Positano

Why go

A village that falls down a cliff — more steps than streets, and the sea in every window. Positano fashion — loose printed cotton and leather sandals, an industry invented here in the 1950s. The Path of the Gods — a ridge walk above the coast with the whole gulf below. Arrival by sea — the only way to see the elevation as it was meant to be seen.

The character

Positano was a Republic of Amalfi port, then a fishing village so poor that half its population emigrated to America between 1900 and 1940. Its second life began in 1953, when John Steinbeck published an essay in Harper's Bazaar that opened with the line about Positano biting deep — it is a dream place that isn't quite real when you are there and becomes beckoningly real after you have gone. Artists and writers followed, many of them Russians and Germans who had already been there for decades, and the village turned into an image.

The physical reality is a slope. Everything is stacked in tiers on a cliff face, connected by staircases, and no vehicle can reach most of the buildings — deliveries go by hand or by three-wheeler down the one road. That makes it exhausting and beautiful in equal measure. The clothing industry that grew here in the 1950s, light printed cotton for people who arrived with nothing suitable to wear, is still the town's second economy after tourism, and the sandal makers on Via Pasitea will cut a pair to your foot in an afternoon.

Places of character

Santa Maria Assunta — the majolica dome, and a Byzantine Black Madonna that gave the town its name. Spiaggia Grande and Fornillo — the main beach and the quieter one, connected by a path around the headland. Via Positanesi d'America — the cliff walkway named for the emigrants, linking the two beaches. The sandal makers — several workshops on Via Pasitea, cutting to measure while you wait. Path of the Gods — from Bomerano to Nocelle, two and a half hours, ending in a staircase of 1,700 steps down. Li Galli islands — the archipelago offshore, once owned by Rudolf Nureyev, visible from every terrace.

The way to do it

Arrive by ferry from Sorrento or Amalfi; the coast road is spectacular and slow and the village is designed to be entered from the water. Pack light — there are no lifts and your bag is going down steps. Walk the Path of the Gods in the direction of Nocelle, not up. And stay at least two nights: the day boats leave by five and the village becomes itself.

One perfect day

Espresso on a terrace before the first ferries, when the light is still on the far side of the gulf. Bus up to Bomerano and walk the Path of the Gods along the ridge with the sea a thousand feet below, ending with the descent into Nocelle. Late lunch there or back down in the village. Afternoon on Fornillo beach, quieter than the Grande, with a swim out far enough to see the whole cliff face at once. Sandals ordered at a workshop on the way back up. Aperitivo when the day boats have gone, dinner on a terrace with the dome lit below, and the walk back up your own staircase.

Grand hotels

Le Sirenuse — the Sersale family's own villa, opened as a hotel in 1951 and still run by them; the definitive Amalfi address. Il San Pietro di Positano — carved into the cliff two kilometres east, with a lift down to a private beach and no sign on the road.

When to go

Best expression: late May and early June — sea warm, bougainvillea out, the path walkable before the heat. Consider: October, when the light is best and the village exhales. Avoid if possible: August, when the beach is full by nine and the coast road is a four-hour queue.

The frame

Ideal stay 3 nights · Minimum 2 nights · Best arrival ferry from Sorrento, 40 minutes · Airport NAP, 60 km · Walkability total, and entirely on steps · Best without a car yes — bring no car