Best way to tour Amalfi Coast

There are buses (SITA company) that go back and forth from Sorrento to Amalfi, and also beyond to Salerno, just for a handful of euros. Buses are frequent enough. Going by boat is another option, very relaxing and pretty. The blue grotto is in the island of Capri, only boats go there. A visit to Capri is also a must, even if just for a day (plenty of tour companies offer daily excursions which include the grotto). The private driver option is way to expensive on my book. Positano is on a steep hill, but worth every inch of it.

It's quite easy to tour those towns on your own. To my mind, Ravello is the star attraction. It has a pretty little cathedral and two villas with magnificent gardens. You can wander the streets and find some ceramic shops. One of the best meals we've ever had in Italy was at Trattoria Cumpa Cosimo. The bus lets you off at the top of the hill, where the town is. Amalfi also has a lovely cathedral with a small museum. If you are there at mealtime, Da Gemma was very good. Both towns have cafes/bars around the main square, where it's very pleasant to sit a while, have a coffe or drink, and people-watch. My advice on the Emerald Grotto is don't do it. I think it's one of the worst tourist traps I've ever experienced. First you pay for the boat to get there, but that doesn't get you in. You have to pay again to enter. The boatman points out some rock formations which look vaguely like people or things other than rocks. Utterly ridiculous.

Thank you very much for the recommendations! We are not going to hire a private driver/guide. I think, we'll take a bus to Positano, then walk down to the harbor to take a boat to Amalfi, and then will take a bus to Ravello.
I am also thinking about walking back down from Ravello to Amalfi via Atari, does anyone know if this is an easy walk? Are there lots of steps/stairs down or just a down hill path?

Sorry, I got the town spelling wrong in my last post- it is Atrani, not Atari. There is a pathway from Ravello downn to Atrani, and then into Amalfi. I just found the info on a Trip Advisor, looks like there are over 1000 steps down, not for my knees...

Private driver. It was worth every penny. We booked ours through the hotel we stayed at. Our driver was very knowledgable and pointed out sights as we drove. He stopped wherever we wanted and for as long as we wanted. We lunched at Ravello at a seaside restaurant. Beautiful. Our driver was very friendly and we enjoyed chatting with him as we drove. The trip down the coast was fabulous! We booked the driver for 6 hours but kept him for 8; we had such a great time. The driver took pictures of us, for us. Ah, what a marvelous time!

If the SITA bus does not work for you then discover the ferry that hugs the amalfi coast. try sorrento to positano etc. but really bus is the very best for views and cost savings- sorrento, poitano, amalfi to ravello. walk as little or as much as you can. you will not regret it.

Irene, I know a private driver is expensive but I personally think it's the way to go. You won't have to worry about the logistics of getting from place to place, waiting for buses/boats, etc. I think it's more relaxing to hire a driver and be driven door to door. You can also ask the driver to drop you off places where you cam minimize going up hill/stairs. I recently hired a driver for a day along the Amalfi Coast (this September) and while it's a lot of money, I want to maximize my sightseeing time & minimize the time I would spend worrying about getting along the coast, catching buses, etc. I look at it from the standpoint that I probably won't get back to the Amalfi Coast for a long time (if at all) and I want to see as much as I can in that day!

Thanks to everyone for the replies! I am looking forward to my vacation and counting down days. Hope it's not going to rain!

Take the bus from Sorrento to any of the other towns, Positano, Amalfi etc. From those towns you can take a boat to any other town. Perhaps a boat one day and city bus or private driver (very expensive) other days. Also, keep in mind there is no avoiding walking up.
Lorie

We took the SITA bus in November (off season), it was not crowded so we did not have a problem with the amount of seats. I heard there can be in the summer. When we were going back to Sorento from Amalfi, there was a problem with the timing of the bus. The bus company told us & about 30 other people missed the 3:15. I really don't think we did, I just think the bus driver decided not to leave until 4:30. We were not in a rush going back so it was not that upsetting. If you were trying to get to a cruise ship, it may have been. We thought of taking the private car, in the end I was still glad we took the bus. It did save us a bunch of money & I don't know that we would have seen that much more.

Irene - Hopefully I'm not joining the discussion too late, but I just wanted to warn you about the stairs down from Ravello to Atrani. You say you're not super athlethic, so I think you might prefer to take the bus back down from Ravello. I'm in my late 20's and I consider myself pretty darn healthy, but I did not find my trek down the stairs to be any walk in the park. Yes, the views are gorgeous... but the stairs are very uneven, and the distance between each step varies dramatically. There are lots of places where they really could have used two steps instead of just one. If you're walking downhill, it puts a lot of pressure on your ankles, as you sometimes have to take very big strides to make it down to the next step. I was also heading down the steps right after it rained, so they were super slippery (if you're thinking of going, go on a DRY day). Sometimes the stairway seems a little bit like the one in Lord of the Rings that Gollum took the hobbits up to get to Mordor... absolutely dizzying and a bit precarious. Don't get me wrong. The trail was gorgeous, and the views are a memory I'll always hold dear, but I was definitely glad to reach the bottom.

Kat,
Thank you very much for your review, it is very helpful to have this info beforehand. I don't think this walk is for me, will enjoy the view from the top.