Italy’s Other Amalfi—at a Fraction of the Cost

Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2008

Read more about Italy in International Living Postcards—your daily escape

Dear International Living Reader,

Why didn’t I take a bus or the train? The worst thing isn’t the massive drops down to the impossibly blue Mediterranean below. Nor is it the all-too-frequent road signs depicting boulders tumbling off the mountains. No, it’s the tunnels. This one must be almost a mile long.

On route from Italy's southern Campania into the wilds of neighboring Basilicata region, I’m driving the tortuous bends of a littoral that’s as scenically splendid as the Amalfi. And it’s nerve-shattering. Italy drives on the right, the wrong side of the road for me.

Not all tunnels are lit. I can understand why it’s now the law here to drive with headlights on at all times. There’s also a law about speed limits—but I think I’m the only one who’s obeying the 80-km. limit through this tunnel.

Maniac speed freaks overtake at every opportunity. They also overtake when there’s no opportunity. Even on hairpin bends.

To absorb the Gulf of Policastro’s fabulous views, I keep stopping. (Everywhere smells of wild herbs.) Although Basilicata’s Mediterranean coastline only amounts to an 18-mile buffer zone between the regions of Campania and Calabria, it’s like riding a roller coaster. At least I can’t get lost—there’s only one road.

White-knuckled, sweaty-palmed, I eventually arrive up in the giddy heights of Maratea. Complete with a giant Rio-style statue of Christ, this most gorgeous of Basilicatan hill towns also overlooks the coast. It’s taken me almost two hours to get here. I know I’m not much good with maps, but I thought it would only be around 40 minutes from my hotel in Villammare. Silly me.

I’ll tell you what I found in Maratea itself in my next dispatch. It’s rapidly gaining a chic reputation, but its environs take in a number of locations—the old town, the port, and villages along the coast road.

One is Acquafredda. The estate agent I’m set to meet in Maratea has a 645-square-foot apartment here for €120,000 ($169,300). Heaven knows where you’d park a car in Acquafredda (I couldn’t see anywhere), but little town buses also ply the road.

To put prices into perspective, I’ve been doing an Internet search for apartments in Amalfi and Ravello. And they’re asking ludicrous amounts. I can’t see anything the exact same size, but it’s €300,000 ($423,300) for 806 square feet in Amalfi, and €500,000 ($705,000) for a 537-square-foot apartment in Ravello.

Here in Basilicata, you’ll get the same kind of stunning coastal drama. Considering it has few miles of Mediterranean coast, I think $290 per square foot for that Acquafredda property looks reasonable.

Steenie Harvey
Roving Europe Editor, International Living

Editor’s Note: Subscribers to International Living magazine have a treat in store next month when Steenie reveals all about her adventures in Italy. If you are not a subscriber, you can sign up here today.

Read related IL Postcards:

- Where to Find an Affordable Slice of Italy’s Most Dramatic Coast

- Secret Passages, Donkey Feasts, and Homes for $15,500

- An Italy You Can Afford