nbbrown

I am torn between Praiano or Amalfi. I am waffling back and forth. Please help!! We will be on the A.C. for three nights, if this helps. Thanks!

dln

It would help if you would be a bit more specific about what you're looking for. Praiano is larger than Amalfi. Is this a good thing for you or a bad? (just for an example)

nbbrown

Well, this will be our first trip to Italy, (I am **so** excited) and are looking to experience much of the culture, food, wine, etc. We want to see most of the coast, we won't have a car, we like to shop or stroll on the beach (is there any??). We are looking forward to some romance for our anniversary. We would like to be able to probably tour around during the day and find a good restaraunt with great atmosphere in the evenings. I hope this helps!!

dln

What a super place to visit for your anniversary. I can't tell you about Praiano since we didn't get there, but if you use the search box you will come up with plenty of information about it.

I'll tell you about Amalfi instead. Beautiful, small, bustling with tourists. It won't take you more than an hour or so to cover the entire town. Since it's right on the water, there's a small beach but it's not a sandy beach. Small round rocks instead and it's full of families. Not very romantic! (If you email me, I will tell you a wonderful swimming hole in Sorrento that my husand and I found. Much nicer.) You can get wherever you want to go without a car, but then again, the same applies to Prainao. Amalfi has a gorgeous cathedral that is worth seeing.

I think you'd be bored with three nights in Amalfi but it would make a lovely daytrip. Ravello, up the mountain from Amalfi, is also worth visiting. It is incomparably beautiful.

ira

I think that dln is thinking of Positano.

It would be very hard to be smaller than Praiano.

Amalfi has direct ferry connections to Salerno, Positano and Sorrento as wellas bus connections to same. It is also close to Ravello.

Praiano is a very quiet, pleasant little town about 6 km E of Positano.
It has two nice restaurants.

Buses come through about hourly.

You will have to get back to town about 9:00 PM.

dln

Oops. You are correct, Ira.quot;>

PineStreet

Praiano is the low cost alternative over Positano but Amalfi has much better transport connections and bars and restaurants

ira

>Praiano is the low cost alternative over Positano ...<

Actually, I preferred it.

Much more relaxing. Same view, except that you get to see Positano from Praiano instead of VV.

nbbrown

Ira, you said we'd have to be back to town around 9:00... Did you mean Praiano? What about Amalfi? Do the busses quit running about that time to all the towns? Thanks!

europhile

Just to further confuse you, I'm going to suggest Positano for your base on the AC, primarily because of your comment about strolling and restaurants/culture. Positano has so many more options for dining, shopping, etc. than Praiano (although Praiano is more "authentic"). Amalfi has more options than Praiano, but I didn't feel it had as many upscale, atmospheric spots as Positano. Since Positano is such a tourist attraction, it really has lots of lovely, scenic places with views to sit and enjoy a bottle of wine and a great lunch or dinner. Of course, it is also more crowded in the high season, but I thought this added to it's charm. It felt more "bustling" and had an energy about it that we enjoyed. We also just found it the prettiest town along the coast (although we LOVED Ravello, it doesn't have that vertical, pastel view of Positano).

In terms of convenience for touring, much depends on the time of year you are going. If you are going in the summer, you can easily take ferries from Positano to Amalfi and Capri (and maybe Sorrento- I don't remember), and you don't need a car. However, in the off season, you are more limited in terms of sightseeing from Positano.

PineStreet

I can't see the attraction of Praiano other than it is a cheaper location to stay.I would choose Amalfi or Positano

Weadles

I think Amalfi is a better choice for you. Since you're carless, it offers better transportation options to the other coastal towns and Ravello.

Also, there are quite a few interesting places to explore right in Amalfi, like the 11th century baroque cathedral ( the facade is made entirely out of black and white mosaics) and the Museum of Paper, where you can view antique manuscripts.

As for shopping, just wander around the area near the cathedral. There you will find lots of shops selling ceramics ( although the ceramics sold in Vietri Sul Mare, a short drive away, are probably nicer and cheaper). You can also find cookware, and limoncello, which is made right in town.

Of course there are plenty of trattorias, pizzerias, and at least one gelateria, but since I haven't been to Amalfi in a few years, I can't come up with the names!

I also remember that there are a few beautiful hikes you can take, starting around the cathedral, that lead out of town into gardens and lemon groves. Maybe somebody else here can remember exactly how to do that?

Anyway, have a great time on the AC!

Weadles

Hmmm... I wish I had seen the other posters' comments before writing mine! I didn't think Positano was even in the running, but it is undeniably one of the most romantic and stunning of all the towns on the Amalfi Coast. Quite honestly, Amalfi just doesn't compare in the gorgeous views and ambience department.

PineStreet

At least from Amalfi you can walk round to the small town Atrani or take a bus up to Ravello in the evenings.From Positano you can visit Nocelle & Montepertuso

marcy_

I also have stayed in Praiano, and loved it..
We had a car, though, so that did make it easier.

We were SO glad to stay there instead of Positano, though-- it was so much calmer and quieter, and there are actually at least three nice restaurants there now, Ira (counting the one down on the beach)

And we had an unbelievable view from our room and from the hotel terrace.

Amalfi was very nice, too, but much larger and more hectic. It probably would be easier as far as transportation for you without a car, but that's not to say that you couldn't see the rest of the coast from Praiano.

We have stayed in lots of much fancier places, but when we've talked about where to go for a big anniversary, my DH says he would love to go back to our simple little hotel in Praiano with the incredible view.

nbbrown

So Amalfi is larger than Positano??? I just didn't even imagine that!

If Positano is romantic, maybe I should consider that. Romance is definately what we are wanting.

Huitres

Yes, Amalfi is larger than Positano. Amalfi was THE maritime republic in the 10th C among the towns along the coast. At the height of this commercial expansion, Amalfi was coining its own money, and its ships were trading in Tripoli, Alexandria, Tunisia, and Constantinople hence the entire "Amalfi" Coast took its name from the town.

I have been to all the towns mentioned in this thread. Praiano is lovely but very small. If you are looking for a very quiet, romantic place with not much action going on, then Praiano would be the place for you. If you would like a bit more nightlife, Amalfi would provide that as the cafes and ristorantes around the piazza and the duomo stay open late and are always a-buzz. There are a lot of shops and things to see in Amalfi too.

The SITA bus goes through all the towns, heading southward to Salerno, so you are ok without a car. Also, there are good ferry/boat connections from Amalfi to Capri, Sorrento, etc.

Weadles

Are you going this summer? If so, your decision on where to stay may be based more on availability than on town. Hotels are often booked way ahead for the May-October tourist season.

tuscanlifeedit

We visited Amalfi while staying in Positano. Positano is prettier. Amalfi didn't appeal to me; the dock area was crowded with tour buses. It just wasn't what I had hoped to see. However, I had a sfogliatelle (sp?) that I would go back to Amafi for. Amalfi seemed to have much better food shops than Positano. Positano seemed to have better dining options than Amalfi. We had good food in Positano, and spent a lot of time relaxing and oogling the view.

Matroskin

How about Minori? We stayed at a lovely place called FREE HOLIDAYS (suggested here at fodor's). It has only tree rooms; we stayed at the largest one called ZAGATA which had a private terrace - HUGE and a private bathroom - also huse! WE LOVED IT! You have to have a car to move around. If you are looking for a small town with Italian charm - this is it! The owner cooked us a splendid 5 course meal with LOTS of drinks for 20 Euro per person. We were wery sorry that we did not plan our stay there longer!