Salerno

Salerno (Neapolitan: Salièrno) is a city in Campania, Italy.

Understand

Panoramic view of Salerno and the gulf

Salerno is the principal town of the province with the same name, and has around 128,000 inhabitants (2021). For a brief period (February to August 1944) Salerno was the capital city of Italy, during the liberation after the allied landings before the fall of Monte Cassino to the allies and the subsequent liberation of Rome.

Today it is a lively port town, that is rapidly re-acquiring a relaxing and open Mediterranean atmosphere. The port area is not particularly attractive, but once you get onto the promenade things get better. Worth a visit also is the Historical Old Town, which has recovered from being a virtual no-go area to being a well-preserved historical town centers, full of tiny little passageways and hidden corners.

Salerno was the birthplace of the "Schola Medica Salernitana" in the 9th century, which was the most important source of medical information in Europe at the time, and provided an important impulse to medical learning in Europe.

Salerno is an ideal stopping off point on the way to Paestum, Pompeii or Positano, or the Cilento and Vallo di Diano National Park, which is a lesser known UNESCO World Heritage site. Placed as it is at one end of the Amalfi Coastline, it is an important passing point for the local tourism scene.

Also worth a visit if you happen to be in the area are Vietri sul Mare, for the traditional ceramics, Cava de' Tirreni for the important Abbey at La Badia and one of the few remaining Portici in Campania.

Get in

By plane

• 1 Naples International Airport (NAP ^IATA, also known as Capodichino Airport) (60 km (37 miles) from Salerno), ☏ +39 081 789 6111, +39 081 789 6259, comunicazione@gesac.it. Once you have landed, you'll have to take one of the methods listed below to cover the final leg of the journey.  

You can take a bus for €3 (called Alibus) to Naples central railway station (get off here for connections to Salerno via train). It also stops on Piazza Municipio near the cruise port, from which you can take a 5-minute walk to catch the Bus (SITA). The route is not obvious, so see the section below.

You can buy your ticket on the Alibus, and you can get to it by walking right out of the airport terminal to the bus stop which is less than 20 metres from the airport terminal exit.

From Naples Airport there is a SITA bus running directly to Salerno (€7). It runs only 4 times a day, and not on Sunday. You have to walk for about 300 m to reach the bus.

By train

• 2 Salerno railway station is one of the main stations in Campania and a stop for high speed trains operated by both Trenitalia and Italo, giving a convenient connection to most major Italian cities.

From Naples, you can also reach Salerno on Regional trains from Napoli Centrale which take about 50 minutes, or on some Metropolitan trains making several stops in Naples (80 minutes). For both of these, you can use a Unico Campania U-5 ticket, which you can buy for €4.10 from various stores and kiosks around the station. The 3T 3-day tourist transit pass also includes these trains.

By rental car

You can rent a car to cover the last stretch of the journey. If you are used to driving in Northern Europe or the US, you'll find the driving habits in this area to he very different. Cars drift around on the motorway hovering between two or three lanes, drivers talk and gesticulate instead of driving, and if you don't keep up with the traffic flow, you are likely to find someone tailgating you within 30 seconds or so. If you need any more convincing, take a look at the cars when you arrive in the area. There is a prize if you can spot one without dents.

By bus

Busitalia coach in Salerno

From Naples

When you have to cross the road here, you'll find that traffic in Naples follows unwritten rules that are not accessible to foreigners (or even some Italians). Red traffic lights don't always stop the traffic (the locals know the 'important' traffic lights, and will stop at these). Mopeds regularly leave the road and drive on any other surface they can find. Follow the locals, and you should be OK.

You should ask the way to the "SITA" (the name of the bus company that provides the service). If you stand where the bus stops, and face the sea (with the tall castle to your right), you will need to cross the main road and head towards the left. After about 400 m or so, you will see a small congregation of buses to your right. Check the destination written on the bus, or you can ask for "Salerno".

The service is quite rapid for the first part of the journey, but then will leave the motorway and take a more tortuous route. The journey should take an hour so so. The ticket should cost €3-4 per person.

For further journeys there is a regional ticket that allows you to travel with the bus (timed limit) or train (one journey): see Campania Unico.

From the Amalfi coast

You can catch a SITA bus from the Amalfi Coast to Salerno, which runs along the winding roads of the coastline. The drivers are very experienced and swing effortlessly round the curves. In the height of summer, expect long delays, as tourist cars and buses tend to get overwhelmed by the road and vice versa; it is better to go by boat (see below).

By boat

View of the city from the sea

Travel by sea is seasonal, from around Easter to mid or late October, and may be canceled depending on weather conditions like strong winds.

To and From the Amalfi Coast

• Based in Amalfi, the company Coop Sant'Andrea operates the ferry service for the Amalfi Coast, with services debuting every year from Easter weekend. Connections are to and between and return Salerno, Positano and Amalfi. In summer, the routes extend to Maiori and Minori. This is a much better way of enjoying the journey, and you will arrive with a smile on your face as it is very relaxing. You will find more info on their website.
• Based in Naples, the Metro del Mare ferry network operates along the length of the Amalfi Coast.

