While there are many ways to get to Capri during high season and summer, in November the options to make it to this beautiful island near the Amalfi Coast are more limited. But since this place was described as not to be missed, we obviously didn’t want to just skip it. So here’s a bit of info for those wanting to step in our footsteps!
An advantage to traveling to Capri during the winter months is that you’re allowed to bring your own car. In high season, that’s no option. Since we were only going for one day, bringing our rental car was quite pricey, so we left it in a guarded parking garage near the ferry terminal and just went by ourselves (see prices below). If you’re staying longer on Capri bringing the car might be an option to consider, but do take in mind that a whole part of the island isn’t accessible by car and parking options seemed quite limited.
Our initial plan was to take one of the earliest ferries in the morning to go and come back with one of the latest ferry the same day. We however managed to make it back to Naples – from where the ferries mainly depart in winter – a little before 5pm. Since Naples hadn’t been our favorite place of the trip, we decided to hop on a ferry to Capri that very evening and book ourselves a hotel on Capri instead. Evening on Capri; check! Yay!
And a very beautiful evening that was! Our hosts of B&B Palazzo A Mare were the most welcoming, sweet couple and they helped us a lot to plan our limited time on their island. We enjoyed a late night stroll into the center of Capri where there seemed quite a bit of ambiance around dinnertime. After dinner, it all slowed down a bit, but after our busy day we were happy to call it a day as well and get rested for the next day.
Capri island has many sights to discover and in just one day you won’t be able to tick them all off. Instead of rushing through all of them, we decided to focus on Capri center and the east-part of the island, leaving the commune of Anacapri and the Blue Grotto (which is mostly closed during that time of the year anyway because of the rough sea) for – hopefully – another time.
First thing in the morning, after breakfast, we returned to the Piazetta di Capri, the main square. There were quite a bit of people mingling around already, providing a lovely ambiance. The sun was already fully present for the first time in a couple of days, which immediately improved our moods.
While Villa Jovis and Villa Lysis had been on our itinerary at first, we last minute decided to leave them out. It would have been too much walking in one day. So we didn’t take that extra detour and headed straight for the path leading to the Natural Arch. A beautiful trail along the coastline, offering stu-nning views over the sea and the mainland of Italy in the distance.
From Natural Arch – which is exactly as the name describes it – we continued the path down, down, down to and through the Grotta di Matromania. A curious but beautiful place. Next up our path was a view on Villa Malaparte. A modern Italian villa on a cliff. Nothing too special in my opinion, but I’m of course not such a fan of this type of architecture. It seemed to clash a bit with the beautiful nature surrounding it. But if you’re into that stuff, it’s a cool, unique house.
Moving on and back into the direction of the center, it was time for Capri’s famous Faraglioni, the rock formation right off the coast. It is the most iconic sight on the island so obviously on the viewpoints there we encountered a few more people. Before that point we’d been mostly on our own, only crossing a couple about halfway along the path. Exactly the way I like to explore.
The Giardini di Augusto were next on our itinerary. Beautiful gardens with stunning views over the coast. Unfortunately for us, just like it was the case in Ravello, they were redoing the gardens for winter so there weren’t many beautiful flowers to see. The view however was still very much present and so, so, so gorgeous! And it wasn’t too busy, which says a lot knowing it can get crazy full of tourists during peak season. A compromise I’m very happy to make!
Strolling back to the center, we took a seat on one of the terraces on the Piazetta overlooking the island, just enjoying the sunshine and a quite overpriced drink and bite. The atmosphere and ambiance still made it worth it though.
We then took the funicular back to the harbor, already saying goodbye to Capri center but not the island. We got ourselves tickets for the 3pm ferry back to Naples so we could enjoy a departure off the island while it was still daylight. Until then we still had a couple of hours to enjoy this area of the island.
First we headed back in the direction of our B&B and continued further to the Bagni di Tiberto, a beach on the north side of Capri. But there wasn’t much to do around there during that time of the year. It was pretty small and I sort of missed the sunny beach vibe. But the view wasn’t that bad and we had the place to ourselves. So while I wouldn’t return, I was glad to have some quiet time.
Back to the harbor it was then. The remaining time was spent strolling through the harbor, enjoying a delicious ice cream and browsing through the souvenir shops as we waited for our boarding call.
We could have gotten more out of our day, but for once I enjoyed a slower tempo to explore. It may have been the atmosphere on the island or maybe I’m just learning to accept that I don’t have to have seen everything in one visit. Or maybe a bit of both.
After a few last stunning harbor views, we went to wait for the ferry to take us back to Naples. Goodby Capri, you were more than worth our time!
Price info:
For the ferry, we paid 20,3 euros going and 17,3 euros back each.
The car park near the ferry terminal in Naples was called Tirreni and cost us 27,5 euros for little over twenty-four hours. It was a tiny car park so if you want to leave your car there during a busier season, you might want to reserve in advance.
If there are any more questions, hit me up! And if not, hopefully you’ll get to Capri and enjoy it just as much as we did!
♡ Ellen
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