The popular Amalfi Coast route (SS 163 Amalfitana) run along the coast from Sorrento south to Salerno. It is highly recommended to avoid going there during the tourist season as the roads are crowded with tour buses, mobile homes and tourists.

An Amalfi drivers nightmare
An Amalfi drivers nightmare

From mid-September to October and also in May, it is far less crowded and lumbering tour buses are fewer. It’s one of the best coastal drives in the world. Picturesque Amalfi has been featured in films for as long as cameras have existed.

 

The road  is famous for its hairpin bends, zigzags, the views over the sea, and the narrowness in some parts. The road winds along the cliffs, and it was built at a very steep angle, so it zigzags backwards and forwards. The Amalfi Coast drive is arguably the world’s most beautiful and thrilling sightseeing road. It stretches 50 kilometers (30 miles) between Sorrento city and Amalfi village, the community that gave the coast its name. It has only occasional railings to keep your car from potentially plunging into craggy, breaker-washed sea boulders far below. You can drive north or south on the drive. The fainthearted (but never the brave) prefer the northbound direction because the southbound lane precariously hugs the sea cliff edge.

The surface of the road is asphalted. The coast is one of the most fascinating in the world for its landscape. Filled with tour buses, cars and scooters all fighting for space on hairpin turns along cliffs high above the sea

It’s only 80km, but each one is more cinematic than the last with the breathtaking turquoise waters of the Tyrrhenian Sea crashing below as drivers twist and turn along along the winding road.

The road is definitely set for “slow driving”, there are stunning views around every corner. It seems to hang in the air, offering breathtaking sights as the cliffs dramatically drops into the sea hundreds of feet below.

The drive along this spectacular coastline is simply breathtaking.  It’s not, though, for the faint of heart.  With steep rock on one side and a dramatic drop to the Mediterranean on the other, the narrow road clings to the mountain and follows the twisting shoreline, resulting in winding roads and sharp curves. The “Amalfi Drive” is said to be the most spectacular road in Europe.

Rather frighteningly, the road is known for its distinct lack of caution, fences and markers which is utter madness when you consider that much of it hangss on the edge of steep cliffs. Take in what views you can, but keep your eyes firmly on the road for this one. This white-knuckle thrill ride is one of Italy’s greatest wonders, 30 miles of narrow, S-curve roadway strung halfway up a cliff with the waves crashing below, green slopes all around, medieval pirate watchtowers on the headlands, and colorful villages tucked into the coves.

The drive is definitely worth it. There are many excellent photo opportunities here. Don’t forget your camera! Pastel colored villages carved into the mountain-side shine vibrantly against the landscape, while scented lemon groves and a salty sea breeze fill the air. Equipped with a sense of adventure and some solid advice, you can drive the coast and experience one of the most beautiful drives in the world. Each spot is a world of its own, a fantastic world which dazzles the imagination and inspires unforgettable impressions. It’s a daredevil drive flanked by towering cliffs on one side and the beautiful blue of the Mediterranean Sea to the other. Traveling the road’s coastal stretch takes drivers past picturesque, pastel-painted villages set dramatically amongst the clifftops, like Amalfi and Positano.

 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *