10 Best Things to Do on the Amalfi Coast

Positano is the most photographed town on the Amalfi Coast, a near-vertical cascade of pastel houses tumbling down to the sea. The town centres on the Church of Santa Maria Assunta, whose majolica-tiled dome is its landmark, and on Spiaggia Grande, the main pebble beach lined with restaurants. Steep stepped lanes thread between boutiques selling linen and the local moda Positano clothing.

There is no flat way through town, so everything is stairs - wear proper shoes and pace yourself in the heat. The internal bus loop and the ferry save the worst climbs. One of the most rewarding things to do on the Amalfi Coast is simply to walk the main path down slowly, stopping for a granita as the bell tower comes into view.

Pro Tip: Arrive by ferry rather than car. Positano's one-way road and scarce, costly parking make driving in an ordeal, while the boat drops you at Spiaggia Grande with the classic postcard view straight ahead.

Amalfi gives the coast its name and sits at its geographic centre, which makes it the most useful base for ferries and buses. The town's centrepiece is the Cathedral of Sant'Andrea, reached by a dramatic flight of 62 steps from Piazza Duomo. Its striped Arab-Norman facade dates in parts to the 9th century, and inside, the Cloister of Paradise (Chiostro del Paradiso) and the crypt of Saint Andrew are the highlights. The Amalfi Cathedral anchors a square full of cafes.

Beyond the duomo, Amalfi keeps a working-town feel, with a paper museum recalling its medieval bambagina trade and lanes climbing back into a narrow valley behind the seafront.

Pro Tip: Buy the small combined ticket for the cathedral complex - it covers the cloister, the basilica museum, and the crypt, and the palm-shaded arches of the cloister are far quieter early, before the day-trip ferries dock.

Ravello sits roughly 365 metres above the sea, a quieter and more refined counterpoint to the seaside towns, and it is best known for two historic villas. Villa Rufolo, built in the 13th century, has terraced gardens that frame one of the coast's most photographed views and host the open-air Ravello Festival each summer. A short walk away, Villa Cimbrone is famous for its Terrace of Infinity (Terrazza dell'Infinito), a marble-busted balustrade hanging over a sheer drop to the Gulf of Salerno.

Reaching Ravello means a bus or drive up a switchback road from Amalfi, since no ferry serves it. That climb keeps the crowds a little thinner than in Positano.

Pro Tip: Visit Villa Cimbrone's Terrace of Infinity first thing or near closing - midday tour groups pack the narrow viewpoint, and the light is far better in early morning or the golden hour before sunset.

The Path of the Gods (Sentiero degli Dei) is the coast's signature walk, a roughly 7.8-kilometre cliff trail running high above the sea from Bomerano, a hamlet of Agerola, to Nocelle above Positano. Taken in this direction it is mostly downhill, takes around three to four hours, and delivers nonstop views over Praiano, the islands, and the terraced slopes. It is free and needs no ticket.

This is a proper hike rather than a stroll. The path is uneven, exposed to the sun, and ends with a descent of roughly 1,500 steps down into Positano, so carry water, sun protection, and grippy shoes.

Pro Tip: Start in Bomerano and finish at Nocelle to keep the gradient in your favour, then catch the local bus down to Positano instead of the 1,500-step staircase if your knees have had enough.

A boat trip to Capri is the classic Amalfi Coast day out, and the island sits a short ferry ride offshore, roughly 30 to 50 minutes from Positano, Amalfi, or Sorrento depending on the service. Capri rewards a full day with the buzzy Piazzetta, the cliff-framed Faraglioni sea stacks, the Gardens of Augustus, and a chairlift up Monte Solaro for the widest view. The famous Blue Grotto (Grotta Azzurra) is weather-dependent and often has long queues.

Capri is expensive and busy, so an early ferry and a loose plan beat trying to cram everything into one visit.

Pro Tip: Take the first ferry of the day and head straight to the Blue Grotto or Monte Solaro before the cruise crowds land in late morning - by midday both the queues and the cafe prices on the Piazzetta climb sharply.

The Emerald Grotto (Grotta dello Smeraldo) is a sea cave in Conca dei Marini, between Amalfi and Positano, where sunlight entering through a submerged opening turns the water a glowing green. Unlike Capri's Blue Grotto, this one is reachable by land: a lift and stairway drop from the SS163 Amalfi Drive to the water, where a boatman rows you around the cavern past stalactites and a submerged ceramic nativity scene.

It is a short visit of about 30 minutes, and the colour is strongest when the sun is high. Entry is inexpensive, around EUR 10.

Pro Tip: Come between late morning and early afternoon on a sunny day - the emerald effect depends on direct sunlight hitting the underwater opening, and it fades to a dull grey under cloud or when the sun sits low.

Atrani sits in a cove just a few minutes' walk east of Amalfi, separated only by a headland, yet it feels like a quieter world. One of the smallest municipalities in southern Italy, it gathers around Piazza Umberto I, a tiny car-free square ringed by family-run trattorias, with a small free beach a few steps away. The churches of San Salvatore de' Birecto and Santa Maria Maddalena look down over the rooftops.

Because most day-trippers never leave Amalfi, Atrani stays calm even in August, which is its real appeal. The artist M. C. Escher famously sketched its stacked houses in 1931.

Pro Tip: Walk from Amalfi rather than waiting for a bus - a signed pedestrian path and a short road tunnel link the two towns in under ten minutes, dropping you straight into Atrani's square well ahead of the SS163 traffic.

The Amalfi Coast runs on lemons - the knobbly, fragrant sfusato amalfitano grown on terraces that stripe the hillsides - and tasting limoncello made from them is among the more relaxed things to do on the Amalfi Coast. Small producers in Amalfi, including those along Via Trappainguerra, press the peels into the sweet, bright liqueur that is traditionally served ice-cold after dinner. Many offer a free taste before you buy a bottle to take home.

For more context, several farms above Amalfi, Minori, and Maiori run lemon-grove tours that explain the terracing and the harvest, which runs roughly February to October.

Pro Tip: Buy limoncello from a small maker that lets you taste first rather than from a generic souvenir shop - quality varies widely, and the best versions taste of fresh lemon rather than sugar and alcohol. Ask whether it is produced on site.

Beaches on the Amalfi Coast are mostly pebble and small, tucked between cliffs, and they range from free public stretches to clubs charging serious money. Spiaggia Grande, Positano's main beach, has the finest setting and a paid section with loungers for around EUR 30, while a ten-minute walk leads to the quieter Fornillo beach. Amalfi's Marina Grande and the dark-sand cove of Marina di Praia in Praiano are easy, lower-key options.

Do not expect wide sandy resorts - the appeal here is the dramatic backdrop, not the sand, and many of the best coves are reachable only by steps or boat.

Pro Tip: For a free spot, arrive before 10am to claim space on the public section, or skip loungers entirely and reach a hidden cove like Arienzo on the small shuttle boats that run from Positano's Spiaggia Grande in summer.

The Fiordo di Furore is one of the coast's most striking sights: a narrow, fjord-like inlet carved into the cliffs in the municipality of Furore, spanned high above by a stone road bridge on the SS163. A cluster of old fishermen's houses, the Monazeni, clings to the rock beside a small pebble beach at the water's edge, reached by a long staircase down from the road.

The beach is tiny and gets busy in summer, and the well-known high-diving competition staged from the bridge draws big crowds when it runs. Outside those times the fjord is quietly dramatic.

Pro Tip: There is no real parking at the fjord and the bus stop sits on a blind bend of the SS163, so visit on a ferry-linked boat tour or a guided coast drive rather than trying to stop your own car on the narrow road.