Amalfi Coast - by sea or land?

[nknowland]

We are planning to be in Naples Italy in May 2019.

We want to tour the Amalfi Coast by sailboat. Looking for experienced advice. Especially anchoring in such deep water.

We could go by land, but crazy traffic I’m told.

Thanks

[sailormed]

Buy the Rod Heikel book of Italy. You get all your questions answered.

[mikedefieslife]

Or someone who has done it could share their experiences, which will probably be more up to date and contain more useful information. This forum loves to recommend a book for every question asked. Some boats must have a library as heavy as their keel.

[LongRange]

Overrated by sea. Very steep and forbidding, with virtually nothing in the way of anchorages. Expensive marinas at either end - Capri and Salerno - but south of Rome sailboats are in the minority. Picturesque, but not what Id call a cruising ground. Sail down to Tropea instead.

Crazy by land, but that's part of the charm. Driving down from Naples is an adventure in its own right. On the way, climb up to the top of Vesuvius (awesome!), allocate a few hours for Pompeii, sample the gelato in Sorrento, and marvel at just how narrow and improbable a major road can be.

[olaf hart]

Check they haven’t closed the coastal walking track again before they sell you the train tickets...

[cuffy]

Spent 4 days anchored in between the marinas at Salerno last week. Anchored in sand in 4m good holding and protection but open to the south - south west. Took dinghy in to yacht Marina which is 5 minute walk to train / bus station
Took bus to Amalfi along jaw droppingly beautiful coast road for about €5 return.
Took train to Pompeii, 40 minutes and also €5 return
Pompeii stunning!

[AZUS]

I've sailed there three times - once on a Mooring/Sailitalia charter out of Procida, twice on our own boat. The sailing is great, in our opinion. Great little harbor in Procida, anchor off Ischia, pick up one of many mooring balls in Positano (the water taxi will take you in and out). Use the seasonal pontoon in Amalfi or you can anchor off of the beach bouys (we did for 2 nights and it was great -and free). If you stop in Amalfi, take a taxi up to Ravello. There is a daily guided hike down to the town center of Amalfi.

Don't hesitate to sail this area. It's pricey, but spectacular.

[AZUS]

And the Rod Heikel book is the way to go! We used it every time.

[hlev00]

Both! At least that is what we did. We were interested in seeing the Amalfi coast but also wanted to spend a week sailing. As others have mentioned the Amalfi coast itself is not too inviting for sailing. Our was about a 10 day trip. In 2011 we got a small flat for 2 nights in Salerno as a base. From there we took scheduled buses for a day trip down the Amalfi coast. You could probably do a tour but we like our own schedule. It was quite easy. We stopped in Positano and Amalfi. Maybe another too. It is sad I don't recall exactly. I'll dig up our itinerary if interested. Another day we took the train to Pompeii. Rick Steves has a great video on Amalfi. It was what inspired our trip.

After that we picked up a bareboat in Naples. From there we sailed to Procida, Isla d'Iscia with several stops at each. We finished at Capri for a couple of days, then back to Naples via the Blue Grotto.

We are from New England and used to pulling into a harbor, dropping anchor, and then dinghy ashore. We had mixed results with that technique on this trip. We went into two marinas. Anchoring at Capri was the most challenging. We anchored in Marina Piccola. One evening we beached the dinghy at a beach resort that didn't seem to mind since they were closed in the evening. The next day we swam ashore and climbed out across some rocks then walked to town. We were there in early June. Weather was great for us. Not sure about May. If your budget and style allows there is a big marina on Capri. It was something like $400 a night.

[brendanwalls]

I drove it a few times with my ex; "KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE ROAD" q.e.d.

[Dave22q]

We took the bus from Naples. Cheap, awesome views nice places to have lunch before return. By sea, pretty sail but few ports.

[Chalifour]

We sailed the Amalfi coast in 2009, some years ago, however I suspect that it as not changed too much.

We charter our sailboat from the island of Procida in the bay of Naples and sailed all the way down on the coast of Amalfi and Calabria to the Aeolians and back up to Procida with a stop on Capri and Ischia. The coast is wonderful and we keep great souvenirs of this one-month sail. Among the coastal cities worth a stop are Sorrento, Amalfi, Maratea, Vibo Valencia( try Stella del Sud marina, Canadian Italians own it), Tropea and Scilla. Positano was unfortunately too touristy for us and somewhat spoiled. Anchoring in front of Positano and landing our dinghy on shore proved to be a little challenging!!! No public access!!! The Aeolian islands are quite impressive with the Stromboli erupting every twenty minutes, Vulcano, Lipari (the main administrative island), Salina and Panarea are a must. You need a fair weather window and good seamanship to sail the Aeolians since there are few places where to hide when the wind picks up.
Definitely positive!!! Also there are many places where to leave your ship safely and hire a car to explore the interior.

[Davidhoy]

Originally Posted by LongRange

Overrated by sea. Very steep and forbidding, with virtually nothing in the way of anchorages. Expensive marinas at either end - Capri and Salerno - but south of Rome sailboats are in the minority. Picturesque, but not what Id call a cruising ground. Sail down to Tropea instead.

Crazy by land, but that's part of the charm. Driving down from Naples is an adventure in its own right. On the way, climb up to the top of Vesuvius (awesome!), allocate a few hours for Pompeii, sample the gelato in Sorrento, and marvel at just how narrow and improbable a major road can be.

Never done it by sea, but the suggestion of climbing Vesuvius is excellent. I did that a couple of years ago with my mother, and it was amazing. And instead of Pompeii, consider touring Herculaneum - it too was buried in the 79 AD eruption, but is much more impressive in my opinion. Or, better yet, visit both :-).

[Quadrille in JB]

The Amalfi coast is one of the most beautiful places we’ve sailed. Tropea was great with a nice marina. Skip Capri (crowded and crazy expensive) but don’t miss Ischia. Nice anchorage and great walks. Pompeii was well worth spending most of a day there. The Pompei museums are in Naples. Skip Calabria, it’s a big commercial port with a not so nice town. Great to see Stromboli sparking.

[waterman46]

Originally Posted by brendanwalls

I drove it a few times with my ex; "KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE ROAD" q.e.d.

I drove it also, but my wife was reasonably calm, compared to me! Proof that it's possible to drive Amalfi coast one end to the other and not ruin a relationship! Would rather have done it by sea though, much more relaxing. After you've experienced one hairpin turn with a bus headed toward you in the same width of road you thought you were using, it's enough.