The romance of the isle of Capri

The beautiful island of Capri

The glamorous island of Capri is within easy reach of Sorrento and makes a great day out, with hydrofoils and ferries leaving from the port at Marina Piccola at regular intervals.

The island lies just off the tip of the Sorrentine peninsula and the crossing takes about half an hour.

Capri has been immortalised in books, films and songs and has been the popular haunt of writers, artists and many famous personalities over the centuries.

But as well as a jet set image, Capri has stunning natural beauty and many historic villas and churches to see.

You can easily get a flavour of the island in a day, seeing some of the main sights, browsing in the designer boutiques and sampling Caprese specialities in one of the restaurants.

You can take some memorable photographs against the magical backdrop of i Faraglioni (the distinctive rocks out in the sea) before heading back to the port to return to Sorrento in time for dinner.

How to get to Capri

Either take the orange bus or walk down to Marina Piccola from Piazza Tasso in the centre of Sorrento .

You can check the times and buy tickets for either the ferry or aliscafo (hydrofoil) to Capri at the ticket office at Marina Piccola. There are also bars, restaurants and a shop down at the port.

The hydrofoils depart at regular intervals between 07.20 and 18.20 and there are also four ferries a day.

You will see colourful houses and lines of boats as your ferry or hydrofoil approaches Marina Grande, Capri ’s port.

Either relax with a drink at the port and soak up the atmosphere or go straight to the funicular to take you up to Capri ’s main square, Piazza Umberto I. You should only attempt to walk up if you are feeling energetic as it is a steep climb.

Piazza Umberto I

Busy Piazza Umberto

The ‘piazzetta’ is also sometimes referred to as Capri ’s drawing room as it is almost completely covered with cafe tables where people enjoy meeting up for drinks and conversation.

Once you have done enough people watching in the square, take a few minutes to look inside the 17th century Church of Santo Stefano, which has an original Roman floor, thought to have come from Villa Jovis. Then leave the piazzetta through one of the old archways to explore the twisting alleyways full of shops and restaurants.

Sample some Caprese specialities

On restaurant menus look out for Insalata Caprese (a salad made with tomatoes, mozzarella and basil) or Ravioli alla Caprese (ravioli filled with cheese in a tomato and basil sauce). You could follow this with pezzogna all’aqua pazza (freshly caught fish cooked in tomatoes, parsley, garlic and wine).

To accompany your meal, try a locally produced white wine, typically made from a pleasing mixture of Biancolella, Falanghina and Greco Bianco grapes. Then, round your lunch off with a glass of Limoncello (lemon liqueur) that has been produced on the island.

Capri sights not to miss

You could walk to the Villa Jovis, a retreat on the island built by the Roman Emperor Tiberius. Excavations have unearthed baths, apartments and an area known as Tiberius’s drop, from which his victims were supposedly thrown into the sea far below.

Or, you could take a bus to the second town on the island, Anacapri, to visit Villa San Michele, the beautiful home of Swedish physician Axel Munthe, from whose romantic gardens there are wonderful views of the Sorrentine peninsula across the water.

Come back to Sorrento

Return to the funicular station near Piazza Umberto to get back down to the port. The last ferry leaves Capri at 18.15 and the last hydrofoil leaves at 19.00.

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