The Amalfi Coast is one of the most photogenic travel destinations we’ve been to. It stretches over the coastline of southern Italy and is sprinkled with secluded beaches and pastel coloured buildings that twinkle like a cluster of stars at night.

What to do in Positano, Amalfi Coast in Italy

Marina Grande Beach (Spiagga Grande)

This is the famous black sand beach at the centre of the colourful town that you’ve probably been all over Instagram. In the morning and late afternoon, the beach is a tranquil place for locals and vacationers residing in Positano. It’s not until the afternoon when the day-trippers start docking in, that the beach comes to life with music and laughter.

We naturally woke up early (thank you jetlag) and walked along the beach to take those instaworthy shots. At one point, a local man even invited us to take pictures on his boat and offered to be our photographer. It would definitely have been a different experience if we were to try and take photos together in the busy afternoon.

It’s also worth noting that the beach is split into a public and a private area. The private area is lined with about 8 rows of beach chairs and sun umbrellas reserved for those that pay the entrance fee (around 20 Euros) for a more intimate experience closer to the water.

The open sand is the public area which is free to access and can get quite crowded during peak season. Unless you have a thick beach towel, the black sand isn’t exactly soft on the feet either so we recommend making most of your Positano experience and paying for the private area.

---

Le Sirenuse Hotel

For the best breakfast buffet you’ll ever experience with the most breathtaking view of Positano, Le Sirenuse Hotel is the place to be.

Le Sirenuse is a five star luxury hotel owned by the Sersale family who converted their summer house into a hotel that quickly grew from 12 to 59 rooms.

This charming hotel is now locally known to be have the best vantage point in town, immaculate service and on-site Michelin star restaurant La Sponda… but all of this does come at a price point that starts from around $900 AUD per night.

If you’re not willing to justify the price, you can simply pay for the breakfast buffet and enjoy decadent pastries and endless mimosas right next to the dreamiest view.

To make most out of your visit, bring your swimwear and take a dip in their rooftop pool located on the terrace right next to the breakfast area.

---

Via Cristoforo Colombo

Via Cristoforo Colombo is one of the longest roads around this beautiful coastal district and located just outside of Le Sirenuse Hotel and many other famous hotels and restaurants along the strip.

We loved walking along the Via Cristoforo Colombo road during sunset to watch the Tyrrhenian Sea and pastel cliffs of Positano change from day to night.

If you thought the view was breathtaking in the day, wait until you see the twinkling night lights of Positano.

---

Day Trip to the Isle of Capri

There are a number of neighbouring islands that offer half or full day boat trips from Positano and during our visit we decided to do a full-day 8 hour trip to Capri. We chose to book a group tour but in hindsight it would have been a much better experience with our own private boat.

All of the boats set sail around the same time of the day and the bigger group boats were unable to get too close to some of the main sights like the Green Grotto and we also weren’t given a chance to just lie on deck and snorkel in the water.

Instead, we sailed around the Li Galli Islets, quickly passed the Green and our boat floated around the Blue Grotto where we were able to hop onto smaller boats to enter the Blue Grotto at 15 Euros per person.

When you hop onto the row boat, your guide will whisk you inside the Blue Grotto and he may even sing you a song that echoes romantically through the cave. Our guide even helped us take a photo when we were in the middle of the darkness so we could see just how magnificent the cave is with the camera flash.

Once we finished our Blue Grotto experience, we were dropped off at Capri and took the Monte Solaro chairlift to the top to see the view of the Faraglioni sea stacks.

And of course we explored the most visited sight on the island, Villa San Michele. This grand villa was once owned by a Swedish physician who was inspired by Ancient Roman palaces. He turned this villa into a maze of ancient relics and gardens which is now enjoyed as a museum and a Swedish cultural institute.

---

Where to eat in Positano

Chez Black 

The first thing that many people do when exploring the famous beach is enjoy a lunch or dinner at beach-front restaurant, Chez Black. We assumed that the menu was tailored to Westernised dishes to cater for tourists, but it was a Mediterranean gastronomic delight! 

Chez Black is proud of their ‘exclusive forms of seafood’ so if you’re here and you don’t order a dish that requires a signature Chez Black bib, were you ever really here? Hahaha

Our favourite dishes were the lobster pasta and seafood soup for two and the food portions were so generous we didn’t even make it to dessert (and we still have regrets!)

Il Grottino Azzuro

The best pizza we had on the island was the Seafood Pizza from this hidden gem Il Grottino Azzuro. You could easily share their generous servings between 2 or 3 (but let’s be honest, you’ll probably want it all to yourself!)

Casa Mele

We recommend booking Casa Mele in advance for a fine dining experience.

This restaurant is part of Food Tours around the island so it can get busy here but we were drawn in by the raving reviews and we weren’t disappointed. 

A lot of the diners opted for the tasting menu but we decided on the Al La Carte…and every dish we had was delicious!

---

Have you visited Positano? We would love to know what you recommend around the beautiful Amalfi Coast!