Sorrento centre | Sorrentine Peninsula | Marina Grande

Restaurant Da Cataldo is located in the heart of Marina Grande, the original fishing village of Sorrento, which can still be reached on foot along the old path offering a magnificent view of the old harbour in tufa stone.

Marina Grande is also linked to the centre of Sorrento by a road which, nevertheless, fails to take away the authentic atmosphere of the village, its inhabitants strongly tied to tradition and continuing to follow their own rhythm of day-to-day life.

It is here that the famous “gozzi sorrentini” boats were first made, the forerunners to the motor-powered gozzi, wooden boats with a sail that were quickly adopted by all fishermen in the Gulf because of their strong resistance.

The focal point of the village is the Church of Sant’Anna, the patron saint of the harbour.

The locals celebrate the patron saint’s day on the Sunday after 26 July, when the bay fills with boats, their lights blending in with the lights of the Sorrentine Peninsula and the islands of the Gulf of Naples.

Despite the many beaches and restaurants in Sorrento, the fishing village has resisted tourism overdevelopment and the beach has always been a communal part of everyday life.

The fishermen’s homes can still be seen today, along with the fishing boats pulled up to the beach and nets left out to dry.