rm -r path : how to avoid being asked at each level?

You could use -I switch if you want to be prompted only once:

rm -rI sampledir/

from man rm:

-I     prompt once before removing more than three files, or when removing recursively.
       Less intrusive than -i, while still giving protection against most mistake

and use -f for "no prompt":

-f, --force
       ignore nonexistent files and arguments, never prompt

so:

rm -rf sampledir/