The streets of pastel-washed houses rise up in tiers from the sea, interspersed with the greenery of well-kept gardens.

Used by the Allies from 1943 as a ‘rest and rehabilitation’ centre for their troops, the post-war travel boom has seen this former fishing village gradually transformed into the holiday habitat of rich Neapolitan families and international tourists. The town centre is a pedestrianised maze of cobbled streets and stairways, lined with elegant boutiques, art galleries, craft shops and pavement cafes. The Spiaggia Grande Beach area is the focus of much of the town’s social life.



Tourism, however, is not the town’s only source of income: pride of place goes to the garment industry, with a range of international designers basing their work on the strong colours which echo the natural environment. The town’s administrators have used this prestige industry and the town’s upmarket reputation to good advantage, ensuring that tourism developments here are exclusive rather than mass-market and imposing a moratorium on further development.