A Week in Sorrento...

As far as holidaying goes, I feel lucky to have visited the modest amount of countries that I have, exploring a selection of European and Arab countries. However, after my recent trip to Sorrento in Italy, I can confidently say I have fallen in love with this new destination- and the surplus of carbs I inhaled during my stay only played a tiny role in this.

I stayed in the Grand Hotel Vesuvio, just a 5 minute journey from the heart of Sorrento as provided by the hotels free shuttle bus. The hotel was beautiful, a typical Italian 60’s build- not a contemporary design, but stunning original painted tiles and art-deco inspired chandeliers. It has great facilities; with a reasonable pool, hot tub, mini-bar service, and great food. As I don’t eat meat, I was on a few occasions stuck with my dinner time meal, but it wasn’t a problem as I was expecting to deal with this, and instead we enjoyed authentic food from the towns independent restaurants. 

The room was light and airy with an abundance of natural light from our balcony, overlooking the bay of Naples and Mount Vesuvius. What truly made my stay, was the garden. Of course, the view was nothing less than surreal, but the vibrant pink and lilac blooms, luscious greenery, and whimsical Wisteria 'patio', provided a serine place to escape.

We arrived in the early hours of Saturday morning, and so decided to write-off the rest of the day as a 'chill day', lazing around the pool and soaking in the sun. We ventured into the busy harbour side town of Sorrento on Sunday, and I completely fell in love. The town offers a variety of designer boutiques selling beaded midi-skirts and bold bags.

If you travel down further you’ll find yourself amidst the narrow side streets lined with dozens of lemon cello, fresh fruit, and general ‘tat’ shops. We spent hours walking around taking in the sights and smells, taking the occasional gelato break. Following the main street down the cliff edge, you’ll find yourself at the port of Sorrento, providing a completely different view looking up at the clifftop town.

I would describe Sorrento as the tourists 'Italian dream'- it encompasses all pre-merited expectations/stereotypes a tourist may have about the country; narrow cobble-stoned streets spilling with shop fronts, aromatic scents in the air, the angry *beeps* of scooter drivers. However, this is why we enjoyed it. Coming back from the chaos of our daytime exploration to the town was perfect, and offered some relief whilst still feeling authentic.

The thing that was so great about this location was the ease and freedom of travel available to us: one day we caught the train to Naples, another Pompeii, and we even took a short (albeit green-faced) ferry to Positano. My advice is to take some time to work out what travel options are available to you and of course the prices of each option. Avoid travel group arranged trips and explore the areas off of your own back immersed in the hustle and bustle. Yes, it does sound a bit idealistic, and realistically we did need a good sit down and a bottle of wine after trying to navigate our way around Naples- but it was worth it to experience the train rides with locals, and to take in the city at our own pace.