Capri is an Italian island in the Tyrrhenian Sea off the Sorrentine Peninsula, on the south side of the Gulf of Naples, in the Campania region of Southern Italy. It has been a resort since the time of the Roman Republic.
Features of the island are the Marina Piccola (the little harbour), the Belvedere of Tragara, which is a high panoramic promenade lined with villas, the limestone crags called sea stacks that project above the sea (the Faraglioni), Anacapri, the Blue Grotto (Grotta Azzurra), and the ruins of the Imperial Roman villas.
Capri is part of the region of Campania, Province of Naples. The town of Capri is the main centre of population on the island. It has two harbours, Marina Piccola and Marina Grande (the main port of the island). The separate commune of Anacapri is located high on the hills to the west.
The etymology of the name Capri can be traced back to the Greeks, the first recorded colonists to populate the island. This means that “Capri” was probably not derived from the Latin “Capreae” (goats), but rather the Greek “Kapros” (wild boar).
Capri can easily be reached by ship from Sorrento, Naples, Ischia (Porto) and Salerno / Amalfi. It is always good for a day trip. The island is rather small – about 1000 hectares for approx. 15000 inhabitants all together in the townships Capri and Anacapri. More exactly: It is 6170 m long, 1200-2750 m broad and 598 m high. But here you have a tourist season throughout the whole year. Tourists are just mixed up from as many nations as in Pompeii. Of course in the summer the island gets overcrowded by trippers and one has taken into serious consideration to limit the ferry connections.
Top tourist attraction is the Blue Grotto “Grotta azzurra”. If Capri is overcrowded with tourists you may even have to wait for hours. But if you reach Capri rather early (e.g. before 10.30), it makes sense, to go straight to the grotto, before still more people arrive at the Marina Grande. There are many boats waiting to take you directly from Marina Grande to the grotto. But looking at the local situation you can see, that it is probably better (and at lower cost), to go by bus to the Blue Grotto.
Take the funicolare (cable railway) to Capri-Town. The ticket counter (Biglietteria) for the funicolare is at the end of the quay (to the right). At the piazzetta in Capri keep right to get to the small “bus terminal” and take the bus to Anacapri. There is another “bus terminal” in Anacapri, where you can take the bus to “Grotta azzurra”. The tickets for the bus (at present 1.40 Euro) can always be bought on the bus.
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