10 Ways to Experience Positano Like a Local

Positano is one of those places that almost feels made for photography.

The town climbs up the side of the mountain, colorful buildings seem to stack on top of each other, and everywhere you look there is another view of the Mediterranean. I remember seeing photographs of Positano long before I ever had the chance to visit, and it was one of those places that I knew I wanted to photograph for myself.

But there's a problem with places that become famous for their photographs. Sometimes you end up experiencing the photograph instead of the place. You follow the same streets, stand in the same spots, eat at the same restaurants and take the same picture everyone else took before you. There's nothing necessarily wrong with that, but it's not really how I like to travel.

When I visit somewhere, I want to see what makes the place tick. I want to wander a little. I want to eat somewhere that has a family story behind it. I want to sit somewhere and watch people going about their day. And, of course, I want to photograph the things that catch my attention along the way.

So if you're planning a trip to Positano and want to get beyond the obvious tourist experience, here are ten things I'd consider doing.

1. Spend Some Time in Montepertuso

Photo: Severo Antonelli

Most people visiting Positano spend their time at the bottom of the hill, and that's understandable. The coastline and the view from the main part of town are a big part of what makes Positano famous.

But I'd make the effort to go higher.

Montepertuso sits above Positano, and the pace feels different once you get away from the busiest part of town. You're surrounded more by homes and local life, and the scenery changes as you climb.

This is the kind of place where I would slow down with my camera. Rather than looking for one specific viewpoint, I'd pay attention to the details. The way the buildings are built into the hillside, the stairways connecting different levels, balconies, gardens, doors and little pieces of everyday life can tell you just as much about Positano as the big coastal view.

And because you're higher up, you get some different perspectives of the coastline too.

Montepertuso is also a good place to look for family-owned restaurants, which brings me to something I'd make a priority while visiting Positano.

2. Eat at a Family-Owned Restaurant

Photo: Caffe Positano

One of the things I really want to experience when I travel is food that has some history behind it.

Positano has plenty of restaurants designed around the visitor experience, but there are also family-run restaurants that have been part of the community for generations. That's where I'd start looking.

One of the places we absolutely fell in love with was Caffe Positano. Sure, its “on the beaten path” but trust me its worth it.

Caffè Positano is the kind of place that makes you want stay awhile - like most Italian dining experiences. Sitting along Via Pasitea with beautiful views over the sea, this family-run spot has been part of Positano since 1950 and still has that warm, welcoming Italian feel. They really make you feel like family. Whether you plan to go for a morning coffee, stay for fresh pasta or seafood, and finish with a glass of wine or one of their famous lemon desserts made with local Positano lemons. It feels less like a place you simply stop to eat and more like a place where you can sit, talk, take in the view, and enjoy a little piece of everyday life on the Amalfi Coast.

I highty recommend their lasagna and homemade tiramisu! Its safe to say I stopped here quite a few times on our trips.

Overall with dining, this is the type of place that interests me.

I'm not saying every meal has to be at a tiny restaurant nobody has heard of. In a place as popular as Positano, that's probably not realistic anyway. What I like is finding a restaurant where the food, the people and the history of the place are still connected.

Sometimes the best meal you'll have while traveling isn't the one with the best view. It's the one where you can tell someone actually cares about what they're putting on your table.

3. Spend an Afternoon at Fornillo Beach

Photo: Mihael Grmek

Spiaggia Grande is the beach most people associate with Positano, and there's a reason for that. It's right in the middle of everything.

But if I had an afternoon to spend by the water, I'd walk farther along the coast toward Fornillo Beach.

It's certainly not an undiscovered secret, but compared with the main beach, it can feel a little removed from the center of everything. And sometimes that's all I'm looking for.

There's something to be said for giving yourself an afternoon where you don't have to accomplish anything. Sit by the water, go for a swim, have something to drink and take your camera out when you see something worth photographing.

Travel doesn't always need to be packed with activities. Some of the best memories I've had in places I've visited came from simply sitting somewhere long enough to actually notice what was happening around me.

4. Skip the Big Lunch Once in a While

I love Italian food, so I'm certainly not suggesting you skip the restaurants altogether. But I'd also make time for a simple lunch.

Find a small shop or alimentari and pick up a panino, some fruit and a drink. Then find somewhere to sit and enjoy it. Positano is full of stairways, terraces and little places where you can stop for a few minutes. You don't necessarily need a reservation or a table overlooking the sea.

In fact, I'd probably enjoy sitting somewhere with a simple sandwich and my camera more than spending two hours at a restaurant in the middle of the busiest part of town.It also gives you more freedom to wander. You can eat when you're hungry instead of building your entire day around your next reservation.

5. Wander Positano Without a Destination

This is probably the simplest thing on this list, but it's also one of the things I'd make the most time for. Don't always have somewhere you're trying to get to.

Walk through the streets and see where they take you. If a staircase looks interesting, take it. If a little road heads uphill, follow it for a while. You may end up somewhere you didn't expect, or you may simply find yourself standing in front of someone's home with a view of the sea. That's okay. You're going to see things you probably wouldn't notice if you were simply walking from one attraction to another. Laundry hanging from a balcony, a painted door, flowers growing against a wall, old stonework, small gardens and the way the buildings fit into the mountain are all part of what makes Positano what it is.

Those are often the photographs I enjoy most. This also happens to be where I bought one of my favorite pair of leather sandals from Safari Positano.

The small pieces of a place that give you a reminder of where you actually were.

6. Visit Nocelle

Nocelle is another place I'd put on the list if you want to get away from the center of Positano.

It's located high above the town and is associated with the famous Sentiero degli Dei, or Path of the Gods. The hiking trail itself is well known, so I'm not going to pretend this is some secret corner of the Amalfi Coast.

What I would do differently is take my time.

If you're hiking, be prepared for an actual hike. Bring water, wear appropriate shoes and give yourself enough time to enjoy it instead of rushing through it just to say you did it.

For photography, I think the temptation would be to concentrate on the big landscape. I'd try to resist that a little.

Look closer.

Pay attention to the vegetation, the rocks, the walls, the changing light and the smaller details along the trail. Sometimes I'll find myself more interested in something right in front of me than the huge landscape that brought me there in the first place.

Image: La Tagliata

7. Have Dinner in Montepertuso

If you've spent the day exploring Positano, consider staying up in Montepertuso for dinner rather than immediately heading back into the center of town. There are family-run restaurants there that have been serving food for generations, including Donna Rosa and La Tagliata.

La Tagliata is particularly one of the most beautiful spots. It’s connected to the family farm, with much of the food tied directly to what is grown and prepared there. That kind of experience is much more interesting to me than simply choosing a restaurant because it happens to have the highest rating online.

I love knowing who owns the place. I want to know whether the family has been there for decades. I want to understand something about the food and where it came from. And then I want to sit down and enjoy dinner. That's enough.

8. Have Coffee Before the Town Gets Busy

If you enjoy photography, get up early. I know. Nobody wants to hear that while they're on vacation. But there is something completely different about Positano in the morning before the streets fill with people.

I'd start with coffee rather than immediately grabbing my camera. During your time, I would encourage to you find a truly local coffee stop. Or if you want to enjoy like a local, head to the supermercato and pick up something local to Italy, take it back to your AirBnB or Hotel and enjoy privately.

Sit for a while. Watch the town start its day. Pay attention to the people who are actually working there and living there rather than the visitors who have just arrived. Then go photograph. The early morning light can be beautiful, but that's not the only reason to be out early. Having fewer people around gives you the chance to slow down and look.

This will change how you see this beautiful paradise. You will see what everyday feels like. Its so worth it.

9. Get Away From the Main Streets!

One of the easiest ways to make Positano feel less like a tourist destination is to get away from the areas where everyone is going.

You don't have to go very far. Take one of the stairways away from the main streets and see where it leads. Walk uphill for a while. Explore some of the quieter residential areas. You don't need to be searching for some hidden attraction.

Just look around. This is where you'll start noticing the details that don't make it onto the typical postcard. The architecture, the plants, the colors, the little views between buildings and the way people have adapted to living on such a steep hillside. For me, that's where travel photography gets interesting. The famous view is easy to recognize. The smaller details require you to pay attention.

10. Shop for Food Like You Actually Live There

One of the things I would really want to do in Positano is something most visitors probably don't think about at all: go grocery shopping.

Not at some specialty food shop designed for tourists. I mean find the little neighborhood places where people who actually live in Positano buy their food. That's a completely different way of experiencing a town.

Positano doesn't have the kind of big supermarkets you might be used to. Much of the everyday shopping is done through smaller markets, delis, produce shops, butchers and fishmongers. There are neighborhood shops around areas like Chiesa Nuova and Via Pasitea where you can pick up bread, cheese, fresh produce, meats and prepared foods.

I'd make a morning out of it. Walk into a little shop and look around. Pick up some fresh mozzarella, bread, fruit and something local to drink. Maybe find a panino or some prepared food for lunch. Don't worry about whether you're buying the "best" thing or whether somebody on Instagram recommended it.

You're shopping for lunch. That's it. And honestly, I think experiences like this tell you more about a place than another famous viewpoint does. You start seeing what people actually eat. You see the way food is displayed, what is in season, what the shop carries and how people interact with the person behind the counter. You become part of the rhythm of the town for a little while instead of simply passing through it.

That's the kind of travel experience I look for. If I'm going to photograph Positano, I'd much rather come home with a photograph of a tiny neighborhood food shop, a basket of lemons, an old storefront or somebody preparing lunch than another photograph I've already seen a thousand times.

The famous view will still be there. But the little grocery shop might tell me more about what Positano is actually like.