We wanted to have a good mix of sightseeing and relaxing on our honeymoon. After being in a busy city like Rome, going to Positano was perfect. Honestly, Positano is perfect no matter what.
DAY 8: POSITANO
We took a cab from our hotel to the train station that morning. The high speed train from Rome to Naples was about an hour and a half. When we arrived in Naples we had a car service scheduled to pick us up and drive us to Positano. The drive was a little over an hour and absolutely beautiful. It was definitely pricier than taking the bus, but worth it to have a private driver. We booked the transfer online via DayTrip. Our driver, Rosario, was so great that we hired him for our drive back to Naples later that week.
Everywhere on the internet, I read not to drive in Positano because the roads are tiny and winding. Once we arrived, I realized what everyone was talking about and was so glad we didn’t try to drive there. I was obsessed with our hotel in Positano. If you’re headed to the Amalfi Coast, I highly recommend where we stayed. Compared to a lot of other places in Positano, it was priced super well. The view from our room was unbelievable. It’s literally the background on my phone screen because it was the most picturesque view I’ve ever seen. Hotel Royal Priso had the best location. We were less than a 10 minute walk away from the main beach!
We arrived in the afternoon and after a week in Italy, still wanted more pizza. After lunch we explored the little town a bit. We were also on the hunt for limoncello sorbet served in an actual lemon – I saw way too many pictures of it in Instagram and was dying to have it!
One of the things Positano is famous for is handmade sandals. They are made custom after your foot is measured. At La Botteguccia, there are displays with tons of different styles all around for you to choose from. (I actually ran into one of my friend’s sisters in the sandal shop! We had talked about the fact that we were both going to Italy a few months prior when I was in Louisiana!) I had my feet measured, chose my design, and scheduled to pick them up the next day.
Our first night on the coast we had reservations at Chez Black. This place had such a fun atmosphere! There was live music while we ate and enjoyed the view. Jeremy and I couldn’t agree on a bottle of wine, but they served half bottles here so we were both able to have the wines we wanted. The service here was lovely and the food was delicious. Post-dinner the manager let us know that at the top of Music on the Rocks, the famous club, they had opened a rooftop bar. We had a drink there after dinner before going to bed got the night.
DAY 9: CAPRI/ POSITANO
As soon as we decided to go to the coast, I knew we’d need to do a day trip to Capri. We booked tickets the day before when we’d walked down to the pier for an early boat ride. It was super windy on the water and pretty chilly that morning, but it was still really cool to take the ferry over. We opted not to go the Blue Grotto only because of the weather. I was starving when we docked so we went to find lunch. We ended up at Cafe Michelangelo. The food was good and we ended our meal with limoncello. After lunch we strolled around the island and found the Augustus Gardens. This place had the most stunning views and was only a few coins per person to enter.
We had some time to kill after and wanted a cocktail. We almost walked past the Capri Rooftop, but decided to stop in. I loved grabbing a drink here because the view was amazing, the weather had warmed up so it felt so nice, and the snacks were great.
Before going back to the pier to catch a ferry back to Positano, we went shopping. I’d had my eyes on a Louis Vuitton Speedy handbag forever – it’s just such a classic piece! Jeremy wanted to make it extra special by buying it for me in Italy. I’m in love with it and wear it every single day now. We stopped for gelato on the way down (the trip to the top is a HIKE).
We docked in Positano and went to pickup my handmade sandals that I’d chosen the day before at La Botteguccia. We freshened up at the hotel after our day in Capri and went to Franco’s Bar at Le Sirenuse for a cocktail. Everywhere you look the views are insane there and this bar was no exception. We ran into a couple that we met at Castello di Ama almost a week before there which was fun, too!
For dinner, Buca di Bacco down on the beach was the place we probably heard the best reviews about. I had an amberjack pesto pasta that was incredible and Jeremy was craving the classic lasagna. We had plans early the next morning so we didn’t stay out too late.
DAY 10: POSITANO
On the way to our big adventure, we stopped at Collina Bakery for Nutella croissants and coffee. Jeremy bought me a handbag, but I had a special gift for him too. When I’d asked Jeremy months before our trip what he wanted to do in Positano, he said fishing. My immediate reaction was HECK NO (because he goes fishing allllll the time back home), but Positano is a fishing village so I guess it made sense. I reached out to Positano Fishing Tours and booked a half day charter to surprise him. Our captain and guide were wonderful. Our guide was a third-generation local fisherman with perfect English. In late-May, they aren’t just fishing for fish – they’re fishing for squid. Yeah, squid. Like big huge black squid.
