Ravello or Capri?

My vote is for the lovely Ravello. While not an ideal base it gives you more options for seeing the other towns on the Amalfi coast. You also do not have to deal with the ferries.

While your choices are good, what you are describing is the island of Ischia. It’s a 55 min. ferry ride from Naples. A much larger island, with more to see and do.

https://www.ischiareview.com/things-to-see-in-ischia.html

I wanted Ravello for our home base in the Amalfi Coast, but ultimately decided against it - the hotels that appealed to me were way beyond our budget - or I should say the rooms in the hotels that appealed to me were way way beyond our budget.

We spent a wonderful 2-3 hours in Ravello. I loved it, and the gardens at Villa Cimbrone were absolutely beautiful. I've been told that Villa Rufolo is equally beautiful. I can totally see using it as a home base.

How will you get to the beach from Ravello, and back?

Are daytrips of any importance to you at all? You did write "home base." Just asking. Pompeii? I wonder if you are not properly considering how much travel you are up for. Have you listed times, average waiting time, and used the correct ferry schedule?

Between the two, I am inclined to suggest that Capri has more to do for four nights, but it's important to recognize how hilly and how pedestrianized Capri is. There is no doubt that Ravello is lovely, but it is very small. I trust there is no Ravello Music Festival in September? You may want to consider your journey to and from both places. Ravello might take longer, but it depends on your route, and whether September is still crowded down there. I don't know.

I have no information about them, but have you looked at the less glamorous and smaller towns along the Amalfi coast?

Having been to both several times I think you would enjoy Capri more than Ravello based on what you envision yourselves doing, and day trips not being a priority.

Ravello or Capri? It's a win win.

Capri is jaw-dropping beautiful but unfortunately (at least to us) jaw-dropping expensive. A great day trip opportunity.

Ravello was a fabulous base for us. Recommend the Hotel Bonadies and Trattoria La Colonna. Both good values.

Ravello often referred to: "where the poets go to die." Villa Cimbrone - The Terrace of Infinity. Gore Vidal called it "the most beautiful view on earth."

Your choice as to time to travel is excellent.

We spent a whole week on Capri and did a Sorrento/Pompeii day trip. Loved the island--though this was a while back in 2003 and prices may be a bit steeper now! Did a gorgeous hike along the cliffs past ruins and lighthouses, a great hike up and over the mountain from Capri to Anacapri, a boat tour around the island, and just about everything that could be done in town and the neighborhood--Villa Jovis, Villa San Michelle, Giardini de Augusto, beaches, and various viewpoints. Had the best lemon risotto of our lives at a restaurant all to ourselves. A really wonderful trip. Did Naples too at either end of the trip.

Hi Syra,
Ravello would give you immediate proximity to both Scala and Minuta. The view of Ravello from Scala, say on a misty sunrise (say seen in an upcoming TR/foto essay) is arguably the best-kept secret of the entire AC.

The red open-top City Sightseeing bus, the one that only sells as many tickets as there are seats, will probably still be operating when you arrive. And of course the regular SITA buses would serve you, so getting down to the Bivio coastal bus stop to transfer in either direction would be a cinch. Afterwards, a short ride NW to busy Amalfi or an equally brief ride in the opposite direction towards (sound of trumpets) Minori and eventually Cetara and Vietri...those would be quite doable daytrips from a Ravello base.
Minori, Atrani and especially Cetara all have modest beaches, while Erchie has the most 'removed' one. Maori's is the largest of the lot.

Haven't been to Capri since '90 but have been told it has become more expensive than ever.
I am done. the end

Thank you so much, all! Tim asked about how we plan to get to and from the beach while in Ravello, and that is something I'm wondering myself. I thought we could hike down and then bus back up, but not sure how reliable the bus is. Lido di Ravello looks wonderful but getting to and from would be a challenge it seems.

Also worth noting that we will be approaching the AC from the south - driving up from Basilicata. If we head to Capri, we'll likely return the car in Salerno and take the ferry from there.

In terms of day trips, we'd like to do one boat tour of the AC, during which we can pop into Positano and Capri, if we're not based there. We'd also like to see either Pompeii or Herculaneum if possible--probably only doable if we stay in Ravello, because if we stay in Capri, we'll give up the rental car.

So much to consider!

Ravello is partly pedestrianized, and a very small, if lovely town. We didn't have a car for our five nights in Sorrento, so we didn't have to find a parking space when we used a car and driver to spend 8 hours on the AC. You should get clear whether the housing you choose provides a guaranteed parking space. Street parking barely exists at all in the big sea-level towns, so I would think there is virtually none up in Ravello.

You should not expect the two-lane roads of the AC to be deserted and easy to traverse in September. We took the Circumvesuviana to Pompeii Scavi, but I didn't see any multi-story parking structure for Pompeii visitors. Without a car, Pompeii is a three-seat public transit ride from Ravello, perhaps over 1.5 hours each way. But a car is generally an annoyance in this area. Every night, near our hotel in Sorrento, we saw a line of cars lined up, stationary, waiting to enter an underground parking lot for their evening in Sorrento. No experience with parking in Ravello.

It may be different in late September, but in late May (that is, before American schools let out), every morning in Sorrento, there were always more than 60 people in line for the bus to Positano and Amalfi, which ran half-hourly. That means some people were going to have to wait for the second bus. (You change in Amalfi for another SITA bus to Salerno.)

Syra - the walk from Ravello down to the beach (Amalfi or Atrani) is not easy. It consists of large stairs where you have to take multiple steps for each stair, and it is quite steep and takes some time, and in mid September it will still be very hot as well. The bus on the other hand is reliable and would definitely be the preferred mode of transportation. Be prepared for very crowded conditions in September no matter which destination you decide on.

We ended up using Salerno as our home base for the Amalfi Coast and Paestum. The money we saved on hotels by staying in Salerno was used for private guides and car services, and a spectacular afternoon cruising along the Amalfi Coast on our very own, and very small, boat.