The Island of Capri is located in the Gulf of Naples, just a few miles from Sorrento and the Amalfi Coast. The island is 10 square kilometers large and is divided into two municipalities: Capri and Anacapri. The center of Capri develops around the Piazzetta, about 150 meters above the sea level. Anacapri is located higher up, at 275 meters above the sea level.
Directly on the sea you will find two places: Marina Grande (where the Port is located) and Marina Piccola (on the opposite side of the Port, where the Faraglioni are located).
To get from the Port of Marina Grande to the center of Capri the most convenient and fastest way is the funicular: the ticket office is on the right hand side of the hydrofoils' arrival pier. Instead, to get from Marina Grande directly to Anacapri, you have to take the bus from the port.
Once disembarked at the Port of Marina Grande, take the funicular and arrive directly to the famous Piazzetta di Capri, also known as the "living room of the world": the center of local social life.
From here you will be spoiled for choice: you can go down to Corso Vittorio Emanuele and continue to Via Camerelle to enjoy some shopping or simply look at the windows of the biggest luxury brands in the world. For the more curious you can visit the Centro Caprese Ignazio Cerio (just behind the Piazzetta) to get information on the ancient history of Capri. On foot you can take a pleasant walk through the characteristic medieval district of Sant'Anna and then arrive at the Certosa of San Giacomo, the medieval jewel of Capri.
The Phoenician steps were once the only link between the Port of Marina Grande and Anacapri. Today there are 921 steps to walk whilst you can admire the panorama of Capri in all its splendor! Until a few years ago it was thought that the Phoenicians had built the staircase, hence its name, while today new historical research tells us that the staircase was built by the Greeks between the seventh and sixth centuries B.C.
The Phoenician steps today can be an excellent alternative to the long queues that are formed in Anacapri waiting for the bus to Marina Grande and vice versa.
It is good to point out that the steps begin gently and then gradually become steeper and, if you are not used to climbing ramps of thousands of steps, the journey time is about a couple of hours counting the various stops dictated by a suggestive landscape.
Upon arrival in Anacapri you can stop off to visit Villa San Michele: the house that the physician and writer Axel Munthe built on top of the stairs.
Gradola’s beach in Anacapri is located on the south west coast of the island, a few steps from the Blue Grotto. More than a beach, it is a descent into the sea surrounded by rocks: stone walls with irregular and majestic contours that become white with the light of the sun.
As soon as you arrive you will not be the one to go to the sea, but it will be the sea that comes to you because the water level is quite high and the backdrop is one of the deepest and most unspoiled on the island. The colours of the sea will leave you amazed: from emerald green to deep blue.
In Gradola, sea and sky merge, almost kiss and you will feel at peace with the two worlds, the earth and the sky. This small hospitable beach, but little known by tourists, is the favorite destination of the people of Anacapri, those who know and experience every little nuance of the country.
To get to this beach from Anacapri, take the bus to Piazza della Pace to the Blue Grotto. Get out at the last stop and take the stairs, then go left and continue past the restaurants.
It should be noted that this seaside resort has been repeatedly awarded with the Blue Flag, a prestigious recognition for the clarity of the waters.
At the foot of Mount Solaro, on the right of Piazza Vittoria in Anacapri, a wonderful walk begins on a level path. It is a place of true and wild beauty still unknown to the mass tourism routes.
The route of the Migliara winds for about 2 km between vineyards and cultivated fields to then arrive at the Belvedere del Tuono, a spectacular terrace overlooking the open sea and the Lighthouse of Punta Carena.
The Lighthouse of Punta Carena towers at the south-western end of the island of Capri, on the Limmo Peninsula, a name that derives from the Latin limen and means border. Beyond there is only sea and sea up to Sicily. Behind it rises the cliff of the Migliara path with the defense walls built by the British at the beginning of the 800s to protect Capri. The lighthouse, built in 1866, is among the most important of the Tyrrhenian Sea and the second in Italy for luminous intensity after that of Genoa. The Lighthouse of Punta Carena is one of the most popular seaside resorts of the island because of the always clean water and the sun shining all day long. A day in this place never ends if you do not want to …
How to get there? From Capri take a bus to Anacapri and stop at Piazza della Pace, where you will take another bus to the Lighthouse. Stop at the terminus and head towards the beach which is about 5 minutes walk. Remember to stop at Belvedere dei Sognatori before reaching the sea of the Lighthouse; here the view on the Mediterranean is a sight that is lost towards the infinite! This Belvedere is located near the Lighthouse and to get there you have to climb the stairs near the parking lot.
The Faraglioni of Capri are three large rocks that emerge from the sea, on the south-western side of the island. The highest is the Faraglione di Terra or Saetta, then there is the Faraglione di Mezzo or Stella separated from the first by the sea and in which there is the famous cavity in the center (taken in many films and TV spots) and finally there is the Faraglione di Fuori or Scopolo, natural habitat of the famous blue lizard. It is said that the lizard took these colours to blend in with the sea and the sky.
The Faraglioni for centuries have illuminated the moonless nights of the sailors: the name Faraglioni derives from the Greek pharos, which means lighthouse. In the past, fires were lit on these rocks to illuminate the ships' route.
A curiosity that not everyone knows is that there is a fourth secret stack called Scoglio del Monacone, which rises behind the three most famous. It owes its name to the monk seal that populated its waters since 1904 and seems to be the only one to have been inhabited.
Blue Grotto
The Blue Grotto is Capri's most famous attraction : people from all over the world come to see it even for a few minutes. It is 25 meters wide and 60 meters long with an entrance less than a meter high. As a matter of fact, to enter it you have to lie on the bottom of a rowboat that slides through the small arch. Inside we find ourselves floating in the dark, on a water so blue that it seems transparent.
The entrance fee is payable exclusively on the spot at the floating box office anchored at the entrance of the cave (and only in cash). Unfortunately, in the summer you need to queue for hours to do the boat ride inside, which lasts only about 5 minutes.
It is very important to know that swimming is strictly forbidden and during the visit there is no way to swim. Swimming, apart from being illegal, is very dangerous: the entrance is low and narrow and just a little higher wave can make you finish with the head against the rock.
To highlight that the Blue Grotto is subject to closure because of the wind and the rough sea that make it impossible to enter.
Green Grotto
The Green Grotto, known in ancient times as the Turkish Grotto, is located on the southern side of the Island of Capri and is known for the colour of the water in its interior that, due to a special play of light, takes on the green colour. The Green Grotto can only be reached by sea. A curiosity: near the Green Grotto, going towards the Lighthouse of Punta Carena, you can admire the Grotto of the Saints which takes its name from the characteristic shape of the rocks that emerge from the sea inside the cave itself and that look like a group of monks or people kneeling in prayer.
White Grotto and Marvellous Grotto
Sailing around the island of Capri you will find numerous caves to discover. Two of the most striking are the White Grotto and the Marvellous Grotto, both close to the Faraglione di Matermania. Unlike other caves on the island of Capri, the opening of the Marvellous Grotto is not located at sea level but at a height of several meters.
Once inside, you are fascinated by the spectacle of stalactites and stalagmites and the view that you can enjoy on the sea below. Access to this splendid grotto is possible from a convenient ladder with a landing place for boats.
The peculiarity of the Marvellous Grotto is that of overlooking another cave, equally famous. Below, in fact, there is the opening of the White Cave, so called for the limestone volutes that literally decorate its vault and its walls. Another important characteristic is the presence of a stalagmite resembling the Virgin Mary in prayer.
The White Cave can only be accessed by sea.
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Highlight of my Italy trip!
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Trip to Capri