Ravello or Positano
 

My wife and I are deciding between four nights in either Positano or Ravello. We're not sure which one is the better jumoing off point for exploring the area. We're hoping to avoid using a car and rely on buses and public transportation, Ravello seems more refined but harder to access without a car.

You will need to catch a seperate bus line from Amalfi up to Ravello. On weekends, it runs very infrequently. Cab drivers know this and charge 30 Euro each way from Amalfi up to Ravello, a less than 10 minute ride. We asked several cab drivers for their rate and they all said the same thing.

Base yourself at Sorrento. Trains from here to Pompei, cheap and comfortable SITA buses to Positano, Amalfi, Ravello, etc., lots of hotel, restaurant choices, hundreds of nice shops, ferries and hydrofoils to Capri and Eschia, nice cafes,........

Have fun whatever you decide.

Larry J

The SITA bus service from Amalfi to Ravello is as reliable as any on the Amalfi Coast and the journey is around twenty minutes.The Hike down from Ravello to Amalfi is enjoyable and easy to follow and is all downhill!

You pose an interesting question. Positano IS easier to access--the bus and the ferry are right there, making public transportation very easy. Ravello is set high in the hills and if you want to take the ferry as a jump-off to exploring the coastal towns or islands, you must first get on the bus that brings you down to the town of Amalfi. The bus runs at least hourly, and it can be on the crowded side. Or as Infomania points out, you can hike down. My husband and I did this and it's an incredibly beautiful hike, but I must point out that it takes at least 45 minutes, longer if you succomb to all those "Kodak moments" as we did! However, Ravello is so breathtakingly beautiful, elegant, and serene, that you might find yourself not wanting to explore other locales as much as you might think. We had only a day in Ravello, but I could easily have spent several there. It was one of the loveliest places we saw, a place where just being there was enough.

Here's the website from the tourist bureau brochure we got in Ravello: www.ravello.it/aziendaturismo. We did not stay at this hotel, but we wandered in and took a look and found it gorgeous--the Hotel Villa Maria, www.villamaria.it.

Hi we stayed in Praiano. From our hotel we could see the twinkling lights of Positano.

Buses provide regular service to Amalfi, Positano and Sorrento.

See my trip report Ira?s Trip Report
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34451044

I would choose Positano -it's an easier bus ride to other A.C. locations-Sorrento, Amalfi, Ravello. The bus ride to Amalfi from Ravello is about 30 mins. with stops. They run on the hour approximately. Then you have to switch to go anywhere else. That being said, definately plan some time in Ravello-it's gorgeous.

Hi. I thought Ravello was particularly beautiful.
But I am the type of person that likes to start out at the beginning of the day to eplore right away. For this reason, it would drive me crazy to use Ravello as a base to explore the area. I wouldn't want to add the extra travel time for the bus up and down that hill just to take another form of transport at the bottom to tour.
IMHO Ravello is the type of place to stay a day or two and savour.
If you plan to explore extensively, I would use another base that may be a little easier to get to and from.
But have a great trip whatever you decide.

We spent 4 nights at the Amalfi coast in October and spent two nights in Positano and two in Ravello. This worked out quite well for us, however we had a rental car. We were glad we did...the buses looked quite crowded and to us taking public transportaion seemed like a hassle. Parking was never a problem.

If you do decide to use Positano as your base, be sure to make the trip up to Ravello. We really loved it there, and enjoyed the town overall far more than Positano. The views are simply amazing, quite different than Positano because you are much higher up. Visit the gardens and check out the views....I was so moved by the beauty there.

Enjoy.

I got married last March in Ravello - so I'm sort of partial to that location. Either way - you'll be a winner - see them both!!!!

Mike - the jealous one.