Italy 2025

Capri

Leaving Croatia we flew into Naples and from there transferred to the island of Capri via ferry. After a relatively uneventful trip we were happy to be met by a representative from our hotel, La Minerva, to take our bags and direct us on our way to the hotel.

Capri is a very busy island with a mix of tourists there on day trips from the mainland as well as a smaller number of people that stay on the island. After we made our way up to La Piazzetta, the town square of Capri, via the funicular, we strolled past the luxury shops and restaurants to our hotel where we were shown to our room next to the pool and overlooking the Tyrrhenian Sea - absolutely beautiful! We knew that Capri would be a different level of luxury than we had experienced on the trip so far and our first few hours on the island confirmed that!

Walking is the main means of getting around on Capri, but there are lots of hills and stairs so we definitely got a workout seeing the island. Each morning we would go for a walk to visit different places on the island including the Arco Naturale (Natural Arch) and the cave of Matermania which gave us amazing views of the coastline and definitely worked up an appetite for breakfast when we got back to the hotel!

Exploring the island was lots of fun and really easy. One afternoon we decided to take an open air taxi to the town of Anacapri on the opposite end of the island. While there we rode a chairlift to the highest point on Capri, Monte Solaro to take in the views of the entire island. Another day we visited the Gardens of Augustus and a few churches to learn a bit more about the island. After exploring we headed back to the hotel to relax by the pool and enjoy some food and afternoon Granitas!

After getting dressed for the evenings we enjoyed drinks at at our hotel with the other guests before heading out for dinner. Going to dinner was a lot of fun between the amazing food, the great atmosphere and the people watching! After dinner we strolled through the town square area and looked through the luxury shops before stopping for gelato and then heading back to the hotel. Capri was a great treat for us and really made us feel like royalty!

Positano

After ferrying from Capri to Positano we quickly found our hotel - Covo Dei Saraceni. It was only about 100’ from the boat landing! Over the next few days we had lots of fun watching all the activity with the boats and passengers from our hotel room balcony. It was chaotic at times as boats jockeyed for position to get a space at the landing to pick up or drop off whatever they had - people, supplies, fish, kegs of beer, you name it!As the storms rolled in on 2 of the days, it was fun to watch the craziness leave and the calmness take over.

Similar to Capri, the town of Positano is mainly a walking town with lots of hills and stairs so we got our workout (again). After we checked into our hotel we quickly realized this as we headed out to grab lunch at a restaurant that was recommended by our hosts in Capri. About halfway up to the restaurant we were second guessing our choice but we muscled on and ended up at a wonderful place named Casa e Bottega where we met the owner and learned a lot about the area and her time in the restaurant trade in Positano. We spent the afternoon at the rooftop pool.

Later in the week we treated ourselves to a private speedboat ride up the coast to see some of the towns and villages and enjoy the time on and in the water. Our skipper took us up the Amalfi coast and it was the perfect way to really see the area from the sea. We stopped at a tiny little cave where he put the nose of the boat in and then as he backed out told us to jump! We swam into this amazing blue water and had the cave to ourselves! It was surreal! After a quick jump from the rocks, he treated us to a beer as we continued up the coast. Our next stop was a concrete dock, along the rocks, which seemed to be nothing. There was a little stand where we bought tickets for a rowboat to enter the Emerald Grotto, where we were paddled through a large cave system while they shared information on its history - along the way we also saw lots of stalactites and stalagmites! After we rejoined our skipper we headed up the coast to the town of Amalfi where he dropped us off for and hour. We were able to take a quick look through the town and enjoy some lemon sorbet gelato - yum! Once we were finished, we headed back to the boat and on our way back to Positano but we stopped one more time for a long swim into another cave. We weren't along this time but the guy who swam in was shocked we had swum from the boat, apparently there was a dock right around the corner from the cave, inside the swimming ropes. He had a quick swim back we got a workout getting back to our boat. It was a great time and a wonderful way to experience the area!

We ate lots of pizza, as we spent the other 2 days exploring Positano, in between the storms, popping in shops and just enjoying the view, and getting our steps in! One of our favorite dinners was a Ristorante Max, surrounded by art. Both of our sons and their wives had eaten there and recommended it and it was delicious!

