Everything you need to know about getting around the Amalfi Coast

27.03.2024 - 15:35 / lonelyplanet.com

Italy’s most famous coast is also one of its trickiest to navigate, thanks to winding clifftop curves, a lack of train service between cities and (sorry, but it's true) tourist traffic.

And all of that is before you even get to the endless flights of stone steps studding its villages and best natural beaches. But the natural cliffs and picturesque ancient steps are just part of this region’s charm, and with a little planning and forethought, you don’t have to miss a beat. Here’s everything you need to know about getting around on the Amalfi Coast.

Renting a car provides maximum freedom and comfort, not to mention allowing you to travel as a group and cram as much Vietri pottery as you want into the trunk. But the freedom and comfort come – literally – at a price.

Car rentals in the Amalfi Coast run upwards of €30 per day, to say nothing of tolls (€9/100km) and petrol (approx €1.80 per liter). In high season, parking can be desperately difficult to find and when you’re on the go, you’ll also be sharing the narrow winding roads with many, many other drivers and the SITA buses (see below).

Sure, if you’re traveling with a group, small children and have nerves of steel. Just take it easy on the Aperol Spritzes.

Due to the traffic and narrow roads, locals overwhelmingly opt to get around via scooter – enough juice to get you from A to B in a jiffy, yet small enough to dart in between lanes during traffic jams. What could be more romantic than scooting around the snaking cliff-top roads with the lemon-scented breeze in your face?

Well, certainly not getting injured while on holiday. Choose this option only if you’re already a confident, experienced driver – these narrow winding roads are not the place for first-timers to learn. Scooter rentals cost on average around €40 per day in the low season and around €50 per day during the high season.

Italy is renowned for its excellently connected train system, but someone forgot to tell the ancient villages of the Amalfi Coast. The only train stations in the area are found in Vietri sul Mare, the town furthest east, as well as Sorrento and Salerno, on either pole of the region.

However, you can take advantage of the extensive SITA bus network that operates throughout the area from Sorrento to Salerno. It will get you between coastal villages and popular mountainous destinations, like Ravello and Agerola (the starting point for the Path of the Gods hike).

See more of the Amalfi Coast with our pick of the best hikes it has to offer.

Riding the SITA bus is a rite of passage for visitors to the Amalfi Coast and a life-affirming experience. Can you say you've lived until you've ridden a lumbering bus along a razor-narrow cliff-top road with a 100m (328ft) death drop to the