Stephen Bailey explores the grand dames of the Bay of Naples, like Grand Hotel Excelsior Vittoria in Sorrento, villages along the Amalfi Coast and the soul-stirring energy of Naples.
His trip report is full of recommendations for a 2024 holiday around this glamorous corner of Italy.
When to Explore Amalfi & The Bay of Naples
I’ve forever been enchanted by the images of Amalfi, Positano, Naples and Mount Vesuvius. And wow, this part of Italy deserves its fame! It’s spectacularly beautiful!
The consensus among hoteliers and guides is that the best times to travel to this region are May, June, September and October.
These months offer glorious weather, warm seas for swimming, but not the overbearing crowds of July and August. In peak summer I’m told it’s difficult to even park a yacht along the coast, never mind drive the narrow single-lane mountain roads.
My trip was last week, in November. This is completely the wrong time of year to travel. The weather was a stunning 20 degrees and sunshine, but most hotels only open from late March to the first weekend in November. I still loved it though.
The Amalfi Coast isn’t a beach destination. I really don’t see it as a good family destination. So why travel during the busiest, hottest and most expensive school holiday months?
Amalfi is a place for a romantic Italian getaway – great food, relaxed vibe, lots of wine and beautiful views. All hoteliers agreed that either side of peak summer is best.
Experiencing Grand Hotel Excelsior Vittoria in Sorrento
We left our daughter with grandparents and started in Sorrento, at Grand Hotel Excelsior Vittoria. It’s been in the Fiorentino family for six generations, since 1834, before Italy was even a sovereign country! Luca Fiorentina was a very generous host.
I could feel this gracious history everywhere. The antiques, the marble, the frescoes on the ceilings, the bar that looked like it was time immemorial.
Normally I prefer contemporary hotels. Still, I loved the old style here because it’s so genuine. Grand Hotel Excelsior Vittoria hasn’t been designed in an old style, it’s truly an immersion in another time.
And old didn’t mean uncomfortable. The mattresses are very modern. Our bathroom had a marble bathtub and a twin shower. The walk-in closet was far too big for our single suitcase.
We stayed in a one-of-a-kind suite. Each of these premium accommodations reflects something from the hotel’s history. Ours was Avanti, designed on the 1972 movie Avanti! which was filmed at the hotel.
The hotel’s three buildings are almost 200 years old, so the rooms and suites don’t have a uniform size or layout. I have one simple recommendation: only stay in a room or suite with a sea view.
Grand Hotel Excelsior Vittoria stands high on the cliffs, directly above the Bay of Naples, with a magnificent view across the water to Mount Vesuvius. All rooms and suites on this side have terraces, so we could fully enjoy this vista (with a bottle of wine of course!)
Breakfast is served in a fresco dominated restaurant with the same mesmerising view. The bust-dominated terrace is fantastic too and the hotel has a Michelin-starred restaurant on the lower floor.
Rather than a typical lobby, there are three living room areas to lounge around with a drink. The spa is small and only for treatments, which I was somewhat disappointed to learn. And while the hotel is open year round, the pool area is closed from November to April.
Ultimately, there is no substitute for quality. In this hotel, with this view and this unmistakable style, it felt like I was experiencing an Italian dream.
The service was as gracious as the hotel itself, old-world in style and with a big Italian smile. Even if you don’t like old style hotels, I’d still recommend trying Grand Hotel Excelsior Vittoria.
Comparing Sorrento, Positano & Amalfi
The hotel dominates Sorrento, with large gardens separating the older and newer parts of the town, plus the location high above the port.
I liked Sorrento because it feels like a living Italian city. By that I mean, Italian people are actually living there. There are shops, restaurants, cafes and everything else local people need.
I much prefer to be the only non-Italian in a restaurant, trying typical dishes that don’t need to be labelled as “traditional.” I love being in a restaurant that doesn’t have an English menu. This was my experience in Sorrento.
Personally I didn’t like the atmosphere in Positano, because it seemed everything was focused on tourism.
However, the Amalfi coastline is worthy of its fame. It’s divine. Towering cliffs covered in forests, colourful villages rising up at improbable steepness.
Positano is certainly a beautiful place to walk around, with its narrow alleyways, staircases, and just the spectacular surrounding scenery. Almost every terrace has a view for a relaxing, romantic afternoon.
Note that while Positano does have a beach, it’s a small dark-sand beach and this isn’t a beach destination. Nor is the village of Amalfi itself.
Amalfi is smaller than Positano, which is smaller than Sorrento. Any of these places can easily be explored in half a day.
My highlight was travelling between them. The road from Sorrento to Amalfi is spellbinding and I can only imagine how nice it is to sail on a yacht between the villages too.
For most people I wouldn’t recommend staying in more than one. Better to pick your base along the Amalfi Coast, completely relax, then make some day trips to the other places.
Don’t forget the island of Capri either. It’s only a short boat ride away, across the Bay of Naples!
The Stirring Surprises of Naples
Naples reflects so many ideas about Italy: passion, energy and beauty, plus chaos, crazy traffic and continual surprises.
Let me be clear: Naples is definitely not a destination for everyone. It’s gritty, dirty, noisy, overbearing and over the top. It would be a disaster travelling here with children. But it’s so much fun and really stirred my soul.
It’s not Milan or Rome, where you dress up nicely and explore glamorous streets. Naples is for getting lost in mazy neighbourhoods, surrounded by strange sights, endless sounds, and passionate people.
I asked my guide if he was from Napoli. He said, “I was born in Napoli and I will die in Napoli. Napoli is a state of mind, the people are different here.
I can’t give you too many specific recommendations about where to go. Except for Gino e Toto Sorbillo. Naples is the birthplace of pizza. The 19th-century L’Antica Pizzeria Da Michele made famous by Eat Pray Love is good. Not the best though. I would eat pizza at the original Gino e Toto Sorbillo every day of my life.
We stayed at Grand Hotel Parker’s, a grand dame with a new lease of life. All the marble, antiques and original art indicate the hotel’s age.
The hotel is currently completing a full renovation, so the rooms and suites are modern with nice little touches.
One of the top suites has a sauna and jacuzzi within it. Most of the rooms and suites are interconnecting, so there’s a lot of flexibility in getting a room with the space you need.
Hotels in Naples are significantly cheaper than those on the Amalfi Coast. Grand Hotel Parker’s is a good property, widely considered the best in Naples. The view from the sixth-floor restaurant terrace is stunning and there’s a Michelin-starred restaurant too.
Overall, it’s not quite at the lofty level of Grand Hotel Vittoria Excelsior. I recommend Grand Hotel Parker’s as a good base for exploration, rather than a hotel to spend long lazy days.
Also, if you want action-packed fun-filled holiday in this area, Naples can be a good base for travelling to the whole Amalfi region. Take the fast hydrofoil to different villages and Capri during the day, then spend the evenings exploring the city.
Italy in 2024?
Every time I visit Italy I’m amazed by how much more there is to explore. And I wish I could live in Italy just to have access to such incredible food and wine all the time.
Three meals a day never feel enough in Italy. Nor are three coffees. Or three bottles of wine.
Where is on your list for a 2024 holiday in Italy?