Our Top 7

Being spoiled at La Minerva Capri
Watching the boats docking in Positano
Morning Capri walks with stunning views
Swimming in a secluded Amalfi coast cave
Pool afternoons at La Minerva Capri
Walking the streets of Positano to see the gorgeous views
Our private speedboat tour of the Amalfi Coast

The Details

Lodging

Capri: La Minera Capri

Positano: Covo dei Saraceni

Transportation

Naples airport to port: taxi

Naples port to Capri: ferry

Capri: walk, open air taxis

Capri to Positano: ferry

Positano: walk

Positano to Naples airport: private transfer, by hotel

Capri Restaurants

Ristorante da Paolino

Aurora

Luce Capri

Positano Restaurants

Restaurant Max (AMAZING!!))

Casa e Bottega (lunch only)

lots of pizza!!!

Italy 2019

Cinque Terre

We first learned about the Cinque Terre (which means "5 Lands" in English) from a newspaper article many years before and always knew it was someplace we wanted to visit. It is made up of 5 small villages along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea that are all connected by walking paths.

We stayed in Riomaggiore - the southernmost village. To experience all of the villages we took a local train to the northernmost village of Monterosso al Mare and hiked from there through Vernazza and on to Corniglia. One of the highlights of our hike were the orange slushies we were served from a trailside vendor - the perfect way to cool down in the hot Italian sun! The trail was closed between Corniglia and the next village of Manarola so we headed back by train to Riomaggiore and enjoyed an afternoon swim. We took the train to Manarola the next day and explored another picturesque town.

Monterosso al Mare was a larger village where we enjoyed an afternoon on the beach, dinner and a quick visit to oratory of the Confraternita dei Neri Mortis et Orationis. After we returned and looked up the Oratory of the Dead church, we realized we might have been cursed because we didn't leave a donation!

Tuscany

In Florence, we rented a car and drove to Montepulciano where we stayed in an apartment that had once been a monastery. Staying right outside the city of Montepulciano, we walked into town for dinner almost every night. It was a fun little town to explore! From the tour at La Citta Sotterranea with ancient tunnels and torture devices and amazing wine samples at the end, to the top of the bell tower and the most amazing panna cotta we still talk about, Montepulciano was one of our first destinations where we learned to travel and enjoy without plans.

While in Tuscany we took the opportunity to visit one of the many vineyards - Ciacci Piccolomini D'Aragona for a great time touring and tasting their many wines. We still love finding Ciacci wine in our local stores, while we are waiting for our bottles of Brunello to age!

Our host arranged for a cooking class at an estate nearby, and we enjoyed making our own meal, including pasta and of course, drinking wine.

Driving through the amazing Val d'Orcia we explored the towns of Siena, Montelcino and San Gimignano. From the cathedrals to the world famous gelato, these small towns are so much fun to explore!

Rome

Although we initially flew into Italy through Rome we decided to spend our time there at the end of our trip. We stayed at an AirBnB that was perfectly situated near the Pantheon so we could easily walk throughout the city to see its many, many sites.

While there we booked a tour guide for both the Colosseum and the Vatican - not a typical move for us but definitely worth it to learn the deep history of these places. Walking through the Colosseum with our archeologist tour guide, it was easy to envision how it had looked when it was in use nearly 2000 years ago. Our tour of the Vatican and Vatican Museum was led by a PhD student in Art History who gave us an awesome and in-depth understanding of its history. We also booked the Vatican Scavi tour though the Catholic Church and it was amazing to see the underground streets and the tomb of St. Peter.

Walking through Rome it is fun to stumble upon so many historical sites like the Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain, the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill. We can’t wait to explore Rome again!

Pisa & Florence

Did you know the train stations in Italy have luggage storage?

Since our route from Cinque Terre to Florence required a train change in Pisa, we hopped off the train, stored our luggage at the train station and walked to the Leaning Tower of Pisa, walked the steps to the top, explored the grounds, ate lunch and then headed back to the train station and on to Florence.

We rented a car in Florence and spent a few days in Tuscany. After we returned the rental car, we stored our luggage at the train station in Florence and set off to explore Florence for just a few hours. We did a quick pass through some of the museums and leather market and headed back to catch our train to Rome. This allowed us a quick taste of Florence, so we know we will be going back someday!

This strategy makes for some long days but we don't miss the opportunity to see a city as we pass through!