Casa Maris is located in the historic center of Salerno, known as the Garden City and gateway to the stunning Amalfi Coast. Photo / Supplied
Location: In the historic centre of Salerno, a port town in Southern Italy, often referred to as the gateway to the Amalfi Coast.
Style: Modern Mediterranean apartment in a heritage building.
Price: We booked via Airbnb and it cost $351 per night. Three of us were staying in the apartment, but it sleeps up to 9 people, so is an incredibly cost-effective option for a group.
Perfect for: A comfortable, tranquil base for exploring Italy’s southern region.
First impressions: Salerno is known as the Garden City, but there’s not much else that feels like Christchurch here. It’s a historic port town about 45 minutes by train from Naples and has all the charm you expect from Italy – cobbled streets, meandering laneways, buildings painted pastel colours with wrought iron balconies and shuttered windows, restaurants and trattorias, churches and chapels. The apartment is about 15 minutes walk from the train station if you’re arriving by rail (which is super easy in Italy, thanks to its extensive cross-country network) but you’ll want data roaming enabled to help you find it - the old town is quite a maze of laneways and similar-looking streets.
My friends arrived from London late the night before me and our Casa Maris host, Gina, recommended a private car from Naples airport, rather than getting the train – at 60 euros for an hour’s journey it was a great option, especially as Gina organised and booked it for them.
Gina met them at Casa Maris and check-in was straightforward and fast, showing them all the essentials, then leaving them to it, but assured them she was available for anything we needed.
We immediately felt at home, and that we were in the heart of Salerno, getting a real local experience of Italy.
Rooms: The apartment is on the first floor of a historic building that has the ruins of a 2nd century Roman villa in its foundations – mind-blowing for those of us from the “New World” but par for the course in Italy. Completely remodelled in 2022, the apartment is light and bright with all the mod-cons you need, yet retains its heritage feel thanks to the 4m-high exposed wooden beam ceiling in the main living area. Marble floors, white walls and shuttered windows give a clean, cool feel, and the 65-inch TV, large L-shaped sofa and four comfortable bean bags mean there’s lots of space for relaxing after long days exploring.
There are three bedrooms and a total of seven beds, so space enough for a large group travelling together. There’s a full kitchen and large roof terrace, making it a space you’ll find hard to leave.
I stayed in the master bedroom with ensuite bathroom and loved the memory foam mattress on the king-sized bed. The spiral staircase up to a loft-style annex with table and chairs gave an even greater sense of space.
Bathroom: Three bathrooms was ideal for three women travelling together – we could each spread out all our lotions and potions in our own space with no fear of annoying each other. The shower cubicles were all quite tiny and the water pressure wasn’t particularly powerful, but it did the job. There was a random selection of toiletries in each bathroom, likely leftovers from previous guests. If you’re particular about what you use, bring your own.
Food and drink: Salerno is packed with restaurants and bars, many of which are within five minutes’ walk of the apartment. Gina had left recommendations in the apartment info book, but we just wandered and followed our nose and never had a bad meal, whether pizza, pasta or freshly caught fish.
Facilities: Free wi-fi was fast and had a strong signal in all rooms of the large apartment. There’s a washing machine with detergent provided, perfect for longer stays.
In the neighbourhood: Many people use Salerno as a base to get to the cliffside villages of the Amalfi Coast, which you can easily reach by ferry connections from the nearby port in less than an hour. Pompeii is 30 minutes’ drive away; the smaller and less touristy, but no less spectacular Herculaneum is 40 minutes.
However there’s plenty to keep you entertained in Salerno itself – the Duomo (cathedral) with its spectacular crypt; the lungomare seaside promenade – one of the longest in Europe, and looking out to the bay of Salerno; and the town is overlooked by Arechi Castle, a medieval castle 300m above sea level now home to a museum which is only 3 euro to visit.
Family friendly: This is the perfect apartment for family groups – space for everyone and comfortable for chilling out when you need a break from sight-seeing or for afternoon naps.
Accessibility: There are a number of stairs up to the apartment and no lift, plus stairs to get to each bedroom and down to the kitchen so it’s unfortunately not suitable for wheelchair users or those with limited mobility.
Contact: airbnb.com/rooms/806527705755189508
Don't return from that long-awaited break feeling burnt out.