My DH and are are planning to spend a week beginning May 15 on the Amalfi Coast and of course we're looking for a room with a view. We'd like to be close to restaurants in a lively town but have a quiet room. I've been looking at Sorrento or Positano but would consider other places. We'd like a kitchenette available but expect to eat out most nights. Budget is 160 Euros per night. I've seen a few online but I was discouraged by descriptions of the climb to get to them. Any suggestions?

http://www.ilnido.it/

Balconies, reasonable price, great view, but no kitchenette... but does have wet bar, which i'm sure they would empty out for you. NO climb unless you want it, b/c they have a free shuttle bus up to the hotel. te restuarant gets great reviews too. The owner was very helpful in email. (We ended up choosing somewhere else lower down, which had a separate kitchenette, but no "view" .)

Good luck!

First decide Sorrento or Positano---BIG difference.

It's hard to avoid stairs in Positano. You can avoid them in Sorrento but then you're not on the Amalfi Coast, you're on the Gulf of Naples. If that's OK with you.

Look for studio and one-bedroom apartments. I checked Tripadvisor; there are some 1 bedrooms within your budget. Your dates are a bit of a problem. Most 1-week rentals are Saturday to Saturday.

Oh, and Il Nido is not in Sorrento.

You should also be looking at VRBO.com and Sleepinitaly.com and Italyperfect.com for studio apartments.

Mimar,thanks for your comments. From my understanding via email communications with Il Nido, is that they are in the Sorrento Hills, although not in the town center.
I am curious, as we did plan to take the navettete bus up from where we are staying right in the center, to Il NIdo, for dinner (and the view). Here is the hotel's description of its location:

"An intimate hotel located on the hills of Sorrento with sea views
Situated on a hill, just 5 km from the centre of Sorrento"

Correct or not?

Hi

Check out also www.vrbo.com

That is correct, but Sorrento is NOT the Amalfi Coast. That is your first decision.

Yes, Il Nido is in the hills outside Sorrento. Never having been there, I don't know if their views are better than those in town or in other hotels around Sorrento.

Yes, the views are good (you can see Vesuvius and Capri from Il Nido)and it's much quieter than being in Sorrento. Many hotels in Sorrento don't actually have views as other hotels block them. Il Nido is only about 10 minutes up in the hills and provides their own free shuttle. They are also on the bus route between Sorrento and the Amalfi coast. They don't have kitchenettes that I know of, but rooms do have mini-fridge. Breakfast is included and is very generous with lots of selections. I've had rooms with balconies and rooms without. I don't feel the need for a balcony as I'm usually out most of the day and it's dark when I return. For breakfast, the entire dining room has a view (glass doors the length of the room) or you can take your breakfast out on the restaurant terrace.

>>>I am curious, as we did plan to take the navettete bus up from where we are staying right in the center, to Il NIdo, for dinner<<<

I would imagine you could take the Il Nido shuttle bus (is navette French?) if you wanted to have dinner at Il Nido (it departs from Piazza Antiche Mura - many hotel shuttle buses depart from there - it's a short walk off the main street). E-mail Gianni and ask.

A bit closer in than Il Nido is the Aminta. It costs more (4 star versus 3 star for Il Nido), but has a pool.
http://www.aminta.com/en/index.php

Both have web cams if you want to check views.

Thanks for all your replies.
bobthenavigator...sorry my tag should have read Sorrento/Amalfi. I know that Sorrento is not on the Amalfi Coast, but it is often touted as a good place from which to make day trips exploring the area. We want to see Pompeii and Paestum as well as the towns along the AC. We may also visit Capri and Ischia in our second week. Charnee, thank you for those websites...there's an amazing number of choices for apartments! kybourbon, you make a good point about being out most of the day and whether a balcony/view should be a priority. I'll think about that. CaliNuse, which did you end of choosing?

Many of the apartments do not have any reviews posted so it's difficult to choose. As we all know, the pictures do not always reflect reality. I was hoping someone had actually stayed at one they could recommend. I'll continue browsing through all the options. Thanks for your help!

In Positano, consider Casa Maresca. Positano is pretty much up-and-down, but there are relatively few steps from the road to Casa Maresca. There are reviews on TripAdvisor.

We stayed at Il Nido last spring for 2 nights...and while it was very nice..everthing involves taking the shuttle to town. I think a week of that would get old. Two years ago we stayed in Positano..at the Best Westernright in town. We had great views..a large balcony..and could walk everywhere. the bus stop was 2 seconds away from the hotel. For a one week stay..I would defineately recommend the Positano experience

Jetboat, that Positano hotel looks fabulous!

Dana, the place we ended up choosing, because it had a kitchenette ( daughter loves to cook using fresh foood from localmarket) is:

http://www.villaelisasorrento.com/english/index.htm

We're booked into the Dalia apartment.

No sea view, but gets excellent reviews, good location in Sorrento town, pretty courtyard, right cross the road from casual restaurant with wonderful sea view (can go for coffee, etc, when craving that view!) and very affordable (for our budget). The owner's son, Antonio, is terrific, very helpful and patient via emails, writes perfect English from his days in the USA, and is quite willing to help guests with their Italian, if desired!

Cali - Did any of the reviews mention noise at night? That's a very busy street at night because they close the Corso Italia and make it pedestrian only (perhaps not every night except in summer) from Piazza Tasso so that street becomes one of the alternate traffic routes to get around Sorrento.

European hotels don't really have kitchenettes - IME this is almost exclusely an American phenomenon. You'll need an apartment.

Kybourbon, great point--thanks for enquiring about the noise factor. Yes, i did read about it somewhere (maybe TA?). Apparently it's not a problem b/c the apartments are around an inner courtyard which is off the main street, and the rooms face into the courtyard.

Having been to Trastevere in Rome in summer, with motorcycle vroom vroom noises all night, we'll be happy with anything less

http://www.bbplanet.com/apartment-vi...r_feedback.htm

KyBourbon,and Dana, this is the site with reviews I saw previously. One mentions noise, but it is daytime noise. I just checked Tripadvisor again, and a few reviews say it is quieter at night (than in the day) though one lady preferred to use earplugs b/c her home is in a very quiet area.

I will report back after we are there..which won't be 'til mid-June. Dana, you will be in the area before we will. Can hardly wait!!!

Second the recommendation for Casa Maresca in Positano - balcony, rooms have a fridge, some have little kitchenette I believe, well within your price range, incredibly friendly native English speaking proprietor.

I have not seen the rates for Casa Maresca..The view from this B&B is Fabulous..Has anyone stayed there?