Salerno and Amalfi Coast.

We spent three nights in Salerno in March 2015. Stayed at a B&B in the Old Town. And we are returning next spring and will stay at the Hotel Plaza, directly across the square from the train/bus station. Friends--who we had met at that B&B-- return to Salerno often because of its charm and stay there, saying it's convenient, clean & a good value.

Mid-June is very busy on the Amalfi Coast, so staying in Salerno you'll be better off. The ferry (not far from Hotel Plaza) is the prime choice to get over there, or the SITA bus will take you all the way to Amalfi-town, where if you wanted to go to Positano you'd have to switch. As I said, however, with so many tourists the buses could have very long queues.

Old Town in Salerno is magnificent, Minerva's Garden and then the duomo/crypt are worth the walk over. And do some research on restaurants--they're plentiful, high quality, relatively inexpensive and almost no tourist traps. Pizza is Napolitan and fabulous. Best part, early evening, the passeggiata, the locals and friends 'scooping the loop', in American parlance, just walking around, saying hi to their friends. And making plans for dinner.

Enjoy!

I haven't stayed in Salerno. But you simply have to decide if you want to see (most likely ... ) Positano or Ravello, because they are so "famous." I will admit that we were underwhelmed by Positano - especially because it has such a "high-end" reputation. I admit we didn't stay for the nightlife, because the SITA busses don't run that far into the night. Ferries only run in the daytime, and I'm sure they're crowded in May.

It is true that the bus traffic is greatly delayed and constrained by the single two-lane road through Positano, and it's a long way from Salerno. I am not urging you to go, just saying that people will probably ask you about Positano when you get home. Ravello is quite beautiful. Do you know you have to change busses in Amalfi to get to/from Positano?

Does you tour include Paestum? That's a big plus for your end of the AC. Hard to get to from Sorrento. Do you have any interest in Capri? Could be long ferry ride from Salerno, we went from Sorrento. Because you can stroll home in Salerno, I won't urge you to see Amalfi. We also felt a little let down by that, as well. But Ravello is magical.

I have previously been to Ravello and Paestum. The tour also goes to Paestum. As I said in my post, my main interest is in getting photos from the waterside of the towns on the Amalfi Coast. I will be staying at the same hotel that the tour uses.

My standard recommend, reach out to Elizabeth at Blue Star for thoughts and suggestions. She's an internet star!

https://www.bluestarpositano.it/english.htm

I will be spending 5 days in Salerno in May, and I expect to be very happy with my location.
From my research the tranquility of Salerno, make it a perfect base. I don't anticipate any issues going to the Amalfi coast with the pleathra of bus and ferry connections .
My hotel is https://www.terredipinte.it/
$292.00 for 5 nights. I don't think I could get accommodation of this quality in Sorrento or Potisiano,or Amalfi .

We thoroughly enjoyed our 2 nights in Salerno.
The Duomo and crypt are very interesting, worthwhile visit.
Be sure to spend an evening in town enjoying the absolutely delightful passiegiatta, as Jay has described

We love Italian food but sometimes during a long trip you just want something different.
One of our best meals that trip was at Mythos- a greek restaurant in Salerno.
http://www.mythosristorantegreco.it

We also had super delicious Chianina beef burgers at the Burger Bar Cargo- right along the Corso.
https://www.burgerbarcargo.com

Both of the above are open for lunch and dinner. Mythos got very crowded after we were seated at about 7:30- so you might want to reserve for dinner.

Best gelato is at Bar Nettuno- along the Lungomare.

We didn't spend much time at all in Positano. You'll probably find better eats in Amalfi.

In April 2022, we spent 5 nights in Salerno and absolutely loved it. I'm kind of glad that it's barely mentioned in the RS guide books. There is a lot more information about Salerno in the Lonely Planet guide. We only had one lunch in Salerno, we just ducked into a place to get out of the rain - and of course, it was wonderful and a bargain. Salerno is full of narrow streets and tempting places to eat and drink.

I mentioned to my (very young) hairdresser that THE Matthew is buried in Salerno, and she thought I was talking about Matthew McConaughey! The Apostle Matthew's tomb is beautiful, and uncrowded.

To be honest, the WW2 museum in Salerno was a bit of a disappointment, like something you would expect at a local National Guard Armory. The Operation Avalanche Museum in Eboli is outstanding - but that is a 30 minute cab ride from Salerno, and it doesn't sound like you have time for that. There is a German bunker on the beach at Paestum, which is well worth a visit, especially since it involves a walk on a very pretty beach.

Stayed in Salerno several nights this past October. Enjoyed it...it was great to escape back to a "real" Italian city after dealing with the scrum of people in, say, Amalfi. Good food at good prices, and a lovely, leisurely, uncrowded passeggiatta in the evening. There is also a long waterfront that makes for nice walking. And, some really good gelato!

I found the Duomo and, especially, Matthew's crypt to be quite beautiful. I would suggest letting your eyes adjust to the somewhat plain, largely white-washed walls of the Duomo before heading down to the crypt. The contrast really is eye-popping.

If you like art, there is a small provincial pinacoteca in town that had a nice collection. The price is right, too...they just asked me to sign their guest book and let them know where I was from. If archaeology is of interest, there is also a nice museum covering the history of the local area. They had the same admission "cost" as the art museum.

I would not hesitate to return to Salerno. I really enjoyed it.

ChristineH, you may be correct, after 30 days of Italian food, Greek food would be a great change,

There are trains to Eboli.

Have you checked on availability of transportation back to Salerno from the Amalfi Coast late in the day? I thought the ferries stopped running quite early, and I believe someone in this thread has said the buses do, too.

ChristineH, you may be correct, after 30 days of Italian food, Greek
food would be a great change,

No lie, Bob. On our 2015 trip, Salerno was towards the end of 17 days abroad, and we desperately wanted something different. So, on consecutive nights we visited Mythos, which was a Greek/Mediterranean souvlaki joint that was wonderful. Next night, we found a sushi bar in a techno-dance club. Fortunately we dined there early before the racket, sat at the bar and enjoyed fabulous 'Giapponese' fare in kind of a Star Wars environment. Bizarre but so fun.

Salerno cuisine-wise is quite worldly. As stated upthread, I'm glad RS hasn't mentioned it. I'm going back next spring knowing it'll still be under the radar, especially in shoulder season.

Jay-
Glad to hear you also enjoyed Mythos

When we are traveling in other countries besides Italy, we always look for an Italian restaurant when we get tired of the local cuisine.

Next time we visit the area we will probably split our time between Salerno and Naples- we really liked Salerno