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Praiano Is Where the Amalfi Coast Drops the Act

In Praiano, quiet streets, fishermen's routines and sweeping sunsets offer the Amalfi Coast at its most unfiltered.

In Positano, there is no escape from the crowds, who gather in hordes in the picturesque Amalfi Coast town between March and October. While Positano has become iconic for its colorful, cliffside buildings and umbrella-covered beaches, Praiano, its neighbor down the road, is less famous. Nestled on the cliff’s edge with endless views of the Tyrrhenian Sea, Praiano is just as scenic as its bustling neighbor to the west, but far more tranquil and, some argue, more authentic to the Italian way of life. 

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The difference between Positano and Praiano, even during the quieter season, couldn’t be more stark. When I visited the area in late October, as many of the hotels were preparing to close for the winter, Positano was still heaving with people. The town felt like a tourist trap or a Disneyland attraction, created to evoke the feeling of the Amalfi Coast in the most cliched way. I left after only a few hours, eager to return to the charming streets of Praiano, which feel far less like a film set and more like a place where you might live. 

Home to approximately 2,100 people, Praiano is notably quaint, thanks in part to its small size, stretching along the Italian coast between Positano and Amalfi. It would perhaps go completely unnoticed by tourists if it were not home to Casa Angelina, a luxury hotel that was opened in 2005 by Antonino Cappiello, who transformed an existing 1970s property into something far grander. 

The hotel’s location offers the best view on the Amalfi Coast, at least according to Casa Angelina’s managing director, Domenico De Simone. From the town and from Casa Angelina, you can see Capri, Li Galli and Positano, offering a sense of the region’s true scope. “Praiano is the last village here that is authentic, real, genuine and very relaxed,” De Simone tells Observer. 

Casa Angelina is........

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