Can I swim in Positano
 

Am planning my first trip to the amalfi coast and would like opinions about the following:

1) how is the swimming in positano? If the hotel I pick does not have a pool, will the beach be OK?

2) I will be going mid June, is the timing OK for swimming?

Opinions appreciated and thanks so much!

Only if you wear your bathers.

hahahahahahahaha ;-)

yes.

Sorry, I can't resist. Can you swim whereever you are now. I doubt that being in Positano will change you abilities much.

If you can swim, you may.

you have a wet suit?

Not only you can; you . . . . MUST !!!
And, by the way, do not miss Baia di Turtigliano: wonderful to swim, there.


Vincenzo

Where is Baia di Turtigliano, Vincenzo?

I love Positano, but I wouldn't go there for the beach. It's just not that nice. When we visited, the water looked and felt brackish, almost like a lake with too much algae in it. Also it can be quite crowded in the summer months.

There's better swimming at the beach in Atrani, as well as off the sides of a boat. And there are many small coves along the coast.

I agree with Weadles: I love Positano (gorgeous!!), but if you are going there for a "beach" experience, you will be disapppointed.

Of course you *can* swim there (if you CAN!), just be aware that the beach is small, pebbly and crowded. Don't get your hopes up for some glamorous European beach destination because you won't find it there.

Spiaggia Fornillo is larger, just follow the little walkway to the right from the Positano pier. There are many coves too. I am curious about Baia di Turtigliano too!

Most beaches on the Amalfi coast are not very attractive to people used to FL or the Carib. They are generally pebbles versus sand, are not very big, there are essentially no waves and the water is, while warm enough for me - may not be if you're not expecting FL temps. It's not exactly crystal clear and gorgeous. I would focus on a hotel with a good pool.

Seaurchin,
Not to gang up on Vincenzo, but we must get to the bottom of this, though I almost hope he makes us find it for ourselves!

Ha, I know. I am wracking my brain on this. I know the names of some of the hidden coves in the area and it doesn't sound familiar. Maybe it is nearer Massa Lubrense.

BTW, I was just dreaming of Jhonny's Pizza in Massa L. I wonder if it is still there....

Hi Sea,
I just found some films of giant storm waves in Praiano. Daydreams never seem to leave, so they?

But to tell the truth, I like swimming at Baio Jeranto, over on the Penisola Sorrentina-more remote, but beautiful and the water is so clean!
Somehow I always wonder about the beaches that sit at the base of more heavily populate parts of the AC, you can imagine why! (Think infrastructure)

OK I admit, not the most eloquently written of posts on my part, it was 10:00 at night, I was tired. But thanks to the serious responders. May I ask, how does one get to these out of the way coves? we plan to have a car with us, is that a good idea? Education appreciated.

There are water taxis that will take you to some of the smaller coves, as well as larger boat companies like Salvatore e Gennore (spelling??) that offer tours of the coast.

Hi Ivy, SOrry for the teases!
Well, if you want to go to Punta Cumpanella or Baio Jeranto, they're on the Sorrentine Penninsula, which is an easy drive from Positano,)if you go in the morning before the tour buses start their routes. Later, the traffic can get heavy and slow on the AC.
You can find maps for Baiao Jeranto and Punta Cumpanella in the tourist offices in Sant'Agata Sul Due Golfi or MassaLubrense (towns on the Sorrentine Penninsula)
Baiao Jeranto is near the town of Nerano, and Punta Cumpanella is accessible from the town of Termini.
These require parking and hiking to the bays, which is a bit strenuous.

It's a different atmosphere than Positano though, more nature oriented. Seaurchin's suggestion of Fornillo Beach is a good one for Positano.

I think you would also have fun by hiring a boat with a guide to access coves from the water!

The Beach at Atrani is large and many locals use that one.

But it's good to remember that all the Beaches are stony, so a pair of wading shoes will help.
For boat tours, Salvatore and Gennaro's booth in on the dock at Positano.
Or you can also hire boats further along the coast at Marina Praia, just past Praiano.

thanks so much - that's very helpful!

Ivy, I was just having a little joke with you.
My excuse is I am from Australia.

As everyone has said, Italian beaches are not what you will probably be used to. No golden sand and breakers etc. - usually grey sand or pebbles. I prefered the hotel pool myself.

