Taking in Sorrento, Positano, Pompeii and the island of Capri, the Neapolitan coast is exquisite, writes Sandra O'Connell
FORGET LEMONADE. When life gives you lemons, make limoncello. The alcoholic digestif is everywhere in Sorrento, as are the supersized fruits that produce it, hanging over balconies, propping up walls and shading gardens. Vying for space alongside them are the orange trees that line the town's streets and are of such iconic status that it is a criminal offence to pick their fruit.
In an area of such abundance - of beauty, of sunshine and, courtesy of Vesuvius, of fertile soil - lemons here are less life's bitter joke than nature's equivalent of the cherry on the cake.
In fact, about the only thing Sorrento doesn't have is a beach. Instead, swimmers jump off wooden platforms complete with changing huts, or flock to rooftop hotel pools.
It's perhaps just as well there is no beach. If there were you might never get to see the area's attractions, of which there is, again, an abundance.
First up is the town itself, which centres around Piazza Tasso, a small but buzzing square, lined with restaurants and bars, that marks the official starting point for the nightly passeggiata, or stroll.
To the south is a whitewashed pedestrian alley of tourist shops; to the west are steps leading down to (and interminably up from) the harbour.
It is from here you get the ferry to the island of Capri, a crossing that takes half an hour and costs €13 each way. The island is a pedestrian haven - only locals are allowed cars, and even then access to most houses is possible only by foot.
The island, which is only about five kilometres long and two kilometres wide, is pretty much ringed all the way around with walking trails shaded by umbrella pines.
Capri town's public drawing room is Piazza Umberto I, with cafe tables on three sides and church steps festooned with flowers on the fourth.
The smaller village of Anacapri lies on the other side of the island, reached by bus. The main attraction here is Villa San Michele, home to Axel Munthe, writer, doctor to and, apparently, lover of the Swedish queen in the 1880s.
The house is now a museum maintained by the Swedish government. Although pretty enough, and festooned with ancient Roman artefacts, its real show-stopper is the view from the pergola-covered gardens.
There's also a chair lift nearby that takes about 10 minutes to reach the island's highest point, and again the views are spectacular - so much so that the area was the chosen home of the Roman emperor Tiberius, a man notoriously hard to please. Then again, what appealed to him most was the height of the cliff, from which he could throw miscreants.
It's an urge you'll appreciate if you come across a convoy of tourists off a cruise ship on Capri - row after row of which block up the island's tiny alleys and lanes.
Thankfully the islanders have had the good sense to ensure that the last ferry leaves at 6.30pm, so that they at least get some modicum of peace and quiet. It also makes summer evenings by far the nicest time to be on the island.
Back on the mainland, Sorrento makes a great base for explorations farther south. Unlike many areas so familiar from pictures and magazines, the Amalfi coast doesn't disappoint.
The twisty sea road is not for the faint-hearted, however, and not just because of the kamikaze driving habits of the locals.
With soaring limestone cliffs plunging to the bluest sea you'll ever see, drivers will be hard-pressed to keep their eyes on the road - even at the most dangerous parts.
Thankfully, there are plenty of opportunities to stop and soak it all in safely.
Among the best known of the chichi villages along the coast is Positano, where houses tumble down to the sea from heights that would make a condor dizzy.
Farther on, past Sofia Loren's villa, Bill Gates's hotel and Rudolph Nureyev's island, is Amalfi itself, a bustling town with whitewashed back alleys and colourful shopping streets.
In terms of colour, however, little could compete with its mosaic-tiled cathedral - looking for all the world like a building designed in a kaleidoscope.
To escape the hoi polloi, take the high road to Ravello, the exclusive enclave that hangs out over the coast like a balcony just seven kilometres away.
Be warned: the spectacular views from this one-time home to celebrities such as Jackie Kennedy and Gore Vidal can make even the rest of the coast seem pedestrian.
North of Sorrento are three additional must-sees. The mighty volcano Vesuvius, which dominates the Sorrentine skyline, can be explored via a 45-minute, 1,500m walk to the crater's edge.
Seeing it makes the trip to the equally unmissable Pompeii all the more poignant. Famously presenting a snapshot of life in a commercial Roman town, it's as close to time travel as you'll get.
Its ancient fast-food joints, signposts to brothels (denoted by cheerful phalluses) and even election slogans are all in situ, just as they were on August 24th, 79.
Less well known but even more compelling is Herculaneum, seaside retreat of the Roman elite. Unlike ash-smothered Pompeii, it was buried under a mud that helped to preserve it to an even better degree, right down to wooden artefacts, fabrics and foodstuffs.
While Pompeii gives us the big picture of the life of a Roman town, Herculaneum provides the details.
And, unsurprisingly, what both have in common - depicted not just in wall paintings and mosaics but in their charred remains - is a very Sorrentine devotion to lemons.
Go there
Sandra O'Connell travelled with Sunway Holidays (www.sunway.ie, 01-2311888), which offers a weekly charter from May to October. Seven nights' BB at the four-star Bristol Hotel starts at €999 per person, including flights and transfers. Aer Lingus (www.aerlingus.com) flies from Dublin to Naples, about 50km away, six times a week.
Where to stay and eat
Where to stay
Hotel Bristol. Via Capo 10, 00-39-81-8784522, www.bristolsorrento.com.
High on the southern end of Sorrento's main thoroughfare, this hotel is popular with Irish visitors. Rooms have panoramic views over the bay, taking in both Capri and Vesuvius. Doubles start at €130 a night, including breakfast.
Il San Pietro di Positano. Via Laurito, Positano, 00-39-89- 875455, www.ilsanpietro.it. Just north of Positano, and built into the cliff face so that it is almost unnoticeable from the road, this spectacularly located hotel has attracted such residents as Julia Roberts and Robert De Niro. Standard doubles start at €530 a night.
Caesar Augustus.
Capri, 00-39-81-8373395, www.caesar-augustus.com. Set 300m up a cliff, with jaw-dropping views over Sorrento, Vesuvius and Ischia, this five-star hotel is offering three nights, including dinner, tours and boat trips, for €1,776.
Where to eat
Relais Blu Belvedere. Via Roncato, Massa Lubrense, 00-39-81-8789552, www.relais blu.com. This 11-room boutique hotel, 12km from Sorrento, is well worth taxiing out to for dinner. German chef Christoph Bob serves modern Italian cuisine, with a strong emphasis on fish. Expensive by local standards, at about €50 per person, it seems cheap to us.
Il Buco Ristorante. 2 Rampa Marina Piccola (off Piazza San Antonino), Sorrento, 00-39-81- 8782354, www.ilbuco ristorante.it. This gives you the option of delicious dining either downstairs, in the cellar, or outside, in an alley, both of which are far more salubrious than they sound. It's also the perfect spot for a night out, being situated beside the Tasso theatre.
La Pergola, Via Traversa Lo Palazzo, Capri, 00-39-81- 8377414. On Capri, follow the locals to this tucked-away gem. If chef-owner Giancarlo Cataldo likes you, he'll give you lemons to bring home.