Hello from Italy! I hope you visited my page to see the extended version of the hundreds of pictures I took today. If so, you are in the right place!
After leaving Florence, I headed to the Italian Riveria and specifically Ravello. I have been to Cinque Terre before so I decided to try the coast a little north.
I stayed at a gorgeous boutique hotel called hotel San Desidero where the owner Marco was awesome and went out of his way to make sure guests felt at home. It was also one of the most affordable options in the area and at a 9.2 booking.com rating.
I was suppose to have 2 days on the coast but it poured rain the first day so I ended up with a single day to see absolutely everything!
I started the day bright and early with a delicious breakfast at my hotel before taking a train then bus (#82) to Portofino. For those that don’t know, Portofino is small village well known for being a luxury destination with celebrity spottings not uncommon and yachts docking there every day. I mainly went for the beautiful scenery and to see what the hype was about. I stayed in a nearby (and equally beautiful town) as I don’t think it is possible to find a hotel (even in the off season) for under €300 a night.
Overall, it was gorgeous and quite small! I arrived around 9 and then left at noon after climbing up the castle to get beautiful views, seeing some of the small beaches, and taking all of the pictures above. It was as expensive as I thought, with €16 cocktails and a €4 coperto (sitting service charge) at every restaurant. I also had good timing to see the town quiet before the bunches of day-trippers arrived. I was suppose to take the ferry to the next town, but the noon boat was canceled so back to the bus it was!
I took the bus to Santa Margarita to transfer to Camogli. It was STUNNING the city was similar in beauty to Portofino, but a more relaxed and low key vibe. I saw many local fisherman and fishing boats vs. the yachts at Portofino. It was also larger so more to explore and walk around. Plus, prices were a little more in my budget 🙂 For example, my 1/4 liter of wine and water with an ocean view was only €6. I walked around had some local focaccia bread, drank some wine, and enjoyed listening to the waves.
I briefly stopped in Santa Margarita and Revallo as well to walk around. I must say I still think Camgoli is my favorite for being a good mix of local vibes and also having so many dining options right on the water.
My other fun fact for the Italian coast is for you to look closer at the building. If you look close enough you can see that many of the windows, railings, decorations, etc are painted on! It is funny to see around town and play the game of real or fake.
❤️Melanie
Smiles from Miles Away 