Driving from Penisola Sorrentina along the main road of Amalfi Coast, before you arrive in Positano, watch carefully to a hole in the guard-rail, more or less it is at the milestone 8 and you can see the banner for the beach of Tordigliano.
Then, you park as soon as possible and you begin to go down step by step until you achieve this fine beach.
I apologize that I wrote "Turtigliano" and not, as it is correct "Tordigliano", but I used the usual word and pronounce of the local people.
Anyway, Tordigliano is very good to swim.

Ciao.

Vincenzo

Thanks Vincenzo! I googled it for Ivy:
http://www.panoramio.com/photo/189231

Hey Vincenzo -

Step by step? What - no donkeys?! So .. HOW many steps??

I once tried walking from Nocera to Positano. BIG mistake ;)

Steve

Grazie tante Vincenzo-
I'll definitely go there nexr rime I'm on the AC!

For Ivy et al:
also found these two images which give a good idea of the stony beachther and the area"

http://www.esclub.it/escursioni/2006/01_28/

and

http://www.esclub.it/escursioni/2006/01_28/

I'm ready to go too!

In that zone, where Penisola Sorrentina meets Amalfi Coast, there are several very beutiful small bays and I wrote about Tordigliano because it is the closest to Positano; anyway, as I read here also about Massa Lubrense and therefore about Baia di Jeranto, I want to suggest you also Baia di Crapolla and Cala di Mitigliano.
Cala di Mitigliano is along the path from Termini to Punta Campanella, on the right.
It is wonderful.

Ciao.

Vincenzo

Thanks so much Vincenzo, in fact I have been to Baia di Crapola a couple of years ago, hiking. But not yet to Mitigliano, so your suggestion are appreciated!

thanks everyone - this is all really great info! and no worries about busting my grammatical chops!!

Yes. You can choose the pay side of the beach and have a deck chair and umbrella or you could do what we did and swim on the 'free' side of the beach.
No sand to speak of lots of pebbles so if you are not used to walking on pebbles/rocks wear beach shoes into the water.

There is a small sandy area on the beach on Capri if you take the ferry over for the day.

What my wife and I did was rent a 17 foot zodiac on the main beach of Positano.
We were able to find some nice beaches, coves and caves to swim in.
Sorry for not remembering the names but the boat rental provides maps.
Its the best way to see the coast not to mention the scenery is incredible.

GSTRDR,
Do you remember about how much it costs to rent a zodiac like that for a few hours?

thanks,
dina

Dina,
I am guesing it was around 80 euro an hour. The boat rentals place had an orange awning on the beach and a small floating dock where you would board your boat. They have other types of boats but I highly recommend the 17 foot center console zodiac.
If your staying in Positano they would know the place or you could walk down on the beach and locate it yourself....just look for the orange awning with the floating dock behind it.
Will

I asked our guide in Sorrento where the town processes its sewage. He told me that it is piped over the peninsula and discharged into the sea near Positano. If this is true, I wouldn't swim anywhere near there.

I never spotted any raw sewage in the waters when I was there. Having sailed in most of the coastal waters in the northeast, i can easily spot this in the water.
Its sad what has happened to the oceans around the world.
Will

USNR-
There is a slight possibility that your guide, if he is from Sorrento, may have been pulling your leg ever so slightly. When you think of all the Towns in the Lattari Mountains above Positano, as well as Positano itself, there is likely a very busy treatment system in place.
Sorrento, a much bigger town, is on the other side of the Mountains. I'm thinking they likely have a system tied into those of Sant'Agnello, Piano, and Meta.
I'm in the middle of reading the (Fascinating) book "Gomorrah" about the Camorra System that controls so many things around Naples, and since they have such a lockdown on garbage collection, I always wonder if that control extends to waste management systems around Sorrento. SInce it's a vacation hub, it makes sense for them to have a good system!

Thanks so much, Will, for the rental info.
It sounds like a really fun thing for our family to do. (We have two teens.)

dina

"Step by step? What - no donkeys?!"

HA! too funny. beleive it or not, it is not uncommon at all to see donkeys being used for transport on the Amalfi coast off-season ;-) I've seen a donkey in the center of Amalfi itself...more than once ;-)!

In the less known part of Amalfi Coast, let's say the hills between Ravello and Tramonti and between Pogerola and Furore it is almost usual to meet donkeys, really.

Vincenzo

Photo of Donkeys in Amalfi (Centro)
(not a great photo though...was taken by my 6yr old with a kiddie camera)

http://southernitaly.files.wordpress...007/09/403.jpg