My son and I are taking a father-son trip to Italy in July to celebrate his high school graduation. I am looking for suggestions of activities or sights we could see that are physically active or adventurous.
We are already planning on doing the hike up Mount Vesuvius, and I just found Sentiero degli Dei which looks interesting, so I'd be interested in your opinions of those as well.
Thanks,
Bryan
There are numerous hikes in the area--see library or bookstore for two guidebooks devoted to the area--one published by Cicerone and the other by Sunflower.
Perhaps some sea kayaking?
Sounds like a nice way to celebrate his achievement!
Take a look at Ischia 45min ferry from Naples....https://www.lonelyplanet.com/italy/campania/ischia
my go to place for EVERYTHING...a very lush green island...hiking, real sandy and easy to reach beaches ( no cliffs to scramble down ) Ischia is a LARGE island with 4 major towns all with a different flavor...some archeological sites, Castle Aragonese, and spas...which are more like adult water parks connected to beaches...Negombo for instance... Rent a car on the island, I use Baldisteri near where ferry lets you off...the island is a loop, very easy to navigate. If you don't want to drive, there is bus service but it is a crush and not reliable, taxis of course...or settle into one town and take the boat tour from the main port around the island to get a taste of all the towns. This island is not visited much by Americans..so if you want to feel like you are really far and away...I recommend it...very family oriented..Italian, German and British visitors are the majority....
RS does not focus on this island much, Lonely Planet offers a good guide. Many classic Italian films were made here due to the 1950's charming villages...and beautiful sea!
From Minori, take the ferry or bus to Salerno, train to Paestum for a hike around the archeological site and visit the Museum (Museum is closed Mondays). There is a beach, and mozzarella farms.
In Minori, have a graduation sweet treat at Sal De Riso's pasticceria. I think his place also serves meals now.
We hiked part of the Path of the Gods, the Sentiero degli Dei, last year and loved the views. Look at pathofgods.com, fiamma.fr, and neverendingvoyage.com
We were staying in Positano so we rode the bus up to Nocelle, and followed the signs. We hiked for 5 hours down into Praiano.
You could also ride the bus up to Ravello and hike down.
Look at amalfikayak.com for kayaking.
We were recently in Minori and really liked it. It's less touristy than most Amalfi Coast towns and we liked being able to walk by the water easily. Sal de Riso is great and it does serve meals as well a wonderful pasteries.
This may be an adventure the two of you can share.
Quick 40 min ferry ride to Salerno from Minori.
http://www.tpescursioni.it/index.php?mod=attivita&id=3&lang=en_US
Another would be the Pretosa Angel Caves by boat. But it's harder to get to.
This happened purely by accident, but turned out awesomely:
On our visit to Sorrento in early March, one rainy day for something to do we took the SITA bus to Positano, about a 45 minute ride across the peninsula. We were told to disembark at the second Positano bus stop, Sponda. But we had never been there before, and people kept ringing the bell to get off, so long story short we got off the bus two stops early, on the middle of a cliff road in the middle of nowheresville. What do we do now?!
So we started walking. Fortunately, the rain had stopped, the sun had peeked out and we were on a slight downhill grade on the narrow road towards Sponda. It was a little more than a mile, but I have to say it was one of the more pleasant & spectacular walks of our lives, around curves and bends and different wonderful vistas with each turn. Maybe the highlight of our trip.
Point being had we been on the bus, no way would we have experienced this scenery in the manner we did. If you're outside walking on the coast anywhere from Positano to Cetara, you're going to see some magnificent stuff, I guarantee it.