Get around

Salerno has three kinds of public transportation: buses, trains, and light metro.

• The main bus stop is at the Salerno train station. Busitalia buses serve Salerno and other towns in the province. It is absolutely necessary to buy the ticket before getting on the bus. The buses leave from the station to the surrounding areas almost every 20 minutes. CSTP lines 4 and 9 connect the Salerno Maritime Terminal with the Train Station or Ferry Terminal. SITA buses leave from the train station and serve the region. One COSTIERASITA ticket (€10 in 2024) is valid 24 hours from the first validation and allows an unlimited number of journeys on public transport SITASUD along the Amalfi coast. Two blocks west (toward the sea) of the train station is Piazza della Concordia, where the CSTP bus 34 leaves for Paestum.
• Salerno train station is a hub for regional, inter-city, and high-speed trains to almost all the main Italian cities. From the train station, one can connect with the ferry terminal, only three blocks away just beyond the Piazza della Concordia, with boats to the Amalfi coast.
• The Metro is more limited with only seven Metro stops over 8 km of light rail through the city centre, parallel to the coast.

See

Cloister of the Duomo

At night, you can take a walk along the Lungomare, a boulevard with palmtrees and a nice view at the sea and the surrounding hills. The Villa Comunale is an oasis of green at the centre of the city. Big plants, giant flowers, lots of spaces to sit. If you're quiet enough, you will hear the music boxes sing their beautiful song.

• 1 Il Giardino della Minerva (Garden of Minerva), Via Ferrante Sanseverino, 1 (you can walk from the old town, or take the handy communal elevator), ☏ +39 089 252 423, info@giardinodellaminerva.it. hours change monthly, consult website. Closed on Monday. Beautiful botanical and herbal gardens on multiple terraces. The plants are well labeled with their scientific names as well as the locations where they are native. You can enjoy the sights and smells of the plants, the ingenuity of the irrigation system and a wonderful view of the town and seashore below, all while learning about the plants and the hundreds of years of history of the gardens. €3. (updated Apr 2017)
• 2 Cathedral (Duomo), Piazza Alfano I, ☏ +39 089 231 387. Imposing church built in the 11th century with a mixture of Romanesque, Norman, Arab and Byzantine architectural elements. (updated Jul 2018)

Do

• Football: Salernitana were relegated in 2024 and now play soccer in Serie B, the second tier. Their home ground Stadio Arechi (capacity 37,800) is 5 km south along the coast with its own railway station.

Eat

There are several good restaurants in Salerno and nearby, offering a wide range of food. In the center of the town, if you're looking for pizza you can go to:

• Il Vicolo della Neve, one of the oldest restaurants in Salerno. It's in the historic center. Pizza is served here, but they are also famous for their "pasta e fagioli" (pasta with beans).
• Donna Margherita a very good pizzeria, serving also fish dishes. Not very expensive, with high quality.
• Il Brigante serves mainly vegetable-based dishes. If you want to try local food, try the polpo! The food is basic but good and prices are low.

Sleep

• Borgo Riccio, Strada Provinciale 86, n°56 Torchiara, ☏ +39 0974 831554. Check-in: 14:00, check-out: 12:00. A great bed and breakfast with private rooms in the tranquility of the Cilento and Vallo del Diano National Park. Clean, cozy and friendly. Cooking facilities, English speaking staff, library. €80. 
• Ostello Ave Gratia Plena, Via Dei Canali, ☏ +39 089234776. Check-in: 14:00, check-out: 10:00. A nice and good hostel in the heart of the Historic centre of Salerno. Friendly people, clean rooms and good service. Breakfast included, internet available. The hostel offers trips to Amalfi and other, adventurous hiking and biking trips. From €15. 

Connect

The village of Atrani

As of June 2022, Salerno has 4G from TIM and 5G from Iliad, Vodafone and Wind Tre.

Go next

• Amalfi Coast - Venture out of Salerno towards Vietri sul Mare and head on one the most dramatic and breathtaking drives in the world, the Amalfi Coast Drive, passing trough:

• Cetara, an enchanting fisherman's village, famous for anchovies and tuna fish,
• Maiori, the only real beach along the Amalfi Coast, Minori, the old pasta factory of the Amalfi Coast
• Atrani, tiny little village, once here the Doges of the Amalfi Sea Republic were crowned here
• Amalfi, the crown jewel and center of the Amalfi Coast
• Conca dei Marini
• Furore, with a unique fiord,
• Praiano

and finally,

• Positano

Routes through Salerno

END ←	N  S	→ Reggio Calabria
Naples ← Herculaneum ← Pompeii ← Cava de' Tirreni ←	N  S	→ END
Avellino ←	N  S	→ END
Naples ← Herculaneum ← Pompeii ← Cava de' Tirreni ←	N  S	→ Paestum → Praia a Mare → Reggio Calabria