Advice on 10 Day Trip to Italy

If you want to see the Trevi fountain, make it a priority.

When my husband and I are thinking about itineraries, we both usually come up with 1 or 2 Absolute Priorities and work around them. That way we don't end up seeing a bunch of stuff we feel like we should see and missing the things we definitely want to see.

I can't comment on most of the itinerary you've got planned - personally I would 100% skip Sorrento/Capri and spend an extra day in Naples/Pompeii - but that's based on my priorities :-)

Italy has so much to offer that it is hard to decide sometimes.

You stated some ambivalence about coming back to Rome.

I have been to all the places you mentioned except Orvieto and want to go there next time in Italy.

Frankly, I would do Rome prior to the Naples area.

If you stick to doing the Naples area, one night in Rome to see the Trevi Fountain is not my recommendation. The fountain is interesting, but there is far more important sites to see. The Vatican with its museum, St. Peter's and the amazing Sistine Chapel is a must. The Roman historical items can take a week to do thoroughly.

Plan on coming back to Rome.

I would stay in Sorrento over Naples, easier to explore that area from there.

I too am confused why you want to stay in Naples, and I love it. But for what you want to see Sorrento is a much better choice. While Posillipo is a very gentrified area, it's quite a distance from the ferry dock Molo Beverello. A 20 minute taxi ride, an hour walk or if you're close to the train station about 23 min to Napoli Centrale. Then a bus back to the port.

From Napoli Capodicino airport take the Curreri Viaggi bus to Sorrento. 75 min. Cost 10 euro.

For Capri ferry from Sorrento.
To visit the Amalfi Coast use the Sita bus. To see Pompeii Scavi or Naples, use the Circumvesuvian.

Ferry and bus schedules.
http://www.positano.com

http://www.sorrentoinsider.com/en/naples-to-sorrento-train-schedule?
busroute=sorrentoNapoli

Another option would be to spend 3 nights Sorrento and your last night in Naples. This choice would enable you to catch an earlier train to either Rome or Orvieto.

Orvieto train from Naples takes 2 hr 53 min spend 2 nights. Visit Montepulciano or Castiglione del Largo. On the drive to Siena visit Val d'Orcia.
Spend 1 night. On the way to Florence, see Monteriggioni
and San Gimignano. Drop the car at the Florence airport to avoid ZTLs returning in Florence.

Hope this helps.

Don't skip Rome. Especially since that time of year is not ideal for the coast or islands..spending 4 nights in Campania at that time of year at the expense of not seeing Rome is well, sorry, unusual.

....I travel frequently to Rome, Naples and islands...last year in early Oct. it was so cold, damp and rainy, I was on Capri for 4 nights in rain storms...but cooked some great meals and caught up on my Netflix :) Rome was also unseasonable cold and wet ..but you will be there much later...so keep that in mind.

Stay in Naples for 2 nights and you can see all of this easily: Herculaneum ( better preserved smaller easier to see IT ALL) or Pompeii
Then have lunch in Naples...there are some decent places near the Naples Archeological Museum essential to seeing the artifacts from both P & H.

Keep in mind rough seas often make crossing impossible especially in Oct Nov, you may have to take the larger ferry not the hydrofoil.

2nd day in Naples take ferry to Capri for the day ( in my opinion the Blue Grotto is a LOT of time to spend for a day trip, and it will be a bit cold by then..also the real beauty of the island is seen from up high...like the Gardens of Augustus...10 minute walk from Capri Town piazzata...and the Anacapri Mt. Solaro chair lift...sweeping views over island, also in Anacapri, Villa San Michele views over the Marina Grande...( I have spend a week on Capri for years and always enjoy these three places the best)

There is absolutely no reason to go to Sorrento...unless you STAY there instead of Naples. It is safer base than Naples for day trippers...not a destination.

Positano will be closed up during that time....not the right time to visit, add Rome minimum 2 nights but 3 nights to see main highlights and The Vatican which needs 1/2 day, you won't be sorry.

That is my two cents...Naples to Rome is 1 hour...btw

JJ, the reason I recommend Sorrento, is because it's much less confusing for a first time traveler than Napoli. The ferry port in Sorrento is small and it takes less time to go to Capri.
It also has great access for the Sita bus and Circumvesuvian.

Ferries in the AC run until 31 October weather permitting.
Positano is usually effected the most. It was also not shut down last year, some of the fancier shops close as soon as the high dollar tourists leave.
Speaking of weather, average temps for October are low 80s to mid 70s. Nite temps may get down to the low 60s.
Showers may roll in, but usually don't last the whole day. Last year was an exception, sorry the weather didn't work out for you.
My daughter has lived here for 14 years, so I spend a considerable amount of time in the area. Leaving again in October spending a month.

Thank you all for your recommendations!

On Rome, JJ- I know it seems "unusual" but my daughter who is 20 is not really interested in Rome and has her heart set on seeing the Amalfi coast and Capri. This area is not one that her study abroad has planned a trip to so it made sense for us to tour it together, so no matter the weather we will make some good memories :) Thank you for the tips on sights in Capri!!

Next on her wish list (and mine) is Tuscany which seems is best seen buy car if you really want the full experience, something she is not able to do on her own. I have this aversion to being beholden to tours--I am not too sure if that is a mistake where it is my 1st time in Italy but I like the idea of being able to explore on my own time table. I am a little nervous about the logistics of driving in the city areas but feel I would be okay in Tuscany...but it sounds like the general consensous is that returning the car to the airport in Florence is pretty easy. I may write another post on that alone. Where it seems that we will need to travel to Rome from Naples I thought maybe one night there would give us some time to see the Fountain because you don't need to buy tickets and spend time in a line and do a tour. Maybe it is best make the 25th a travel day and just go Naples To Rome, catch the bus to Orvieto pick up our car and get settled for our time in Tuscany. All of the sights in Rome are things I would want to see and I hope that someday I can plan that trip and convince my husband to come (he is not a fan of long plane flights). Also, I had hoped to try to get from Naples to San Donato Val di Comino where my grandmother was born but it seems like a tough place to get to--lots of buses and so it will have to wait and would make sense to incorporate into a Rome trip.

So I have taken everyone's advice and changed my home base from Naples to Sorrento--actually just north. I booked an Airbnb in Sant' Agnello, I could have gotten one right in Sorrento but I like what we got, they had great reviews and will help arrainge tours for us at a discount to the AC, Vesuvius, Pompeii and Capri. AND I saved $150...win/win! JJ--pray for better weather than you got last year!

Gerri, thank you for explaining that the terrible weather in October 2016 is not the norm! I think we will stay put in Sorrento--it looks like there are some very early trains into Naples. Do you know if the train schedule you sent the link for brings us to the station we would take the train to Rome from? Italiarail is what I think we would take. https://app.italiarail.com/results?aff=TRE?c=0&target=result Also, thanks for your recommendations for itinerary in Tuscany! I think Tuscany is a place I could spend a month and not be ready to leave just by looking at how beautiful it is in pictures, I can only imagine the beauty in real life! I am really looking forward to our time Tuscany :) Any recommendations on places to stay or restaurants would be appreciated.

I welcome any and all input!