Bagni d'Arienzo Positano - Flourish With Holly

One of the most special parts of our holiday to the Amalfi Coast was our day spent at the private beach club, Bagni d’Arienzo Positano. It was one of the “must-dos” of the holiday, as I wanted us to do something truly luxurious and special on our anniversary trip. You’d think something like a private beach club, only reachable by boat, would be reserved for the rich and famous and totally expensive…but it wasn’t! Yes, it takes a bit of planning and thinking ahead but it’s totally do-able and worth it. I was in contact with our hotel – Hotel Eden Roc, ahead of our trip for suggestions on where to go locally and this was one of the spots they recommended. It was therefore a relief that they could book us a spot at the beach club for us.

We opted for an early morning arrival, 2 sun loungers right at the front and lunch in the beach restaurant. I can’t remember exactly how much it cost, but it was something like 20 euros each to reserve a lounger and they provided towels. The shuttle boat service was included in this rate, so it was a total bargain and ensured you had somewhere comfy to laze away the day in the sun.

We woke up that morning and made our way down to Positano beach and over to the little deck, where the Bagni d’Arienzo private boat (and handsome Captain!) would come to pick us up at 10.30am. We’d packed nothing but swimwear and empty stomachs. It’s about a 10-15 minute leisurely boat ride along the coast and then you see it, the most idyllic little cove with orange parasols, beckoning you in like a siren of the sea.

You pull up to the little wooden jetty, where you are greeted by one of the waiters who takes your name and shows you to your reserved loungers.

Like I say, we had front-row tickets and I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way! We had the most perfect view to watch the world and boats go by all day. Just a few metres to drag ourselves into the calm, warm sea for a refreshing dip between cocktails. With waiter service and also a walk-up bar, there is no danger of going thirsty.

So by 10.45, we were sunbathing and whiling away the hours until our 1.30pm lunch. And what a struggle it was getting up and walking the 15 metres to the beach restaurant (I hope you sense the sarcasm), where we sat on the 1st floor terrace over-looking the beach-bathers and sipping on our jug of Prosecco with fresh peach halves (mmmmmm).

As we were in no rush, we decided to opt for their 3-course menu – a starter of Zucchini Fritti (my absolute favourite thing to eat when in Italy – deep-fried courgette flowers, often stuffed with mozarella), a secondi of fresh pasta, followed by a main of the catch of the day (you can’t get much fresher than that!). The meal was about 35 euros per head, excluding the Prosecco, which was about 15 euros for a large jug.

Then we grabbed a cocktail on the way back down to our sun loungers and resumed our bathing for the rest of the afternoon, before the Captain beckoned us at about 6pm to take us back to Positano beach. I genuinely have to put the experience at Bagni d’Arienzo in the top 10 things I’ve enjoyed in my travels…it really was the most perfect and luxurious day any couple could hope for.