Campania · Salerno
Ravello
A ridge town above the Amalfi Coast where Wagner found Klingsor's garden in 1880.
- Best time
- May–Sep
- By car
- 33 min from Salerno
- Population
- 2,390
Known for
RAVELLO FESTIVAL
Concerts on the Villa Rufolo terrace since 1953, founded to commemorate Wagner's 1880 visit; runs roughly July through August each year.
TERRAZZA DELL'INFINITO
Marble belvedere at Villa Cimbrone, classical busts lined along the parapet, hanging out over the Gulf of Salerno 365 meters below.
BARISANO BRONZE PORTAL
Cast by Barisano da Trani in 1179 for the Duomo, with 54 panels of saints and Christ in glory, signed and dated by the maker.
LIMONE COSTA D'AMALFI
The commune lies inside the Limone Costa d'Amalfi IGP production zone.
When to visit
Best · May–Sep
- J11°
- F12°
- M13°
- A16°
- M20°
- J25°
- J29°
- A29°
- S25°
- O20°
- N16°
- D13°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime averages, 2020–2024. The sea is warmest in August at 28° and coldest in February at 15°. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
The festa: Pantaleone di Nicomedia, 26 July
Why come
Ravello sits on a spur above the Amalfi Coast, between the valleys of the Dragone and the Reginna Minor, 782 stairs up from Atrani at sea level. The village grew rich in the 12th and 13th centuries as a satellite of the Amalfi maritime republic, when patrician families like the Rufolo, Confalone and d'Afflitto built their houses on the ridge to escape the coastal raids. The upper village holds the older churches and the social life of the piazza; the villas that made the town's later reputation sit toward the cliff edge, their gardens and belvederes facing the water.
One villa's garden was seen by Richard Wagner in 1880 and identified by him with Klingsor's enchanted garden in his opera Parsifal, and he wrote the opera's second act on the strength of it. The Ravello Festival began playing orchestral concerts in that same garden in 1953, the year the council decided to use Wagner's visit to rebuild a postwar economy. The town's shape, ridge above, stairs down to the coast, patrician houses turned toward the sea, is the record of why families climbed here in the first place and what they built once they had reason to stay.
The Sunday letter
Ravello is on our list. Its letter is still to come.
We are writing about all 1,000 of these towns, one at a time, in a free letter every Sunday: the photo, the food, the festa. That is our mission. Sign up and you will be there when Ravello comes up. By Peter & Sophia, from Pietrasanta.
Read on
Ravello in our articles
The best wine towns that eat well in Campania7 towns, Ravello among them.
The 8 best wine towns within 90 minutes of Salerno8 towns, Ravello among them.
The best hidden towns worth staying overnight in Campania8 towns, Ravello among them.
The best small wine towns in Campania8 towns, Ravello among them.
How to get there
From Naples / Salerno (NAP), about 1h 8m by car.
Bari / Brindisi (BRI) is about 3h 34m away.
By car from the centre of Salerno 33 minutes, Naples 1 hour or Rome 3h 18m.
Coming by train into Salerno? Ravello is about 35 minutes away by road.
What to see
Villa Rufolo
Patrician residence built 1270 with Moorish cloister and terraced gardens; setting for the Ravello Festival concerts and the second act of Wagner's Parsifal.
Villa Cimbrone
Cliff-edge villa restored after 1904 by Lord Grimthorpe, ending in the Terrazza dell'Infinito, a marble belvedere over the Gulf of Salerno.
Duomo di Ravello
Cathedral on Piazza Vescovado, founded 1086, with the bronze portal cast by Barisano da Trani in 1179 and the marble pulpit signed by Niccolò di Bartolomeo da Foggia in 1272.
Chiesa di San Giovanni del Toro
Eleventh-century church in the upper village, with a polychrome marble pulpit of 1230 and three apses decorated with Persian and Egyptian ceramics.
Piazza Vescovado
Triangular square in front of the cathedral, the social center of the village, on the ridge between the patrician villa and the upper churches.
The slow-trip planner
Building a trip? Find where Ravello fits in a slow Italy circuit.
Answer five questions. We will shape a geographically coherent slow trip from the 1,000 Italian towns most travelers skip. Yours to save and share.
We recommend
Where to eat and stay
Not our picks, but places the guides put their name to: a Michelin star, a Gambero Rosso fork, a Slow Food snail, a Michelin Key for the hotels. Worth a table, a counter, or a night when you pass through.
Il Flauto di PanRistorante
Il Flauto di Pan carries one Michelin star, plus a Gambero Rosso listing.
Belvedere dell'Hotel CarusoRistorante
Belvedere dell'Hotel Caruso has two Gambero Rosso forks (82/100) to its name.
RossellinisRistorante
Rossellinis has one Michelin star to its name.
Terrazza del ProfessoreRistorante
Two Gambero Rosso forks (80/100), at Terrazza del Professore.
Caruso, A Belmond Hotel, Amalfi CoastHotel
Caruso, A Belmond Hotel, Amalfi Coast holds one Michelin Key and a La Liste score of 97.
Palazzo AvinoHotel
Palazzo Avino has one Michelin Key and a Leading Hotels of the World listing.
Villa CimbroneHotel
Villa Cimbrone holds a La Liste score of 91 and a place in the Michelin hotel guide.
Living here
- Population 2,390
- Remotei
- Pharmacy in town
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Nearest airport Naples / Salerno, 1 h 8 min drive
- Regional capital Napoli, 1 h 2 min drive
Common questions
- What is Ravello known for?
- Ravello is a ridge town above the Amalfi Coast where Wagner found Klingsor's garden in 1880.
- Where is Ravello?
- Ravello is a comune in the province of Salerno, in Campania, at 365 meters above sea level.
- What is the nearest airport to Ravello?
- Naples / Salerno (NAP), about 1h 8m by car.
- How long is the drive from Salerno to Ravello?
- About 33 minutes by car.
- When is the best time to visit Ravello?
- Best in May–Sep. July is the warmest month, averaging 29 degrees, and November the wettest, with about 15 rain days.
- Is there a sagra or a festival in Ravello?
- The town keeps its patron saint's day: Pantaleone di Nicomedia, 26 July.
- Which other towns are like Ravello?
- Montescudaio, Praiano and Minori.
- How many people live in Ravello?
- 2,390 at the 2023 count.
Tags & datadesignations · numbers · sources
Recognised as
The numbers
- Elevation: 365 m
- Population: 2,390
- Surface area: 7.94 km²
These figures were compiled from public directories: ISTAT, OpenStreetMap and Wikidata, and from the official listings of the guides named on this page. Town details change; verify with official sources before you travel.
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🏛️ UNESCO
More UNESCO towns in Campania
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