Amalfi Coast in 7 days

Land or arrive by train in Naples and take the Circumvesuviana directly to Sorrento; it is the cheapest connection on the coast, though the carriages are basic, unfussy commuter stock with no dedicated luggage racks and no air conditioning, so a lighter bag makes the roughly ninety-minute ride considerably easier. Confirm on the departure board that you are boarding a Sorrento-bound service rather than one terminating at Sarno, since both appear on the same platform pattern. Once you reach the hotel, keep the evening modest: a walk to Piazza Tasso or the clifftop gardens above the marina is enough to get oriented without fighting jet lag or a full suitcase. Use this time to check tomorrow's sea and weather forecast, since it decides whether Capri is realistically on the table.

• Circumvesuviana train from Naples, roughly 75 minutes
• A short orientation walk rather than a full evening out
• Check tomorrow's Capri ferry and weather forecast

Overnight: Sorrento

Make this a weather call, not a fixed booking made weeks in advance. If conditions are calm, take an early ferry to Capri: the crossing is short, but the island rewards an early start before the midday crowds arrive around the Piazzetta and the funicular queue. If the sea is rough or the forecast is unreliable, do not gamble a full day on a cancelled sailing; stay in Sorrento instead and use the day for the historic centre, the lemon-grove terraces above the marina, or a slower lunch than yesterday allowed. Neither option is a downgrade. The point of building this as a flexible day, rather than a fixed Capri booking, is that the rest of the week does not absorb a cancelled-ferry problem later, when you are trying to reach Positano on schedule instead.

• A genuine weather-dependent decision, not a locked booking
• Capri before midday if conditions allow
• A Sorrento alternative that is not a consolation plan

Overnight: Sorrento

Travel to Positano by SITA bus, boarding at Sorrento's train station where seats are easier to find before the route fills along the way, or by seasonal ferry if the sailing times suit your morning and the sea is calm. Both options share the same rule: arrive at the stop or dock with real margin, since buses along the SS163 fill quickly and ferries can sell out in high season. Once you reach Positano, drop your bags and resist the instinct to sightsee immediately; the town rewards a slower approach. Spend the afternoon on the beach, along Via Positanesi d'America toward Fornillo, or simply finding the quickest legal route between your hotel and the centre, since you will retrace it daily. Save the church of Santa Maria Assunta and its majolica dome for early evening light rather than midday crowds.

• SITA bus from Sorrento's train station, or a seasonal ferry
• An unhurried first Positano afternoon
• Learn your hotel's real walking route before dark

Overnight: Positano

This is the itinerary's other flexible day, and it should be treated with the same honesty as the Capri call. The Path of the Gods, the coast's best-known ridge trail, is usually walked from Bomerano or Agerola down toward Nocelle and Positano; reach the trailhead by an early SITA bus, since the walk itself takes several hours over uneven, exposed terrain with real elevation change and very little shade. Start early to avoid the worst heat and to have daylight margin if the descent runs long. If the forecast is poor, if anyone in your group has knee or heat concerns, or if you would simply rather not spend a coast day inland, do not force it. A slower alternative, a boat trip along the coastline from Positano's port or a return visit to a beach you liked yesterday, is not a lesser use of the day; the hike is worthwhile only when you can do it without turning the rest of the trip into recovery time.

• Early SITA bus to the Bomerano or Agerola trailhead
• A genuinely demanding hike, not a casual stroll
• A boat or beach alternative with no guilt attached

Overnight: Positano

Cover the short hop to Amalfi by ferry if it is running and the sea cooperates; the crossing is brief and spares you the same crowded bus you may have already used twice this week. If ferries are not operating, the SITA bus covers the same route, just more slowly and with the same summer congestion as every other leg. On arrival, drop bags first, since Amalfi's flatter streets still involve some genuine stairs near a hillside hotel. Spend the afternoon around the Duomo di Sant'Andrea and its cloister, then follow the narrow Valle dei Mulini inland a short distance if you want a quieter contrast to the waterfront. Amalfi's centre is compact enough to see without a rigid schedule, which makes it a good place to simply wander once the bags are settled.

• Ferry from Positano when conditions allow, bus as the fallback
• Bag drop before the cathedral square walk
• An unstructured Amalfi afternoon

Overnight: Amalfi

Take the SITA bus up from Amalfi's waterfront to Ravello, a climb of only about twenty minutes that trades sea level for clifftop views over the whole gulf. Villa Rufolo's gardens, the venue for the town's summer festival, do not require advance booking and reward even a modest visit with some of the coast's best framed views; Villa Cimbrone's cliffside terrace, a short walk further into town, is the other classic stop if you have the energy for both. Because Ravello sits so close to Amalfi, this does not need to be an all-day expedition: a late morning up, several hours among the gardens and the town's quiet lanes, and a return in time for a proper Amalfi dinner is a realistic, unhurried plan rather than a rushed add-on.

• Short SITA bus climb from Amalfi's waterfront
• Villa Rufolo's gardens, no advance booking required
• Villa Cimbrone as an optional second stop

Overnight: Amalfi

Use the final morning for one small, low-effort choice: a last walk along Amalfi's waterfront, a coffee near the cathedral steps, or packing time if last night ran late. Then begin the journey out with the connection already checked rather than assumed: a SITA bus or ferry to Sorrento to rejoin the Circumvesuviana toward Naples, or, if the timing and budget work, a direct bus or transfer service toward Naples airport or Salerno's train station for onward high-speed rail. Whichever route you choose, do not schedule a flight or a fast train for the same window as your last coast transfer; this itinerary's whole premise is that connections here are frequent but rarely fast, and the final day is not the place to test that for the first time.

• One low-effort final Amalfi morning
• A pre-checked bus, ferry or transfer connection
• Real margin between the coast and any onward flight or train

Base: Amalfi