Baia di Nerano (Marina del Cantone)
Baia di Nerano — the village is Nerano, the marina is Marina del Cantone — is a sheltered bay at the southern tip of the peninsula, inside the Punta Campanella reserve. It is a place you come to eat as much as to swim, and the dish you eat here was invented here.
Spaghetti alla Nerano
It is one of the few Italian recipes whose birthplace is precisely known. Fried courgettes, provolone del Monaco, basil, and the emulsion that binds it all: it was created in the kitchens of this marina in the mid-twentieth century and travelled from here around the world.
Every restaurant on the beach serves it, and eating it here, two metres from the water, is not the same as eating it anywhere else. Also worth trying is totano e patate, squid with potatoes — a local dish that has travelled less but is just as typical.
In summer, book for the evening: the restaurants at Marina del Cantone draw customers who arrive by boat from Capri and the Amalfi Coast.
The beach
Shingle and gravel, with clear water that deepens a few metres out. The bay is enclosed and sheltered from the prevailing winds, so the sea is almost always calm: it is one of the few beaches around here that holds up on windy days.
There are free stretches and several serviced lidos with umbrellas, loungers and small boats for hire.
The Bay of Ieranto
This is the extra reason to come all the way out. From Nerano the path to the Bay of Ieranto sets off — the inlet that looks straight across at the Faraglioni of Capri, managed by the FAI and entirely free of buildings.
It is about forty minutes' walk along a panoramic trail, with a final descent over rock. There are no facilities of any kind: bring water, bring lunch, carry everything out again. It is one of the most beautiful places in the Mediterranean and you cannot drive to it.
Getting there from the B&B
By car, about twenty-five minutes through Massa Lubrense and Sant'Agata. The last stretch is a narrow, winding road dropping down to the marina. Parking is paid and fills early in August.
By local bus via Massa Lubrense: slower, but it removes both the narrow road and the parking problem.
By boat from Marina Piccola: many excursions along the peninsula stop here, and it is the finest way to arrive.
When to go
June to September for the sea. But the bay also works out of season for lunch: in May and October the restaurants are open, the road is clear and you park without circling.
August is the month to avoid if you can: clogged road, full car parks and waiting lists at the restaurants.
Our advice
The perfect day here is a mixed one: morning walking out to Ieranto, a swim back at Marina del Cantone, a late lunch at a restaurant on the beach, and back in the afternoon.
If you come only for lunch, book a table on the water and confirm it is in the front row: here, the difference between the front table and the one behind it is the whole point.