With new crew aboard - our cruising buddies the Martin family were visiting us from Annapolis - we wasted no time getting to the islands off Italy's central coast near Naples for some serious beach cruising!

The Boyle family with their visiting cruising friends, the Martins.

Zia is a three-cabin boat; in order to accommodate an extra family of four, we had to deploy our "fourth cabin". We pitch a small tent on the trampoline and put an air mattress in it. We can actually sail with it in place, although we usually take it down for passages. Our fourth cabin can take plenty of wind, it's waterproof and of course the kids love it.

Our first stop was the uninhabited island of Palmarola. We approached early in the morning from our night passage and anchored over hard sand in a nearly deserted cove. By noon, the anchorage had filled up with maybe 50 boats. Apparently this is a popular destination for boaters from Naples who flock there in the summertime to enjoy the beaches and clear water.

That evening, we moved five miles to the west side of the Island of Ponza. We anchored in a deep cove near a local fishing village and went looking for a local seafood restaurant that we had heard about. If you ever get the chance, go to Da Gennaro la Bestia in Ponza and order up the lobster pasta. The restaurant is a kind of rickety affair built into the side of a hill, but the food is fresh and delicious.

Christy with Johnny and Po Martin, and a monster lobster.

Around on the east side of Ponza is the principle city. We anchored just outside of a mooring field and again we just beat the crowds as boat after boat anchored near us. The town is a charming seaside village whose primary economy of tourism causes the summer population of the village to swell. The secondary economy of fishing sustains the full time inhabitants of the island and makes for some fine meals for us tourists. There was a festival going on and we were treated to a city decorated with lights, banners and flags. The locals were dressed to the nines and treated to fireworks and street concerts.

The crew in Ponza.

We kept up our pace and departed early the next morning for Ventotene, a smaller and less touristy island, famous for its scuba diving. We were thinking about taking a slip in their small marina but as we got nearer, it didn't look like our fat cat could squeeze in. We dropped the hook in the anchorage. When we dinghied in, however, we saw that the harbor opens up after a dramatic hairpin turn, and there would have been plenty of room for us.

Ventotene.

Ventotene is small enough to see in about an hour so we hung out in the village square until we tracked down some pizza for lunch and made our plans to depart for Capri.

Lounging in the village square in Ventotene.

Capri is sort of like the Beverly Hills of this part of the Italian coast. Start with the stunning sight of jagged white towering cliffs rising 800 feet straight out of the sea, and mix in all the fancy designer names you can think of, and you will start to get a feeling for the incredible opulence, both natural and manmade, of this island.

The first night we anchored at dusk in 45 feet on a rocky bottom and I dreamed of dragging all night. Early the next morning we took a transient slip at the marina for 260 Euro a night: a new all-time high price for Zia, but at least I would sleep well. It made sense for us though, since we all wanted to see as much of Capri as we could before leaving for the mainland. The ferry drivers did not cut the marina a break, sending us 3- and 4-foot wakes when they went zooming past.

Downtown Capri.

We hiked the trails and window-shopped, but we didn't buy anything since the marina price was killing us. Capri has plenty of public gardens and parks with beautiful landscaping and views. It was a real joy to simply stroll around the island on the well-tended paths.

Zia from the Blue Grotto on Capri,

We circumnavigated Capri, stopping at the Blue Grotto for a great photo shot. Christy practiced her cliff jumping from 60 feet, which was a bit too high for the rest of us sane people.

Next on the list was Positano, on the mainland Amalfi coast. It was a favorite holiday resort dating way back to Roman times. Unlike Capri, perched high up in the valley between two even higher peaks, the town of Positano is nestled vertically around a network of hillsides on the coast. Whereas in Capri you could pretty much avoid the stairs if you wanted to, there is no chance of that if you want to explore Positano.

Positano, Amalfi coast

There were beautiful hotels and shops to explore, but the city was teeming with tourist groups, so we mostly hung out on Zia, swimming and enjoying the company.

The hottest of the hot...

Amalfi is a city with a famous renaissance cathedral and monastery. We anchored all alone in a tight but picturesque cove that took two anchors strategically placed to keep us off the rocks. We had to drag the kids out to see another church and museum, but they enjoyed it once they got in the spirit.

Amalfi Cathedral.

Here the Martin family left us and boarded a ferry for Naples. After all of the hubbub and great company, it always takes us a couple of days to get back into our regular family routine. We were cheered, however, by our plan to head north to Pompeii to meet up with more friends on Cenou.

Anchored in Amalfi.