Amalfi Coast villa holidays,
your questions answered

Naples (NAP) is the best airport for the Amalfi Coast: about 75 minutes by car to the coast and about 1 hour 30 minutes to Positano. Salerno airport (QSR), at the eastern end of the coast, has a small number of European flights. From Rome Fiumicino (FCO) allow about 3 hours 30 minutes to 4 hours by car.

Take the high-speed train from Rome to Naples (about 1 hour 10 minutes) or Salerno (about 1 hour 40 minutes), then a private transfer to your villa. From Salerno, seasonal ferries also run to Amalfi and Positano. If you have a lot of luggage, a private driver door to door from Rome takes 3 hours 30 minutes to 4 hours.

Yes. Positano is the best-known town on the Amalfi Coast, which runs for about 50 km along the southern side of the Sorrento peninsula, south of Naples. Amalfi, Praiano, Ravello, Maiori and Conca dei Marini are on it too. Sorrento sits on the other side of the peninsula, facing the Bay of Naples, about 40 minutes by car from Positano.

About 30 to 45 minutes by ferry in season. From Sorrento the fast ferry to Capri takes 20 to 30 minutes and runs all year. A private boat day to Capri is one of the trips our guests book most.

No. The coast road (the SS163) is narrow and winding, parking is scarce and very expensive, and in high season the authorities restrict non-resident cars on busy days. Use ferries, private drivers and water taxis instead; our concierge books them for you.

By ferry, bus or private driver. From about April to October, ferries link Positano, Amalfi and Salerno, with boats to Capri. SITA buses run along the coast road all year but fill up in summer. There is no train on the coast itself; trains reach Sorrento and Salerno.

Yes. The towns are built into cliffs, and many villas in Positano and Praiano are reached by steps, sometimes a lot of them. If anyone in your group has trouble with stairs, tell us and we'll match you to a villa with easier access or road-level parking.

Our Amalfi Coast villas run from €7,000 a week (Villa Lika near Sorrento, sleeps 8) to €52,280 a week (Villa San Giacomo in Positano, sleeps 24). In Positano, Villa Giulia sleeps 12 from €14,025 and Villa Dorata sleeps 10 from €19,250. In Praiano, Villa Nuea sleeps 6 from €10,000.

It is a short strip of coast with very little room to build, a short season and huge demand. Hotels in Positano are among the most expensive in Italy. A villa shared by a group costs less per person: Villa Giulia sleeps 12 from €14,025 a week, about €170 per person per night.

Positano if you want to walk to shops, beach clubs and restaurants. Praiano for quiet, sunsets and a central position between Positano and Amalfi. Amalfi for the ferry and bus hub. Ravello for gardens and cooler evenings up high. Sorrento if you want flatter streets, a train line and easy trips to Capri and Pompeii. We have villas in all of them except Ravello; see the Amalfi Coast villas.

Yes, with planning. Steps make strollers hard, and most beaches are pebbly. Families often do best with a villa that has a pool, such as Villa Bendis (sleeps 14) or Villa Serena near Sorrento (sleeps 10), plus a boat day or two.

May, June, September and early October. The sea is warm enough to swim, the weather is settled and the crowds are thinner than in July and August. Summer has the warmest water and the festivals, but the coast road can take three hours to cover what takes 45 minutes in spring.

Yes in October: the sea holds its summer warmth and you can often swim well into the month. In May it is fresh but swimmable on warm days. Several of our villas have heated pools for the shoulder months.

Largely. Restaurants and shops start closing toward the end of October, ferries are limited until about April, and from November to March much of the coast shuts. A few villas and restaurants stay open for a quiet winter stay.

At least three; a week is better. A week leaves time for Capri, Pompeii, Ravello and a boat day, and still gives you slow days at the villa.

The Amalfi Coast is known for its cliffside towns, its UNESCO World Heritage status (since 1997), Sfusato Amalfitano lemons and limoncello, the ceramics of Vietri sul Mare and the Path of the Gods walk above Positano. The food is seafood, buffalo mozzarella and lemon everything.

Capri by boat, Pompeii and Herculaneum, Ravello's gardens at Villa Rufolo and Villa Cimbrone, the Greek temples at Paestum, and Naples for pizza and the archaeological museum. Our concierge books boats, guides and drivers.

It depends on the holiday you want. The Amalfi Coast is sea, boat days, beach clubs and dramatic towns, with lots of steps. Lake Como is calmer: gardens, ferries, cooler evenings and an easy hour from Milan. Many of our guests do a week of each.

Yes. Crime is low; watch your bags on crowded buses and ferries. The real hazard is the coast road, which is one more reason to leave the driving to someone local.