Destination Deep Dive: Cilento
Everything you need to explore the coastline just south of Amalfi, where the buffalo roam, and the cruise ships don't go
There’s no summer like Italian summer, which is why I have updated the Cilento Deep Dive for those who want to put this very special corner of Italy on a future itinerary. Cilento is right next to Amalfi, but part of a national park, which means fewer crowds, cleaner beaches, significantly better food, and far more reasonable prices. It’s also my second home.
Before you dive in, I will start hosting the monthly Ask Me Anything About Italy sessions right here on Substack instead of Zoom. That will make the recording immediately available to those who can’t attend live. If you’d like to join with your questions about trip planning, history, or culture, please become a subscriber.
Introduction
My grandmother, Evelina Scariati, was from Capaccio Paestum, and her stories about the temples of Paestum were my introduction to art history and Italy. Her father would take her and her sisters to visit the temples built by the Greeks nearly 3,000 years ago and still standing. In the 1930s, the temples sat unprotected on the plains, about a mile from the beach, without a fence or ticket office. The young girls pulled pottery shards from the ground and fit them together like puzzle pieces. Those shards must have been at least 2,000 years old and are now in the Paestum museum, which didn’t open until 1952.
The temple grounds were chosen, I believe, because there’s a special charge here. Or maybe all those years of sacred practice imbued the land with something that feels supernatural. Fortunately, the Cilento is protected from mass tourism, unlike its supermodel sister, Amalfi, which means it’s quiet enough for anyone who wants to feel that charge to do so. It may take a day or so for the peace of the area to settle in, but it will, I promise.
What’s Special About Cilento
The Cilento is a part of the region of Campania. It’s immediately south of the Amalfi coast. When you are in Cilento, especially on the beach at Paestum or from the hilltop village of Castellabate, you can see Positano, Ischia, and Capri on clear days. They’re right there. But the Cilento is part of a national park. There’s no mass tourism, no cruise ships, and it’s significantly less expensive than the Amalfi coast.
The land within the Cilento National Park is regulated, and much of the food is organic. The quality of the soil is incredible because it sits on an ancient seabed, between two volcanoes, one extinct, one active. In terms of agriculture, it is one of the most productive regions in Italy, and the area's vegetable dishes are among the best.
The three most famous things about Cilento: 1) the 3,000-year-old temples at Paestum, 2) buffalo mozzarella, and 3) the Mediterranean Diet, which was first studied and codified in the seaside village of Pioppi. Cilento is also a Blue Zone, with an extraordinary number of centenarians.
If you want to stay in luxury hotels, feel like a movie star, get the boat ride with a spritz, get the photo of the famous view, spend the money, and choose the Amalfi coast. If you want small villages, excellent food, ancient temples, turquoise water, and sandy beaches, then Cilento is your choice. And if you want to do both, you can easily day-trip to the Amalfi coast from Cilento by taking the ferry to Amalfi and Positano, or (better) drive to Vietri-sul-Mare or Cetara.
The five-day itinerary is for paid subscribers — where to stay, where to eat, the buffalo farm you should visit if you want a tour, and the one you should visit if you prefer a long lunch and cannoli filled with buffalo milk ricotta. It also includes the fig and chocolate laboratory in the ancient oil mill, and the night fishing trip that costs only €40 and ends with dancing and fried anchovies on a private beach.
