Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
CAR & MOTORCYCLE
If driving from the north, exit the A3 autostrada at Vietri sul Mare and follow the SS163
along the coast. From the south leave the A3 at Salerno and head for Vietri sul Mare and
the SS163.
TRAIN
From Naples you can take either the Circumvesuviana to Sorrento or a Trenitalia train to
Salerno, then continue along the Amalfi Coast, eastwards or westwards, by SITA Sud bus.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Positano
POP 3860
The pearl in the pack, Positano is the coast's most photogenic and expensive town. Its
steeply stacked houses are a medley of peaches, pinks and terracottas, and its near-vertical
streets (many of which are, in fact, staircases) are lined with voguish shop displays, jew-
ellery stalls, elegant hotels and smart restaurants. Look closely, though, and you'll find re-
assuring signs of everyday reality - crumbling stucco, streaked paintwork and even, on
occasion, a faint whiff of drains.
An early visitor, John Steinbeck wrote in May 1953 in
Harper's Bazaar
: 'Positano
bites deep. It is a dream place that isn't quite real when you are there and becomes beck-
oningly real after you have gone.' More than 60 years on, his words still ring true.
