be surrounded by Italian conversation and situated in a hidden gem of the Amalfi Coast. 

Lido near Rosa dei Venti

The next beach we visited was a larger stretch of beach near Vietri Sul Mare, next to Rosa dei Venti. While much more crowded than then Lido near Chiosco Bar Mirra Giuseppina, the beach access was much easier and in general, was more family friendly. Likewise, instead of small rocks, this beach featured black sand so that was definitely a fun “first” to experience as well! 

Lido Edelvina

The last beach we visited was Lido Edelvina in Erchie recommended to us by the staff at Il Cavaliere dei Conti. This beach felt like a combination of the previous two above as it still was rocky, but was a bit bigger than Lido a’cartera and also had fairly easy accessibility. We did drive to Erchie, but parking was pretty close and was worth the cost to park instead of taking a bus. Similarly, it was here that we found the classic Amalfi lemon ice cream frozen in the lemon which I highly recommend on a hot day! 

Regardless of what beach you find yourself at though, we found that there are very few areas to bring your own beach items and instead you must pay for chairs and/or an umbrella to gain a spot on the beach. Most of these ranged in price from 15 to 30 euros for two chairs and an umbrella. While I didn’t love having to pay to be on a beach, it was nice to have beach items already set up and enjoyable for your entire time there. Likewise, most of the beaches had some sort of popup sandwich shop with paninis, ice creams or popsicles, drinks and bathrooms available.

A Note On Transportation 

While the 2 hour stretch of road along the Amalfi Coast is known by National Geographic as one of their “drives of a lifetime”, driving the road can be quite an intense process. 

By Car

If you have a car, or have rented a car (if you have the choice, choose a small one!), you certainly can drive between the towns and visit several along your trip. That being said, prepare to drive along tiny, winding roads (one road was so small it had a stop light to switch traffic directions!) full of mopeds and buses and expect to either pay for parking or to park along the road. 

We did this when we visited Erchie through Cetara, however in full disclosure, we did not visit any other towns (or the Path of gods hike) because the road was so windy, Charlie was getting carsick while driving. Typically, he might get carsick in the backseat or occasionally as a front passenger but never while driving, so for him to start feeling bad while driving the road for 30 minutes, we thought the 2 hour stretch might be a bit much. That being said, if you want to have most of your visit on the less touristy end of the Amalfi Coast and then drive for the day to the Path of gods hike, Amalfi, Positano or Ravello, certainly feel free to go for it! But know that if you struggle with car sickness, you might want to bring some medicine or stay more local. 

By Shuttle / Bus / Ferry

Another option if you don’t have a car is to move about by shuttle, bus or ferry. If you are staying near Albori (next to Il Cavalier dei Conti) or Raito, there is a free shuttle that goes throughout the day down and back to Vietri Sul Mare (or you can brave a 45 minute walk if you miss it. We did that once!). Beyond the shuttle however, there is public transportation by bus or ferry between the towns. While we never officially rode the bus route, we did wait at a bus stop for some time hoping to catch a bus, but to no avail. The bus / ferry can be a great way to get around the coast, but from our experience and from what I have read, punctuality is not their specialty, so plan to be very flexible with your itinerary. 

Visit Pompeii 

While not really a hidden gem of the Amalfi Coast, I do still highly recommend visiting Pompeii if you are staying on or near the Amalfi Coast as it is only a 30 minute drive from Vietri Sul Mare and a little over an hour from Positano. Whether you take an entire day to visit or visit on your way to or from the Amalfi Coast, Pompeii is incredible and certainly worth the stop. As the eruption of Mount Vesuvius layered the city of Pompeii in ash and pumice back in 79 A.D., everything was preserved right where it stood. Now, you can walk the streets, visit homes and see paintings, pottery, statues, amphitheaters and acres upon acres of the remnants of an ancient life. Much of what is known about ancient daily life has come from the discoveries at Pompeii and it is spectacular to see just how brilliant people were back then in the ways that they designed, constructed, engineered and lived their lives.  

Final Thoughts

From authentic cooking classes and lemon groves to hidden beaches and local pottery, our time on the Amalfi Coast was a fun one. Certainly our calves were sore from traversing the mountainous terrain and hundreds of steps, but it was beautiful to see how another culture lives with their dinner parties laughing late into the night, soccer fields surrounded by nets on the roof of a cliffside school and mopeds zooming around buses which are on a timetable entirely of their own. It is these experiences of food, land and sea that mark the memories of Amalfi Coast and certainly make traveling a joy. So, are these local hidden gems on your bucket list? 

Happy traveling!

Chloe

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