Hey Sea Lovers

I'm writing today to share our Amalfi trip with you all, and I hope it sparks some ideas to plan some great adventures for you and your loved ones. We travelled by car to the Amalfi coast from Tuscany (we had lunch in Orvieto). The drive was 80% peaceful and 20% hang on for your life. The last 10 km's took an hour, and I think I breathed only a handful of times. But we made it!

It felt like when we were planning the Italy trip, that Amalfi was a must-see. Most of us had been there before, but it felt like you were crazy not to go there. It didn't disappoint; however, it was so incredibly crowded that I was very grateful to stay in Minori, a little away from the hustle and bustle. There were some take-your-breath-away moments, so here they are.

Day 1.

We arrived by car and chose to stay in Minori, which seems to be the little sister of other towns like Amalfi, Praiano, Positano, ect… It was so picturesque and sweet. It had everything we needed to feel like we were getting that Amalfi Coast experience without the crowds (and might I add, the double price tag of the town's just one ferry ride north). We stayed in the town's old converted watch tower, which was so fun. It was 7 floors or so of sweet little rooms with ocean views through portholes and a rooftop terrace to watch the sunset with an aperitif in the afternoons. Finding spacious accommodation on the Amalfi cliffside was a challenge for our group of 13. We could have stayed out of town with more space, but we would have had to have driven in each day. We chose a smaller place with more stairs to still be able to walk to everything. For dinner this evening, we visited a small hole-in-the-wall seafood place that served the most incredible seafood with zucchini chips.

We ate down on the jetty, and after the drive earlier that day, my husband stripped down to his underwear and leapt into the Ocean. There is no photographic evidence of this and with good reason. I could feel onlookers saying, "They must be Australian". We ended the evening at one of Italy's most famous patisseries Sal De Riso. We ate here every moment we possibly could and live with no regrets! The Ricotta and Pear cake is famous, the gelato was one of the best we had, and Stanley Tucci says it's the best Lemon cake in the world. This makes sense, as there are lemons the size of my head everywhere in Minori. This ends our first night.

Day 2.

As we were travelling with a large group and small children, we made a habit of leaving every day after driving as a rest day to enjoy the towns we had booked our stay in and the accommodation itself. So today, we had a Minori beach day. We rented chairs and umbrellas at a beach club for the day and spent it swimming and cliff jumping, and the kids hired a paddle boat. It was a dream day really, as I was served fresh homemade seafood pasta with white wine. I watched my baby play seaside in a bikini, I had arrived, and I didn't want to blink! What a day. A 'little travelling with kids' overseas hack, we are so grateful we packed ponchos, which are super handy for all that swimming and home comfort for the kids. That night we ate at what I now refer to as one of my favourite restaurants of all time La Botte. There are no words. Just go!

Day 3.

Our beautiful parents gifted the family a private boat tour for the day along the Amalfi Coast. We had a skipper on board that knew where to go, and we could stop where we wanted and explore/swim where we wanted. The boat had all we needed: a cabin for the kids to nap, a toilet on board, shade and room to lounge, eat lunch, etc. We visited the Emerald Grotto, and explored the cove at Fiordo di Furore. We then docked and walked the towns of Positano for Gelato and Amalfi for pizza. We stopped just outside Amalfi to jump off the cliffs. The highlight was actually seeing the coast from the water and just pottering along lounging on the deck. It was a magical day.

Day 4.

We got up and walked the lemon trail from Minori to Maiori (not to be mistaken for my husband's nationality, Māori); that's a tongue twister. It was a beautiful walk that I loved, the kids found it challenging, but we made it. There was a lovely lemon tour halfway where we had lemonade and sampled limoncello made locally. There were lots of photographic moments and natural water to drink along the way. We arrived in Maiori, shopped a little, had an espresso, and then caught an Uber back into Minori. We spent the afternoon back in Minori by the beach and dinner at La Botte. We basically live here now.

Day 5.

We wanted to visit an island and chose Capri, we travelled there by Ferry. A surprise 4-hour round trip, whoops, we were completely unprepared for this with 7 children, but we made it. Capri had 20,000 visitors the day we went. I am aware that I contributed to this crowd, and honestly, it was a bit of a nightmare. We attempted to get to the blue grotto, the chair lift, and the old town and in the end, walked around like deers in headlights, wondering with all our research how we got into a situation like this. We couldn't do any of the activities or the sights on the island due to the crowd, the locals seemed peeved, and the island seemed a little unprepared for this amount of people. We couldn't find toilets. It was wild. A man flicked a cigarette butt onto my 7 year old, I was constantly holding onto my 3 kids in crowds, and to be honest we tried to get off the island a few times only to be told I had to wait until the end of the day when our ticket was booked. I bought everyone (adults) a beer which cost me my daily food budget and surrendered to the wildness. We found a small stretch of beach and called it a day. I share this only to keep it real. In saying all this, I had been to Capri before and absolutely loved it. I am sure our day was just one of those days. Perhaps staying on the island and with a smaller group may have been easier/nicer. We made it home and walked into La Botte, where the owner now knew our names and comfort ate our way to bedtime.

Day 6.

I woke up this morning to my husband telling me to go have a Mummy moment; he must have sensed I needed it. I walked the streets on my own for a moment, took my novel to a small cafe and had a coffee and pastry on my own in silence and re-set. I think I might be onto something when travelling in a group, especially with kids. Take time-outs! We checked out of our little nook in Minori mid-morning and started the drive to the East Coast. Until next time Minori, and never again, Capri!

Vic xx

SHOP THE LOOK

Our Guide to the Amalfi Coast