A Refined Way to Experience the Amalfi Coast

This time last year, we split our time between two of our favorite family properties—one in Ravello, one in Amalfi. Each one unlocks something different.

Stay: Caruso, A Belmond Hotel

Ravello is one of Italy's great secrets: a hilltop village completely free of cars, where the world slows to a gentler pace. Caruso is perched high above the coastline, with gardens that unfold toward some of the best views in Italy. The iconic infinity pool completes the scene. Stay here and let the pace of this extraordinary place do its work.

Eat: A table that feels like home

We found a trattoria that a nonna still runs. Simple food, done well, nothing precious about it. It's the kind of place that feels like eating in someone's kitchen.

Then Ravello at dusk. The light turns gold, and as the sun sets, the lights slowly turn on across the hillside. A few kids are out on their scooters, and everyone ends up sitting on the church steps to eat gelato. It's a small but impactful moment—you genuinely feel like you belong.

Shop: Ravello's jewelry shops

Before heading down the mountain, it's worth the slow walk through Ravello's local jewelry shops.

Ravello

Stay: Hotel Santa Caterina

From Ravello, we made our way down the mountain to Hotel Santa Caterina, right on the water in Amalfi. Santa Caterina is family-owned, and it shows in the staff who know your kids' names. An elevator built into the cliff carries you down to the beach club. With a window looking out to the sea, the ride is an experience in itself. The private beach club has a saltwater pool set into the cliff, easy enough for little swimmers, along with direct access to the ocean and views back toward Amalfi town.

The Amalfi Coast by boat

The best way onto the Amalfi Coast is by water, and the best boats leave from where you're already staying. We stepped off Santa Caterina's private dock with panini packed by the kitchen—snacks between discovering and swimming in coves most people never find, en route to Positano. Off the coast there, we swam to a secluded beach—the kind of moment that works for the whole family. In summer, the coastal road is packed with traffic. There's no reason to sit in it when the water gets you there instead.

Shop: Vietri, where it's actually made

Vietri pottery is everywhere at Santa Caterina, and once you know why, you'll want a piece for yourself. It's named for Vietri sul Mare, the town down the coast where it's still hand-painted today, the way it's been done for generations. Buy it in Amalfi if you're short on time. Make the trip to Vietri itself if you're not. We have ours at home now. It brings us back every time we look at it.

Who it’s for: Families who want a slower, more layered trip than a single hotel stay. One that trades a single home base for two distinct sides of the coast.

I plan trips like this one because the Amalfi Coast rewards a little intention. It’s easy to book a hotel and call it a trip. It’s far more rewarding to build two stays that actually talk to each other, so the whole week feels considered.

Two home bases, each opening a different experience: Ravello, quieter, up in the hills; Amalfi, right on the water, with the rest of the coastline just a boat ride away.

For more inspiration and insider recommendations, visit our Amalfi Coast page.