If you haven’t heard of it, Sorrento is a South Italian jewel found on the coast of the Bay of Naples. Popular because of it’s easy access to the Amalfi coast and famous for it’s HUGE lemons which are the key ingredient for local gelatos, pasta dishes and much loved lemonchello.
Oh Italy. You have my heart.
Matt and I flew into Naples from Moscow and took a few mins to bask in the glory of an Italian espresso. We were reminded of how much we love the laid back Italians when we jumped on the bus to Sorrento and were invited to purchase beer from the bus driver. You better believe we got a beer. The Curreri Viaggi bus can be found directly outside the main entrance to the airport and only costs 10 Euros. You can either purchase on the bus, or book prior online. The trip takes about 1 hour 30 mins, and you’ll be dropped off at the Sorrento train station.
Now Sorrento can be done quickly or slowly. I’d recommend slowly, as it’s just the Italian way (except for their insane driving). Also, then you can eat all the food. At a minimum, I’d recommend 3 days; 1 day exploring Sorrento, 1 day trip to Capri (you can find my post on that here), and 1 day discovering the Amalfi Coast. Matt and I had 4 full days, so we spent 2 days enjoying Sorrento.
Sorrento
There’s plenty to see and do in Sorrento. Here are some of our highlights.
It’s a laid back kinda place, so make sure you keep some time aside to sit at a bar or restaurant and people watch as only the Europeans can. Matt and I spent most of our time doing this. Haha. #gained5kg
Rent a daybed! Nothing makes co-workers more jealous than coming home with a golden glow, so get that vitamin D and (safely with sunscreen) get a tan.
Walk the streets and laneways. No matter your fancy, you’ll find some amazing shops here. Gloriously cheap Italian leather, a range of food and clothing, delicious lemonchello and ALL THE GELATO.
Watch the gorgeous sunset… with a wine!
Take a coast line walk. We walked to the Grand Marina for dinner.
Amalfi Coast
There’s many ways to traipse up and down the winding Amalfi coastline. Matt and I chose to jump on a scooter! The scooter cost us about 40 Euro for the entire day; 9am to 7pm. You could also hire a car or jump on a bus.
First stop was Positano. Absolutely over run with tourists, we just had a quick look around and then hit the road again.
There are plenty of stops along the coast to take amazing photos. My favourite is between Positano and Amalfi, at a little fruit stand owned by Salvatore Milano. Matt and I stopped there to get some pictures, and I idiotically left our backpack behind. The one with our passports in it (which we needed to rent the scooter). Can you believe I didn’t realise my mistake until 15 minutes later?! Matt and I zoomed back to the lookout, where Salvatore triumphantly held up our bag. I was so relieved that I hugged him. We hung with him for a bit, chatting, drinking his fresh lemon & orange juice and eating his fresh apricots. Make sure you stop and say hi if you’re ever in the area. He’s a lovely man.
Our next stop was Amalfi, where we required a beer to calm ourselves after the stressful bag debacle. We also got pizza and gelato. #another5kg
If you had timey ou could also make it to Ravello, but after the bag fiasco we were running out of time.
On the way back we stopped at Fiordo di Furore for a swim, but were disappointed by the rubbish and the state of the water. Alfonzo had told us of a swim spot closer to Sorrento, so we went on an adventure to find that.
Bagni della Regina Giovanna, or the “Baths of Queen Giovanna”, can be found 2km west of Sorrento, amongst the ruins of an old Roman Villa. The baths are free to walk down, but WHAT a walk. Follow the trail and keep right to reach the baths. The “baths” are actually a rock formation – an opening to the ocean which was once a cave, but the roof has spectacularly eroded away, creating a huge opening for the sun to shine though. The perfect spot for a swim, but place your belongings high up; the waves of the ferries sometimes caught people unaware. It was a perfect end to a long hot day.
If you were to add on days you could explore further outside Sorrento such as Pompeii, or like us, just relax and enjoy what Sorrento has to offer.
Have you been to Sorrento or the Amalfi Coast? Do you have anything else to add?