The weather was rough, but truly perfect fishing weather! We caught multiple smaller red squid and Jeremy got the biggest catch of the day with a massive black squid. It was such a different experience since you’re fishing 2,000 feet deep and using electric reels. My back was super sore the next day though because it is really challenging with the pressure of the water and how quickly you’re bringing the squids back up to surface.
We loved Buca di Bacco from the night before so much that we went back for lunch after our fishing trip. Something about being on the water always makes me hungry. The dish I had for lunch that day was one of my absolute favorite foods from the entire trip. I was dying to eat some squid after the morning on the boat and ordered a massive seafood pasta with squid, clams, mussels, and shrimp. It was so flavorful.
We shopped in the cute boutiques as we walked back up to our hotel to rest. As soon as we arrived in our room, I received a call from La Sponda to let us know we had reservations that night. It’s located in Hotel Le Sirenuse (where Franco’s Bar is), but is a Michelin-starred and extremely notable restaurant. I had dreamed of going here since we decided to go to the coast. It’s absolutely magical inside. They light hundreds of candles for their dinner service every evening. I put in a reservation request three months in advance… three months. As fate is would have it, our final evening in Positano, we got in. Excited doesn’t even begin to cover my joy in that moment.
We got ready for our fancy dinner and walked to La Sponda. We ordered so much food and drank so much wine. I’m gonna be straight up – it was expensive, but it was so worth it. The ambiance was so romantic and it was the perfect way to end our trip.
DAY 11: NAPLES
We woke up to our last morning in Positano and packed up our bags so we’d be ready whenever Rosario came to drive us to Naples. I was craving the same Nutella croissant from the day before so we headed to Collina again for breakfast. We had done mostly window shopping so far in Positano so we spent the morning buying little things to take home. We bought limoncello candies, soaps, espresso cups, shot glasses, playing cards, and other fun things to bring back for our close family and friends. Positano is also known for its linens so I bought myself a table runner for our home.
Our driver arrived, loaded our bags, and took us towards Naples. He had mentioned previously not to buy limoncello in Positano because the factory was on the way back and it was more affordable there. We took a quick stop there and purchased a case to ship to our house in Nashville.
My Aunt told me that we needed to see Pompeii if we had the chance so we added on a stop there, too. It was really crazy to walk around the stone streets and think that there used to be an entire city there. Mt. Vesuvius, the volcano, is still active today. It just hasn’t erupted for a very long time.
We had booked an early morning flight out of Naples and didn’t want to go through the stress of waking up in Positano at 3am, hoping to get a car service, praying there were no roadwork delays, etc. so I booked Grand Hotel Vesuvio near the airport overlooking the Bay of Naples for our final night.
We checked into our room before heading to the lobby for a final Aperitivo. We sat there chatting about the trip asking each other about our favorite things in each place we visited.
Our final meal, of course, was pizza. Naples is the birthplace of pizza and one of the most famous pizzerias in the world was just down the street from the hotel. It was pouring rain, but we toughed it out with our umbrellas and walked to Sorbillo. I love true Italian pizza so going here was a treat. Speaking of treats, you better believe that the last thing I was going to eat in that country was gelato. There was a cute gelato shop, Desio, on the walk back to the hotel that we popped into before retreating to our room for night.
DAY 12: TRAVEL DAY
This day was so bittersweet. Going home made me sad, but I was so thankful and grateful for the experiences we’d had together over the previous 11 days. I’ve thought about Italy every single day since we’ve been home and I cannot wait to go back again (I legitimately look at flights all the time).
We took a cab to the airport and hopped on the longest flight either of us had ever been on in our lives. It’s was 10 hours flying from Naples to Newark, but it was a pretty easy flight. We watched three movies each and didn’t sleep a bit. We landed in the U.S. in the afternoon and our flight back to Nashville was super delayed. We got on the plane and waited almost two hours before taking off. Needless to say, we were exhausted. Thank goodness, we both planned an extra day off of work to recover from the jet lag.
I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about our honeymoon in Italy even half as much as I loved sharing about it. If you ever have the chance to go, you absolutely should! And if you’re planning a trip and have any questions for me, please leave them below or shoot me a DM on Instagram – I’d be happy to share any additional information about our trip that you’d want to know!
Until next time…
xo, Nicole