Amalfi Coast · Where to stay

Every SITA bus and every Travelmar boat calls here, which makes it the least stressful base and the noisiest by day. Rooms cost less than Positano's, the cathedral and the Arsenale are on the doorstep, and the town empties out after the last ferry leaves.

Up the hill behind Amalfi, about twenty-five minutes by SITA bus. Cooler, far quieter, and the gardens and the summer concerts are a walk away; the trade-off is that the beach, the boats and dinner options are all at the bottom of the hill on a bus timetable.

Ten to fifteen minutes east of Amalfi by boat, €5 with Travelmar, and the only stretch with a proper beach and ordinary hotels rather than cliff-face villas. Less photogenic than the postcard towns, considerably less expensive, and much easier to arrive at with luggage.

A working city at the end of the line with a mainline station, normal restaurant prices and boats out through the day — Amalfi is €12 and 35 minutes, Positano €17 and 70 minutes. You give up waking up on the coast, and you get a city that is awake after ten.