Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
AMALFI COAST TOWNS
Positano
POP 3882
Positano is the coast's most picturesque and photogenic town, with steeply-stacked houses
tumbling down to the sea in a cascade of sun-bleached peach, pink and terracotta colours.
No less colourful are its steep streets and steps lined with wisteria-draped hotels, smart res-
taurants and fashionable boutiques.
Look beyond the facades and the fashion, however, and you will find reassuring signs of
everyday reality - crumbling stucco, streaked paintwork and even, on occasion, a faint
whiff of drains. There's still a southern Italian holiday feel about the place, with sunbathers
eating pizza on the beach, kids pestering parents for gelati and chic women from Milan
checking out the boutiques. The fashionista history runs deep - Moda Positano was born
here in the '60s and the town was the first in Italy to import bikinis from France.
John Steinbeck visited in 1953 and wrote in an article for Harper's Bazaar : 'Positano
bites deep. It is a dream place that isn't quite real when you are there and becomes beckon-
ingly real after you have gone'.
There certainly is something special about the place and this is reflected, predictably, in
the prices, which tend to be higher here than elsewhere on the coast.
A WALK TO FORNILLO
This gentle walk, with (hooray!) an acceptable number of steps, leads from Positano's main Spiaggia
Grande to Spiaggia di Fornillo. Toss off the stilettos and don the trainers; Fornillo is more laid back than
its swanky spiaggia neighbour and is also home to a handful of beach bars, which can get quite spirited
post sunset.
To reach here, head for the western end of Spiaggia Grande, by the ferry harbour, and climb the steps.
Walk past the Torre Trasita, one of the coast's many medieval watchtowers built to warn inhabitants of
pirate raids and now a private residence. Continue on as the path passes dramatic rock formations, tiny in-
Search WWH ::




Custom Search