Tell me about the Amalfi Coast and your experiences

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I enjoyed everything about the Amalfi Coast except being a back seat passenger on long car trips....not prone to motion sickness, but those are some damn twisty roads. You can certainly spend way less than $400/night and enjoy that area. Look for agriturismi: these are farm stays...in that region, it means you will be on a small holding terraced up onto the hillsides, usually planted with fragrant lemons.

I spent some time in Minori, which is down the hill from Ravello. It has no large resorts or hotels, just a bunch of locals, a great pastry shop (di Riso), and a few small b&bs & agriturismi. Here are two I'd recommend:
--Villa Maria: not fancy in the least, but the food is delicious, it is run by a family who are friendly, and it has a great sea view high above the town. Once you drive up to it, you climb another 100 steps up to the lodgings. Simple amenities like a kiddie play area, terraces, and full or half board options (breakfast is always included) make for a very pleasant stay at a great price. Just don't expect huge fluffy towels, a spa, or a concierge. LINK
--Agriturismo Il Campanile: this one even allows tent camping, so if you want to hang out with younger/backpacker types, it's a good option. LINK

Minori has a few attractions, historic church, excavated 1st century Roman villa, and some simple restaurants. It's more of a place where people live than one catering to visitors (I like that sort of thing). The SITA (public transit) buses run up and down the coast all day long, so if you don't want to drive, you can still get around. You can stop at Pompeii or Herculaneum on your way down to the coast, go to Sorrento for a day or two, then move onto the southern part of the peninsula to see Posi, Amalfi, etc from a base in one of the towns along that stretch. Driving is nuts, so it's better to see as you go along, as opposed to picking a base and driving out from it each day (what we did, and could be kinda tedious with the traffic & driving).

The "beaches"/seashore are rocky and small; the sea is clear with very little wave action. I went in winter, so we spent almost zero time on the water.

It's a nice combo with Naples (to the north) or with Paestum (to the south). I'll be in Paestum in a couple of weeks--am really looking forward to the temples of Hera and a nice boutique hotel right across from the historic site.

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frick that. Yeah I'm going to tell my wife "Hey babe, let's go to Italy and go camping!" She would cut my balls off.

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I LOL'd because it reminded me of the closest I've ever come to divorce. I booked us into a KOA campground cabin, and my husband nearly left me in the parking lot when I told him he would have to walk to the showers/toilets. (He told me in no uncertain terms that his Army barracks days were long over.) So he gets veto power over my lodging selections.

But Il Campanile isn't JUST tents, it's also (nice) rooms, some with kitchenettes.

We're staying at Ravello. Highest elevation and stunning views.

As a gearhead, I decided that driving through route SS163 in Amalfi Coast is a must and once in a lifetime experience. Traffic in May won't be too bad but I'll probably never drive there during summer due to traffic. International driver's permit is $20 for one year. We'll be renting a car in Napoli to drive there.

Not available for a few of my dates

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We stayed at Le Sirenuse.

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Good for you man. True OT baller.

We went two summers ago and stayed in an airbnb 2 BR 1 bath condo right by the church. The views weren't great because some of the cliffs and ocean were blocked off by the back of the church, but it was very affordable. I saw we paid $230 per night in June. Plus we had 4 of us so that made it an incredible deal.

As far as things to do, we were doing a summer abroad program, so we drank, swam, walked through the town, and ate a little too. We didn't take a boat because they were generally out of our price range and we only had 2 full days and didn't want to spend an entire day on a boat. I don't remember exactly where all we ate, as we didn't really try to eat well and were on a budget. I do know that you can get 2 euro beers at L'Incanto Lido Ristorante and very good pizza by the slice for cheap too. The place is right on the the coast and a 30 second walk from the public beach. We did eat one meal at Chez Black and I wasn't impressed. Especially for the price. It was at night though and you're paying more for the view than the food I feel like.

To get there we flew from France to Naples, then took the train to Sorrento, then a bus from Sorrento to Positano. The bus ride was the most terrifying thing I've ever experienced. 1 hour of constantly thinking that you'll be bumped over a 500 foot cliff into the sea by another bus. The bus was 'standing room only' so we were standing in the aisle leaning all over people who were in seats with each turn and I'm sure annoying the hell out of them. The bus driver was on his phone the whole time. I'm shocked that we made it there alive. The only thing worse than the bus ride there was the bus ride back. Not because of the threat of plunging into the ocean, because we were on the inside lane on our way back, but the hangover+erratic driving through mountains was horrible. People say take a cab, but there's no way I'd want to be in some small car on that tiny road with those crazy busses. Next time I go back I'll take the boat (it's only a 3 or 4 hour ride from Sorrento).

Pictures don't do the place justice. It's incredibly beautiful and unique. It's not dirty in the town or on the streets and the view from the beach is amazing. We went to Music on the Rocks two nights. It's a pretty awesome rave type club built into the cliffs right next to the sea. Not at all my type of scene normally, but it was a good time on vacation.

We stopped by Pompeii and I wish we had a little more time to do an actual tour. We were running late in the day, and had to do a self tour. It's very impressive, and massive. Get a tour guide though if you really want to experience it.

Yeah I looked into that based on your rec. may use it! Looks good.

We are going peak season so it’s currently 1800 a night.

I’m willing to shell out for a nice place but that’s beyond.

We went two years ago and stayed in Praiano. It was nothing short of spectacular. It is the neighboring town of Positano, so the views are incredible facing that direction with the sun setting over Positano. We used the Sita bus to get around as we visited Positano, Ravello, Sorrento and Amalfi. Those Sita bus drivers are insane though. I do not understand how they do it. We walked to the beach a few times from our hotel and had to pin ourselves on the side of the mountain not to get hit by them as they passed.
Our hotel also had a few restaurant recommendations that would pick us up for free from the hotel to dinner.
We spent a day renting a boat and taking it to Capri. If we had more time, we probably would have preferred to do a whole day there.
We hiked the pathway of the gods from Praino to Positano one morning. Very beautiful hike.
Ravello has some beautiful gardens and concerts in the evenings that we enjoyed while there in September.

The beaches are rocky, but the water is clear and nice. Just bring water shoes.
We enjoyed the character of the Positano and Praino beaches. If you walk to the right a ways from the main drag of the Positano beach, you can find some nice spots to yourself. Furore beach is also a great spot as it is under a beautiful bridge and a very famous picture you have probably seen before. Only problem is that it only gets sun for a few hours around noon.

I can’t remember the name of the restaurants, but everything was spectacular. We stopped by a small pizzeria one afternoon, and the owner/chef sung in Italian the entire time while making the pizza from scratch. The entire town of Praino felt very much back in time, which we loved. We toured a small vineyard one night and the family who owned it cooked us a spectacular dinner that we ate under the stars. I think that was in Amalfi.

We stayed at Villa Gianlica in Praino and it was perfect. Probably only 8 rooms or so, but all had private terraces that faced the Mediterranean Sea as well as open glass showers that faced the sea. Small pool, vines with fruit you could pick and eat, good breakfast and excellent staff. I think we only payed about 300euros a night.

It truly is a spectacular place.