Location - Sorrento
Sorrento is perched high on the cliffs overlooking the Gulf of Naples offering breathtaking views of the spectacular
landscape, which captivates the visitor. The town gives its name to the Sorrentine peninsula, a large area of land extending
from Vico Equense to Massa Lubrense, that is suspended between green mountains and transparent blue sea. The town has been
a popular vacation and cultural destination
of the Campania region in southern Italy for centuries. It offers a wide selection of accommodation in hotels of different
categories. The convenient geographical location makes it an ideal departure point for excursions to Capri, Ischia, Pompeii,
Amalfi, Positano, Herculaneum, Paestum, and the Vesuvius, all located within a 50 km radius. Sorrento was first a Phoenician colony.
Then it became a port frequented by the Greeks for commercial activity with Naples and other southern cities.
The Greeks named Sorrento "Syrenusion"
or "Syreon", which means "Land of the Sirens" named after the mythological creatures that were half-women
and half-fish. The sirens were mentioned in HomerÕs great epic poem, The Odyssey, as the beings that lured sailors
to the Sorrentine shore with their seductive songs. Historically, the Oscans and Samnites first ruled Sorrento, then
the Romans dominated it for a long time. They appreciated the natural beauty and climate of the area, and during
the imperial period it became a holiday destination for patricians who built villas along the coast. Sorrento
is the birthplace of the sixteenthcentury poet Torquato Tasso. The town was included among the main destinations
of the Grand Tour in Italy in the eighteenth century. This natural paradise has attracted many foreign poets
and writers, such as Robert Browning, James Fenimore Cooper, F. Marion Crawford, Norman Douglas, Henrik Ibsen,
Harriet Beecher Stowe, and Alexis de Tocqueville. Other famous visitors include composer Robert Wagner,
philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, film director Vittorio De Sica and tenor Enrico Caruso.
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