The Amalfi Coast is at its best in October – here’s why
Mention Amalfi, and most imagine a sun-drenched romantic road trip along Italy’s famed coast, meandering through rustic towns draped in bougainvillea and cascading down mountainous cliffs towards a shimmering blue sea. A UNESCO world heritage landscape, the 34 mile stretch on Italy’s southern coast has inspired artists and writers whose creativity is fuelled by a cuisine considered among the world’s best.
It’s no wonder the worlds A-list holiday here, and everyone else wants to be seen here. However, during the summer, fantasies of relaxed glamour melt faster than your gelato as the area becomes a sauna and crowds clog up the narrow bendy roads and shopping streets.
This is why you should visit in October, as I did. Expect soul warming temperatures of 25 degrees without the crowds or traffic. You can leisurely potter in the ceramaic shops and art galleries in Positano, and no one will be in the way of your view or photos.
You won’t have to scramble for a spot on the beaches, and you’ll see more of local life. The fancy hotels are much cheaper, allowing an accommodation upgrade, and the area feel less touristy and more intimate when quieter. Dinner reservations are easily made at exclusive restaurants last minute, even for the table with the best views.
Start your tour in Ravello with a couple of nights at the 5-star Palazzo Avino, known as the ‘pink palace.’ Tucked away in the medieval hilltop village of Ravello 350m above the sparkling Mediterranean, Palazzo Avino is as chic as it gets. This 12th century villa with 33 rooms and 10 suites, was originally home to an Italian noble family, which I could have guessed, upon entering the grand reception with huge bouquets of flowers fitting for a banquet.
The hotel, painted in rustic terracotta pink, aligns with Gio Ponti’s “Mediterranean Law”, according to which everything should be colourful in a building which overlooks the sea. Its immaculate lawns, buttercup water fountains and barbie pink flower filled terraces and umbrellas, is something to behold. I’ve never been more in love with pink.
Spacious rooms are adorned with lashings of marble, fine fabrics, and antiques. But it’s the room’s large terrace that I spent most my time, when not in the hotels 20m outdoor heated pool. Everyone heads to the outdoor Martini bar pre dinner, where you can choose from a menu of more than 80 martinis, and I had the best espresso martini of my life. I’d recommend the sashimi platter for dinner at Terrazza Belvedere, before taking an after dark glass of bubbles up to the hotels roof top infinity hydro pool. The hotel is the prefect place to explore the small town of Ravello and its arts scene, and rooms rates are up to 40 per cent cheaper than in the summer.
• palazzoavino.com; B&B low season start from £973pn
Hotel Santa Caterina
Next, move to the grand dame of the Amalfi Coast, still family owned and opened in 1901, Hotel Santa Caterina. Furnished in the classic Italian style combined with contemporary mediterranean architecture, the hotel and exudes relaxed vintage glamour and sophistication.
The hotel is elegantly draped over the cliffside down to the sea and its beach club, reached either by a glass lift, or I preferred to take the steps all the way down, slicing the cliff between fragrant lemon groves and bright pink bougainvillea arches.
Itl is one of just a few in Amalfi with direct sea access and a saltwater swimming pool nestled into the rock. You won’t need to jostle for a lounger.
Even in mid-October I bathed in balmy 20-degree turquoise water. Only a limoncello prosecco spritz could tempt me out, or to see what the lone fisherman bought in on his rowboat for dinner that evening – the ultimate definition of Amalfi-style dolce vita.
Famous guests have included Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, while Kim Kardashian spent her honeymoon to Kris Humphries at the hotel.
Impossible to book in high summer, the grilled Lobster at the hotel’s restaurant Al Mare has to be Amalfi’s best. It’s just a 10-minute downhill walk to explore central Amalfi and its browse-it shops, or the hotel can drop you off.
• hotelsantacaterina.it/en; B&B low season start from £485
Monastero Santa Rosa
Moving along the coast, Monastero Santa Rosa is a former 17th century monastery suspended over the cliff edge between Amalfi and Positano.
The hotel has a staff ratio of 1:3 and just 20 sea facing rooms, meaning we often had the infinity pool to ourselves. You’ll love the characterful features that remind you of its past, such as the antique ‘confessions’ box and old photos of the monastery on the walls. But it’s the spa that makes this hotel a must-stay.
Monastero’s spa, the largest on the Amalfi coast, fits within the original 17th century layout and retains its vaulted ceilings and intimate coves.
In the thermal suite, achy post shopping feet were soothed in a whirlpool footbath while I melted into a heated seat. The domed herbal steam room cleared my sinuses and head, and the crushed ice fountain bought me back to myself and made me run to the wood sauna.
After my knot kneading massage using oils containing Italian herbals traditionally grown in the monasteries and known for their healing powers, I floated in the hydrotherapy pool and felt cleansed.
To complete my therapy indulgence, I dined at the hotel’s Michelin star Ristorante Il Refettorio. The housemade egg tagliolini with ‘Pollino’ summer truffle and raw sweet shrimp was one of the best pasta dishes I’ve ever had.
B&B low season start from €600
The verdict
A visit in autumn feels more exclusive and allows visitors to experience the vintage glamour of the fabled Amalfi coast at its best. Positano, the epitome of chic and vintage glamour, is the perfect place to bid farewell to summer.