The Italian island immediately conjures up grand bougainvillea-draped villas and a whitewashed city centre, lined by luxury boutiques. But that's – literally – only half of the story.

"Bring water," they said when I announced I'd be hiking the Sentiero dei Fortini (Trail of Little Forts). "There's nothing out there."

The six-kilometre cliffside path linking the remains of three 19th-Century Bourbon military outposts was my fourth hike on this craggy Mediterranean island. Somewhere along the rocky, wild rosemary-flocked path while dodging spiky prickly pears, I realised that I'd only seen one other human in two hours. And there were indeed no water sources, aside from a rustic fountain I'd encountered a kilometre back at Fort Mèsola.

My Google Maps sputtered. I'd already got lost twice before noting that the ceramic path markers were low to the ground, cataloguing the area's flora and fauna – fig trees and wildflowers, wall lizards and falcons. The terrain faded from wilderness to sheer crags. Finally at the last fort, Fort Orrico, I could see straight down to the sea; a 30m death drop. The islands of Ischia and Procida loomed in the Gulf of Naples like the humps of petrified sea monsters. And I was completely alone at the island's edge; triumphant.

This is Capri. But perhaps not as you imagine it.

Typically, the word Capri conjures up bougainvillea-draped villas and luxury boutique-lined streets; a yacht dock for the glitterati and the perpetual artists' muse. Paul Feig's Another Simple Favor, which premiered on 1 May on Prime Video, is the latest film set against the island's opulent hotel culture and majestic cliffs, and is sure to inspire a fresh slew of Capri travel dreams.

But in Capri, glamour is – literally – only half of the story.

The camel-humped Capri – one of Italy's three volcanic Phlegrean islands – is actually home to two distinct towns. At the eastern end lies the princess Capri Town where loafer-wearing VIPs sip espresso in Piazza Umberto I; the faraglioni sea stacks winking in the distance. And at Capri's western end is her rugged little sister, the township of Anacapri; a sea cliff and prickly pear paradise where hiking boots replace stilettos and wild outdoorsy adventures trump wild nightlife.

Tip:

While Anacapri remains the island's outdoorsy paradise, Capri Town does have a few woodsy experiences of its own. Just push past the tourists and strike out from Piazza Umberto I or Via Camerelle towards the Punta Tragara lookout and the passeggiata del Pizzolungo. This clifftop trek offers incredible views of the faraglioni, passing the Arco Naturale – a Neolithic arch – and the Grotta di Matermania, the site of pagan rituals to the Goddess Mitra. Reward yourself with lunch at Le Grottelle for rustic island dishes and mesmerising Gulf views.

But while Capri sees as many as 16,000 visitors a day – outnumbering the 12,900 full-time residents – the majority only visit Capri Town.

"There's two main reasons for this," surmises Camilla Formisano, copyeditor at Caprionline. "Time and imagination. Seventy to 80% of visitors arrive on organised excursions from Naples, Sorrento or cruise ships. So they visit the most famous, easily accessible places from the port, like Piazza Umberto I."

Formisano also believes that social media plays a part: "People see the faraglioni and the piazza and think, 'I saw Capri'. Social media has condensed the island into a single postcard."

Social media is merely Capri Town's latest PR rep. Before becoming a premier Italian bucket list destination, Capri was a humble fishing island. It was settled by the Ancient Greeks, later becoming the seaside retreat of the Roman emperor Tiberius, who left grand villas in his wake. It wasn't until centuries later, when the Romantic poets and then Hollywood filmmakers turned their artistic eye on Capri Town, that it became a VIP haven. Today, visitors spill out from the ferry and throng the bus and funicular ticket booths to jockey for place in Piazza Umberto I,........

© BBC