By Italy Roamer · Published · Updated
Amalfi Coast travel guide: towns, transport and how long to stay
Allow three full days for Amalfi, Ravello and Positano, with extra time for beaches or smaller towns. Choose the eastern or western arrival before booking your coast base.
How to plan a first Amalfi Coast visit
For a first visit, allow three full sightseeing days and keep one hotel base. Give Amalfi and nearby Atrani one day, Ravello another, and Positano a third. Four nights often makes those three days usable without treating arrival and departure as full sightseeing days. This is an editorial pacing recommendation, not a minimum stay or a bookable package. The coast runs along the Gulf of Salerno from Positano towards Vietri sul Mare. Sorrento is a separate peninsula base, useful for rail trips but not a substitute for sleeping in an Amalfi Coast town. Choose the coast for evenings in its towns; choose Sorrento if Pompeii and other rail outings dominate.
Italia.it: coast geography and main townsAmalfi and Atrani: a useful first town day
Start at Amalfi’s waterfront, continue to Piazza Duomo and the cathedral, then explore the lanes inland rather than returning straight to the ferry queue. Cathedral-complex admission is separate from simply walking through town; leave room for a paid visit if that interests you. Atrani is the neighbouring small town, with a compact square and beach below its hillside streets. Pairing it with Amalfi makes more sense than crossing the entire coast for a second town. Choose a pedestrian route suited to your mobility rather than following the traffic road blindly. Lunch and time at the waterfront can fill the rest of this day; Ravello does not have to be squeezed in as well.
Italia.it: Amalfi cathedral and neighbouring AtraniRavello: villas above the coast, not a beach stop
Go to Ravello for Villa Rufolo, Piazza del Vescovado and the gardens of Villa Cimbrone. Villa Rufolo is beside the central square; Villa Cimbrone requires a further walk through town. Choose one garden if you want a shorter outing, or give both and lunch most of a day. Published opening arrangements and admission apply separately at each site. Ravello is on the hill above the coast. Arrive by road using the Amalfi–Ravello connection rather than searching for a ferry to the historic centre. A hotel described as being in Ravello’s coastal hamlet of Castiglione is not beside the hilltop villas. Do not plan that height difference as an incidental flat stroll.
Italia.it: Ravello’s hilltop centre, villas and CastiglionePositano: allow for the climb as well as the beach
Give Positano a day for the lanes around Santa Maria Assunta, Marina Grande and, if the walking route suits you, Fornillo beach. The Roman Archaeological Museum, MAR, adds a specific archaeological interest; it is a separate visit rather than something automatically included in a boat ticket. Positano is steep. A ferry brings you to the waterfront while the Sponda and Chiesa Nuova bus stops serve the road above. Decide whether you want a beach-level visit or to climb through town, and match the return transport to that choice. Do not treat a short horizontal map distance as a reliable walking-time estimate.
Italia.it: Positano sights, beaches, MAR and stairwaysSmaller towns: choose an eastern-coast day
Maiori and Minori are useful alternatives to another long transfer west. Maiori has a long main beach; Minori adds its Roman-villa interest. Vietri sul Mare suits ceramics, while Cetara suits a smaller fishing-town stop. Choose one pair or one town with a long lunch instead of collecting all four names in a day. The Lemon Path and Path of the Gods are walks with their own gradients, weather and access decisions. They are not necessary links in this three-day town plan. This guide does not certify current trail opening, and a generic tourism description should not be used as a same-day safety or access notice.
Italia.it: Maiori, Minori, Cetara and Vietri sul MareArriving from the east: Salerno then the coast
For an eastern-coast base, compare a train to Salerno followed by a boat or road connection. Travelmar’s October 2026 timetable distinguishes Piazza Concordia, labelled for the train station, from Molo Manfredi. Choose the pier printed on your departure, not just “Salerno port”. The timetable effective 1 October lists Salerno–Amalfi crossings of 35 minutes, with specified stopping sailings taking 60 minutes, and Salerno–Positano at 70 minutes. These are scheduled crossing times, not a station-to-hotel promise. Add time to reach the pier, board and continue from the arrival quay to the property.
Travelmar: October 2026 timetable, piers and crossing timesArriving from the west: Naples, Sorrento and an onward leg
A Sorrento arrival by EAV train ends at Sorrento; it does not continue to Positano or Amalfi. Add the road or available sea journey and the final hotel approach. SITA’s current coastal PDF covers 5 October to 1 November 2026 and includes Amalfi–Positano–Sorrento, Amalfi–Maiori–Salerno and Scala–Ravello–Amalfi. Use its exact stop rows and day codes: F means Monday–Saturday working days, H Sundays and holidays, G daily, and S school days. After 1 November, use a replacement schedule rather than carrying these departures into winter. A July road-diversion notice still exists online, but it is not a reason to substitute old diversion departures for the newer dated timetable.
SITA: current coastal routes, stop names and calendar codesWhat the ferry legs cost
Travelmar’s 2026 ordinary one-way fares are €12 Salerno–Amalfi, €17 Salerno–Positano, €10 Amalfi–Positano and €5 Amalfi–Maiori or Minori. The published luggage charge is €3; judge your bag against the operator’s conditions rather than assuming every item travels free. Salerno’s €1.50 departure tax is included in the published fare. A Salerno–Positano–Amalfi–Salerno circuit totals €39 per full-fare adult before applicable extras. The tariff sheet explicitly describes tour totals as the sum of the separate legs: it is not evidence of a discount, a guide or reserved attraction entry.
Travelmar: 2026 full-price fares, extras and tour-total conditionsDates, weather and a workable last day
Travelmar advertises year-round service, but that does not guarantee the same departures, ports or frequencies every month. Its current October PDF marks Atrani and Praiano services as starting in June 2027; do not book an October 2026 hotel expecting either of those Travelmar stops. Sea conditions and technical disruption can change services. Keep a town day available if a crossing fails, and avoid making the final boat the only connection to a long-distance train or flight. For a morning flight from Naples, a final night nearer the departure can be more useful than paying for another coast evening and arranging a very early transfer.
Travelmar: current service scope and future-port notesChoose your coast base
The town plan and the hotel decision are different. Compare the final luggage approach and the journey you will repeat before choosing a room.