Village
Positano
Amalfi Coast · Campania
QUICK INFORMATION
- CATEGORY
- Village
- COUNTRY
- Italy
- REGION
- Amalfi Coast · Campania
- DURATION
- 1–2 days
ABOUT THIS ATTRACTION
Positano is the most photographed village of the Amalfi Coast, a vertical cascade of pastel houses, domed churches and bougainvillea that tumbles down the cliff to a small beach of dark sand and the sea. It was a poor fishing village until the 1950s, when John Steinbeck wrote it up for Harper’s Magazine and it became a resort; today it is the image of the coast, and the place most visitors come to see. The single street, the Via dei Mulini, runs down to the beach past the shops and the cafés, and the path above the village climbs to the high hamlets of Montepertuso and Nocelle, with the broadest view of all.
HISTORY & BACKGROUND
The story behind it
Positano was a medieval fishing village of the Amalfi Republic, and it remained a poor place through the 19th century, with many of its people emigrating to America. Its modern life began in 1953, when John Steinbeck spent the summer there and wrote “Positano bites deep” for Harper’s Magazine, an essay that made the village famous in America and drew the first wave of visitors. The fishing village became a resort, and the pastel houses that had been the homes of fishermen became the hotels and shops of the coast. The church of Santa Maria Assunta, with its tiled dome and the Byzantine icon of the Black Madonna, is the landmark of the village.
WHAT TO SEE
What to see here
The beach and the Spiaggia Grande — the small dark-sand beach at the foot of the village, with the pastel houses rising behind it.
The church of Santa Maria Assunta — the domed church with the Byzantine icon of the Black Madonna, the landmark of the village.
The Via dei Mulini — the single street that runs down to the beach, lined with shops and cafés.
The path to Nocelle — the climb above the village to the high hamlet of Nocelle, with the broadest view of Positano and the coast.
WHY IT MATTERS
Why it matters
Positano is the village that gives the Amalfi Coast its image — the vertical pastel cascade that is the most photographed sight on the coast, and the one that made the coast famous. For a visitor, it is the natural first stop and the most concentrated expression of what the coast is, even if it is also the most crowded.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Before you go
MAP & LOCATION
Positano
Positano, Amalfi Coast, Campania, Italy
40.6281, 14.4842
MORE ATTRACTIONS
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THINGS TO DO
Things to do nearby
FOOD & DRINK
Where to eat nearby
Da Adolfo — a beach restaurant at Laurito reachable by boat from Positano, for grilled fish and the sunbeds
La Caravella — a historic Michelin-starred restaurant in Amalfi, for refined Amalfitan cooking
Rossellini’s — the restaurant of the Palazzo Avitorea in Ravello, for the terrace and the cooking
Casa e Bottega — a farm-to-table restaurant above Positano, for seasonal cooking and the view
Da Maria — a simple trattoria in Amalfi for honest Amalfitan dishes and the lemon menu
HOTELS & STAYS
Where to stay nearby
Le Sirenuse — the celebrated hotel in Positano, a former 18th-century palace, the most famous on the coast
Hotel Santa Caterina — a grand hotel above Amalfi with a sea-water pool and a private beach
Palazzo Murat — a boutique hotel in an 18th-century palace in the heart of Positano
Hotel Villa Cimbrone — a hotel in the gardens of Villa Cimbrone in Ravello, with the Terrace of Infinity
NEARBY DESTINATIONS
Continue the journey
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