We visited Ravello, but weren’t overly excited about it.  Its location higher up on the hillside didn’t seem as appealing as the beachy beauties we’ve already seen. Like all the other nearby cities it seemed convenient to get to, so we thought “what the heck” and hopped on the ferry, got off at Amalfi, and took the bus to Ravello.

The bus. Oh man. We waited for 30 minutes and the crowd was growing around us. When the bus pulled up it felt like a mosh pit. A huge crowd of people all shoving and yelling and elbowing. We stayed strong and would up with two standing room spots, right up against the back door. Most of the crowd didn’t make it on, so we were lucky. The route to Ravello goes up the hillside, and as the bus sways back and forth up the winding cliff-side road it was honestly a little scary. When it leans a bit and there is only a piece of glass and a 200 yard drop between you and the rocks below, it’s hard not to feel uncomfortable. Alas, we made it in one piece and squirmed our way out of the bus as fast as we could.

As we first walked around it felt like another beautiful Italian town. Cute square, charming cafe’s, and shops selling tourist goods were all nice to pop in and out of as we walked around. The views of the beautiful mountains and the sea are possibly even more spectacular when seen from above.

We were looking for a quick and casual lunch, checked some reviews online, and thought we found a match with Villa Maria. We should have known we were out of our league in our very casual clothes at the first glimpse of the grounds and the impeccably dressed wait-staff, but it turned out to be an perfect experience with excellent service and no noticeable judgement of our poor presentation. If you’re looking for an amazing Italian meal with a view that knocks your socks off every time you glance over the railing, Villa Maria is the spot. The weather was tailor made for dining al fresco, and lunch was pure bliss.

After lunch, it somehow got even better. One of the main draws of Ravello are the gardens at Villa Cimbrone. Gardens don’t usually get us super excited, but this one turned out to be an especially beautiful and relaxing way to spend an afternoon. The estate went through a large-scale restoration and enlargement in the early 20th century, with construction mixing mock-Gothic, Moorish, and Venetian architectural features. The marble-bust-lined views from the Terrace of Infinity are especially remarkable. Just look at this place!

We left the city and hiked our way back down to Amalfi. We followed the same trail down that I mentioned in the previous Amalfi post. We were on cloud nine as we boarded the ferry and headed home to Salerno. Ravello is definitely a must-visit on the Amalfi Coast, I might even go so far as to suggest lunch at Villa Maria as a must-visit spot all its own. What is the one thing we might do differently when we go back? Taxi instead of the bus.