Mount Faito, Monti Lattari, Campania, IT

[Low Angle Life]

Mount Faito, Monti Lattari, Campania, IT.

We opted to take the Funivia Del Faito (Mt. Faito Cable Car) up to the top of the 1,131 meter mountain. The funivia first opened in 1952 and saw modernization updates in 1988 & 2015. Back in 1960 a car detached from the cable and crashed to the railway
below causing the death of four people. The system has three towers between the top and bottom and reminded me of the Jay Peak Tram on a much smaller scale with capacity for 35 riders between the two cabins.

Once at the top we took the Pathway of the Angels trail which takes you from the cable car station to the Monastery of San Michele. The hike is an out and back with a distance of 1.8Km each direction taking roughly 45 minutes. Along the way you take a series of footpaths and gravel roads that are marked just clearly enough for tourist to follow. While we hiked we came across wild horses and goats being shepherded along by dogs.

The Monastery of San Michele is located at the highest point of Mount Faito and has a gift shop, church, statues and sweeping views to the north and east including incredible views of Mt. Vesuvius and Pompeii.

After completing the initial out and back we returned to the cable car station for a panini and caprese salad before setting off to the west side of the mountain for views of the Sorrento Peninsula and Capri. The trail going west from the cable car is much more developed and considered the easier of the two routes with stairs and cafes along the 1Km route.

Once at the western portion of the easier hike you are greeted with phenomenal vistas of the Sorrento Peninsula and the Island of Capri beyond. The smog makes the views a bit hazy but it is still an amazing sight to peer down at the mega yatchs and historic towns along both coastlines.

Our return journey was back down the funivia to the town of Castellammare di Stabia where we have been staying. The entrance to the funivia is directly adjacent to the Castellammare train station making it easily accessible from Naples, Pompeii or Sorrento via the Circumvesuviana or Campania Express trains. If your visiting the Campania region, enjoy hiking and are looking for an experience not found in most American tour guides I would highly recommend checking out Mt. Faito.

 

[jasonwx]

looks amazing...how are the crowds?

 

[Low Angle Life]

On Mt. Faito and in the cable car crowds were more or less nonexistent. Literally zero line for the cable car and only a total of eight or so people on each ride including the two of us. We only came across six other people while out on the trails. Up top we ran into maybe thirty other people mostly scattered around the top cable car station (which also has two restaurant bars). We were the only Americans in the five hours we spent on Mt. Faito, two British couples, one German couple and everyone else Italian.

We visited Sorrento for the day yesterday and Pompeii the day before. Those were definitely a bit of a different story but that was to be expected. We've made a point to stay off the beaten tourist path aside for two or three days at the "must see" destinations south of Naples, it's been a really great way to experience the culture. Our first four days were spent with my family who live in a very rural area an hour west of Naples, that whole side of it was truly amazing and a great introduction to my first time in the country.

 

[Harvey]

Mount Faito, Monti Lattari, Campania, IT.

Italy is awesome in my opinion. Only been once, but we stayed for three weeks. I felt so welcomed as an American, as opposed to that other country to the northwest. I liked Tuscany the best.

We're in Spain now visiting family, my first time here. I really like it as well. It's different, maybe a bit lower key? but very welcoming too. Loving the tapas.

I'd love to separate this out as a separate post if you are ok with it.

 

[Low Angle Life]

Italy is awesome in my opinion. Only been once, but we stayed for three weeks. I felt so welcomed as an American, as opposed to that other country to the northwest. I liked Tuscany the best.

We're in Spain now visiting family, my first time here. I really like it as well. It's different, maybe a bit lower key? but very welcoming too. Loving the tapas.

I'd love to separate this out as a separate post if you are ok with it.

Go for it! Happy to have it broken out into a separate post.

Aside from the heat, which from what I understand is comparable to NJ at the moment I feel like I could pack up immediately and move to rural Campania for good. We've reconnected with older family members who moved back from Toronto 20 or so years ago as well as my younger family who never left Italy. Walking around their property and eating fresh fruit from their trees and experiencing their lifestyle really made me understand the appeal and why they came back.

 

[Peter Minde]

Italy is awesome in my opinion. Only been once, but we stayed for three weeks. I felt so welcomed as an American, as opposed to that other country to the northwest. I liked Tuscany the best.

We're in Spain now visiting family, my first time here. I really like it as well. It's different, maybe a bit lower key? but very welcoming too. Loving the tapas.

I'd love to separate this out as a separate post if you are ok with it.

I need to return to Italy before I die.

 

[jasonwx]

Harv where in Spain?
My wife and daughter lived there for a year
I loved it there

 

[Harvey]

Harv where in Spain?

We are in Caldes d'Estrac. It's outside Barcelona. We are staying with my niece and her family.

It's a seaside town where we've been walking to everything. We've spent two or three days in Barcelona, Park Güell, Montserrat, some shopping, a few days at the beach and tomorrow is Sagrada Familia. Back home on Thursday.

I'd actually love to have a sub forum for off season TRs, some really good stuff has been posted over the last few years.

I'd also like to start a thread about Life in Europe. Both my niece and her partner in separate conversations, answered a question about the biggest difference between the US and Europe in the exactly the same way. It got me thinking.

 

[Peter Minde]

We are in Caldes d'Estrac. It's outside Barcelona. We are staying with my niece and her family.

It's a seaside town where we've been walking to everything. We've spent two or three days in Barcelona, Park Güell, Montserrat, some shopping, a few days at the beach and tomorrow is Sagrada Familia. Back home on Thursday.

I'd actually love to have a sub forum for off season TRs, some really good stuff has been posted over the last few years.

I'd also like to start a thread about Life in Europe. Both my niece and her partner in separate conversations, answered a question about the biggest difference between the US and Europe in the exactly the same way. It got me thinking.

I've got a FB friend who relocated from northeast US to Madrid. She loves it.

Before I bought Radwell Cottage in Saranac Lake, I kicked around the idea of moving to Europe. I backed off in part because I thought it would be blowing off my child, and partly because I don't know anyone in e.g. northwestern Italy. In the Tri-Lakes, I have a network.

 

[jamesdeluxe]

We're in Spain now visiting family, my first time here. I really like it as well. It's different, maybe a bit lower key? but very welcoming too. We are in Caldes d'Estrac. It's outside Barcelona.

Harv goes to Barcelona and shortly thereafter this.