Located at the southern foot of Monti Lattari (Milkmen Mountains), Positano enjoy all the good effects of a gentle weather, thanks to its position, sheltered from northerly winds. All around, as a crown, the green mountains of Monte Comune, St. Maria del Castello, Conocchia, S. Angelo a tre Pizzi, Campo dei Galli, while on South and on East it faces the open sea. At few miles from the coast there are Li Galli (or Sirenuse), three islets: the Gallo Lungo (Long Rooster), the Rotonda and the Castelluccio (Small Castle), always considered the mythic residence of the seductive Sirens.

About the origins of Positano, one of the most renown legend says it had been founded by Poseidon god of the sea because of his love for the nymph Pasitea. The Romans built near the Spiaggia Grande (Large Beach) a sumptuous villa, then covered by the Church of the Assunta (Our Lady of Assumption) and its gardens. The town of Positano, founded by some survivors escaped from Paestum around a benedictine abbey, in the Middle Ages dared to compete even with Amalfi, the first Maritime Republic, and had a plentyful life up to the Norman conquest. After a long period of decadence, at the beginning of the 20th century Positano became refuge for Russian and German artists and writers persecuted in war and dictatorship. They chose Positano as their elected residence to enjoy peace and quietness and so it started the myth of Positano as cultural alternative to the too worldly and elegant isle of Capri and its elite tourism.

The town develops in a vertical way, following the steep incline of the mountains rising sheer from the sea. The houses, leant each other, are painted with goudy colors, giving the impression of a precious stone with thousand facets that cause multicolour reflections. In fact Positano is called the "Gem of the Divine Coast". Narrow streets, with boutiques made out from the basements of the houses, go down quickly among buildings as they were streams falling in ravines and all flow on the Spiaggia Grande, where is maybe the only case in the world where the panoramic view over the town on your back is most beautiful that the one you have on the front, facing the sea. The other smaller beaches in Positano are at Fornillo, on the West; at La Porta (the Gate), Fiumicello (Little River) and Arienzo, on the East.  [ More...]