You can walk most of these trails in trail runners. You cannot walk them in sandals. Here is the whole kit — what earns its place in the bag, and what you can leave in the hotel.
The most common injury on these trails is a rolled ankle, not a fall. Grip and ankle support matter more than anything else you carry.
Trail runners or hiking shoes with grip: yes. Fashion sneakers with smooth soles: no. Sandals or flip-flops: absolutely not. The middle section of the Path of the Gods is loose rock and worn stone. The most common injury on these trails is a rolled ankle, not a fall, and ankle support helps. For the coast, add water shoes — almost every beach here is pebble or rock.
→ Path of the Gods, in fullAt least 1.5 litres per person in summer. There are no refill points on the Path of the Gods, at Punta Campanella, or on the way to Ieranto. Carry everything — this is not a European trail with fountains.
→ When to goHat, sunglasses, high-factor sunscreen. The trails face south and west, and there is no shade. In the heat of the day the stone gives nothing back.
For buses — tickets are sold at tabacchi, not on board — and for village bars. Keep a few notes and coins on you; the smaller the place, the more it matters.
→ Sorrento beachesThe trails are waymarked and, in season, busy. A lighter bag is a better walk.
Not needed on any waymarked trail here. The routes look after themselves.
The trails are marked and, in season, busy. You will not lose the path.
Optional on the trails. Genuinely useful on the 1,700 steps down to Positano.
If you fix only one thing, fix the shoes. Grip matters more than height, and a rolled ankle on loose stone ends the walk faster than anything else you could forget.
Trail runners with grip, yes. Smooth-soled fashion sneakers, no.
No. Grip matters more than height.
No refill points are reported. Carry your own.
No.
For the beaches, yes. Almost everything is rock or pebble.
This is packing advice, not a route file. No refill points are reported on the Path of the Gods, at Punta Campanella, or on the way to Ieranto — carry your own water, and check trail and weather conditions before you set off. We do not publish a GPX track we have not walked.