Hubby and I are staying in Positano the first of May. I was thinking we could see Amalfi and Ravello in one day from there.
What is the best way to get back and forth? I was thinking we should ferry to Amalfi, see that town then bus to Ravello. After seeing Ravello go back to Amalfi by bus again I guess, and ferry home.
I know you can walk back to Amalfi (or Antrani?) then ferry back? Was studying up on this and the public transportation crowd is making the wonder.
Yes, you can ferry to Amalfi, then from there take a bus to Ravello. Your choices to get back to Amalfi are either to take a bus or walk. It's all downhill. While that may sound like an easy hike, downhill walking can be strenuous and leave you very sore the next day. From Amalfi you can take the ferry or bus back to Positano. The ferry is faster but it will depend on whether you've timed your return to Amalfi to coincide with the ferry times. This plan is a lot for one day, so get an early start. In Ravello, you should try to see both Villa Cimbrone and Villa Rufalo. We spent a couple hours in each of them and I could have stayed longer.
We took the early morning ferry from Positano to Amalfi and then the bus directly to Ravello before it became too crowded. You want to do Ravello first as there will be lines for the bus to go to Ravello. We had lunch in Ravello after visiting Villa Cimbrone and Villa Rudolfo and walking around a bit and then took the bus back to Amalfi. We visited some of the shops in Amalfi and the cathedral, had a glass of vino at one of the outdoor restaurants on the harbor of Amalfi and then took the ferry back to Positano. It was a perfect day.
We took the early morning ferry from Positano to Amalfi and then the
bus directly to Ravello before it became too crowded. You want to do
Ravello first as there will be lines for the bus to go to Ravello. We
had lunch in Ravello after visiting Villa Cimbrone and Villa Rudolfo
and walking around a bit and then took the bus back to Amalfi. We
visited some of the shops in Amalfi and the cathedral, had a glass of
vino at one of the outdoor restaurants on the harbor of Amalfi and
then took the ferry back to Positano. It was a perfect day.
^^ This is excellent advice. The ferry is so much more pleasant than the bus! We tried to take bus from Amalfi to Ravello late am and the lines were crazy, even though we thought we were at front of line, the bus stopped short and others rushed on to the bus- not once but twice. We gave up and took the Red City Sightseeing bus that's right there- 5 euros so a tad more- but it was open air and we were the only passengers.
Buy your RT bus tix (for SITA bus) at the tabac right off the dock/bus area in Amalfi. Not sure where you would get tix in Ravello so best to have it in hand.
I'd only say take the bus back from Amalfi to Positano IF your lodgings are top of town and you don't feel like climbing again ;)
We were there May 2019- it was lovely. Enjoy your day!
It appears that the City Sightseeing buses are not currently operating along the Amalfi Coast. There are no listings at all for Italy on the website now: https://city-sightseeing.com/en/destinations
Well that's a bummer.
Too early maybe? I wouldn't expect them to run until mid-late May...I guess. It worked so well for us that day.
Given that buses can be crowded, I thought I'd share our experience with catching a bus in Amalfi to go back to our rental home, which was halfway between Atrani and Minori. We bought the tickets in the tobacco shop at Amalfi's port, right across from the line where everyone was queueing up waiting for buses. The buses run on a schedule and we were going to have a ten minute or so wait. 100 or so yards away was a spot where a few buses were just parked. Some had drivers in them. My husband suggested we go over there, find the bus going our way, and ask to board. I said no, we were clearly in the right place to wait for the bus. When one of those parked buses finally started moving, we could see that it was marked Salerno, which was the the right bus for us. However, it drove right past the line of waiting people without stopping, already completely full of passengers, apparently people who did what I had nixed. Other people in the line were as surprised and disappointed as we were that the bus didn't stop. We made inquiry as to how long we were going to have to wait for the next bus and it was over an hour so we just walked. The next day, again in Amalfi, and again wanting to catch a bus home, we boarded in the bus waiting area instead of lining up at the bus stop. The driver had no problem letting us on, and many people were doing this.
In Ravello, there is a short tunnel (for traffic, with sidewalks for pedestrians) between the bus stop and the entry to the town's main square. When you are leaving Ravello, buy your ticket at the tobacco shop or kiosk (I forget which) that is right before you enter the tunnel.
I just want to verify this for my piece of mind. Are the bus tickets specific in any way? If I am taking the bus say, from Amalfi to Ravello, can I buy the tickets to Ravello and the return at the same time or get the tickets the previous day for the next? I don't want to assume that they are open-date, open-time, open-use tickets if the system is more sophisticated. I'm a buy-the-ticket-the-night-before kinda girl...
I hired a private driver who picked us up at our hotel and we then visited Minori/Maiori and Ravello (I had previously been to Amalfi). All three places were doable in one day and we did not have to worry about buses/ferries and the lot.
CT
We bought our RT tix on that day, IIRC it was same price for each leg and we had 2 “tickets”, each.
Ended up not using the one to Ravello, as explained above.
Used the second ticket the next day returning from Ravello.
I don’t think they are specific as to which day/ time at all.
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/amalfi-coast-day-trip
May 1 is just ahead of the worst crowding, but it is often best to buy all, timed, ferry tickets each day at once so you are not shut out. Also, if you bus home to Positano and it happens that your bus is jammed to the rafters, you might tell the driver your destination is Positano. Our host Rick has reported that the bus sometimes fails to stop in Positano in the afternoon if it has no room for other riders to Sorrento, the termination point.
We bought our round trip bus tickets for Ravello in Amalfi 5 minutes after arriving by ferry from Positano, managed to lose the tickets somewhere in Ravello and had to buy two more one way tickets in Ravello to get back to Amalfi. The tickets are not specific as to when you go or come back.
