Ravello is known as the ‘Jewel of the Amalfi Coast’. And I can see why.

According to the tour guides, the American playwright Gore Vidal said:

Twenty five years ago I was asked by an American magazine what was the most beautiful place that I had ever seen in all my travels and I said the view from the belvedere of the Villa Cimbrone on a bright winter’s day when the sky and the sea were each so vividly blue that it was not possible to tell one from the other.

We set out for Ravello from Positano after walking down the couple of hundred steps to the waterline and port.

From there, it’s a fast fast ferry around to Amalfi.

It’s a beautiful little coastal town, hanging on to the high mountains above it, and with cute little streets and shops selling overpriced bags, jewellery and food. There are fishmongers selling their catch, which is sitting out on trays of ice.

A short but somewhat scary bus ride up the hill, where buses pass with only centimetres to spare and with terrifying drops below, we arrived in Ravello.

Ravello sits 365 metres above the sea and is renowned for its cliff side gardens and terraced lemon groves. One of the highlights is the Villa Rufolo, which was built in the 13th century. It has beautiful gardens and a spectacular view out across the coast where you can see expensive yachts and cruisers bobbing in the blue water below.

We had a beautiful lunch of fresh gnocchi and swordfish, with a couple of glasses of wine. The view was simply breathtaking.

What was even more breathtaking was the walk back up the steps to our hotel in Positano – about 900 of them I estimate. Suddenly the 42 to our front door at home doesn’t appear so intimidating.