When you think of the Amalfi Coast, you think of the sweeping views and the jaw-dropping landscapes home to cliffside towns. In recent years, it has become the perfect honeymoon destination, with couples flocking to southern Italy. Most of them stay in picturesque Positano, as many publications are stating it is the place to go.
Although we can’t deny that Positano has a certain charm to it, there is another place tucked in the mountainside between Positano and Amalfi that is simply wonderful and a total hidden gem.
Praiano is an ancient fishing village that was the summer favorite of first-century Roman emperors. The small town is home to sweeping private homes with cascading terraces with vibrant wisteria winding up and down the canopies.
With just 2,000 residents, the local trattorias are private and give the very best of authentic Italian cuisine, while the shopping boutiques rival the best of Italian fashion. All of this takes place just a stone’s throw away from their better-known neighbors, Positano, and this town is mostly hidden away from tourists.
You can access Praiano in the same way you would Positano, either taking a taxi from Naples International Airport or taking a boat. We must warn you that the hour-and-a-half drive isn’t something for the fainthearted, as drivers whizz along the cliff edge roads and brake suddenly in the hairpin curves.
The roads are infamously known as “the road of 1,000 bends” and were built in 1852 by the Romans. The best hotel in Praiano is the five-star Casa Angelica, a white structure complete with Murano glass sculptures from the owner’s private collection.
As for dining, you can’t go wrong with Da Armandino, a former boatyard on Marina di Praia beach with it’s authentic, local cuisine. The fish is prepared beautifully and the seafood comes straight out of the Mediterranean that day for that melt-in-your-mouth taste.
This town is simply charming. Take a walk down the winding, private roads or sit on the cliff edge with a glass of wine, followed by some homemade limoncello. Once you visit here, you’ll never consider going back to Positano.