Amalfi Coast in mid-March

You will be stuck with buses seems like (I never looked to go in March from Salerno, so I am unsure), and if you are TRUELY staying in between Positano and Maiori, not in a major town, I would suggest a car just to get places.....(did the even/odd number license plate thing ever come into place?)....just know that the driver won't have nearly as much fun as the passenger.....

If you wanted to do the coast in the winter (yes, if Italians look at you funny and are concerned because you don't have a jacket on in March, it's "winter" no matter the temperature) and for 5 days, I would stay in Salerno, way more things to do and ways to pivot if there is bad weather. My preference wouldn't be the coast for that long if I couldn't be on a boat a few of the days, and surely not in awful weather.

Another option could be Sorrento, where you have options to go to Naples in bad weather and has great transit connections.

@katherine,

Thank you for your thoughts. As I was typing the original post, I thought about Sorrento, so you have confirmed I need to research that particular path.

Regarding a rental car, my husband is the default driver in Europe. While I know this is not typical for most people, he enjoys driving more than I enjoy being the passenger. His career was in public safety- fire and EMS, and he finds driving in Italy invigorating. I get car sick, so I pop a Meclizine (no matter who is driving) and hope for the best.

We were in the Sorrento/AC area when the weather was bad almost the entire time ( in May !) and there's just not a lot to do when you can't enjoy the outdoors. We had a view room and couldn't see Vesuvius most of the time, with the rain, fog, and low clouds. And the area is not the same when the sky and water are all grey. Hiking isn't fun when it's windy. Perhaps you'll get lucky, and I wish you great weather, but be prepared if it's not. Safe travels!

I get car sick, so I pop a Meclizine (no matter who is driving) and
hope for the best.

Oooh, Beachbum, Your uneasy tum promises to give you trouble on AC's twisty roads unless you KNOW your medication works 100% of the time. SITA buses are likely no improvement. I did OK with the ferries but you don't have that option except the rare exceptions of, say, Sorrento> Capri. Trains have also never been a problem but there's virtually no rail around the coast other than getting to Sorrento or Salerno.

Don't wish to throw a wet rag on your plans but as a lifelong motion-sickness sufferer - and once sick it takes me quite some time to recover - I'd sure hate for you end up fearful of exploring due to similar discomfort. :O(

oof yes, I am even more not convinced 5 days on the coast is a good idea.....

I am with Kathy when she stresses the need for confidence in the car sickness medication, if you are taking the roads either on a bus or a car, it will NOT be fun. I took a bus the first time I went to the coast back to Salerno (my friend thought it would be neat for us to see the scenery from the road) and my other friend literally had to throw up in the 1st one's sweatshirt.....and carry it for the miles and miles until we could get off in Salerno. I refuse to ride that bus ever again. The only buses on the coast I have used since then are to Bomerano (to do the path of the gods) and to Ravello, both obviously not reachable by boat. I also think that if you end up going there and THEN realize that the roads aren't good for your motion sickness, you will be stuck there for 5 nights.

I say he won't have any fun not because of the "invigorating" aspect that others might not agree with him on, but because of the inability to see any of the scenery because he is worried about having to reverse on a windy road to let a bus come the opposite way around a corner and other things where 100% of the attention is on the road instead of "enjoying" the drive or the views.

I would be hard pressed to find things to do on the AC (especially in your area) if the weather is bad. Heck, I was worried about the rain forecast when I went at the end of April! Unless you have a lot of cooking classes and such scheduled indoors, I would suggest not being in such a remote place. Salerno would give you multiple ways to pivot in case of bad weather as well as Sorrento.

I don't want to pile on, but I would also have some trepidation about planning a trip to such an outdoor focused place in an iffy month weather-wise. It is not the closing aspect--there is always a restaurant open--it is that there is nothing to do if it's rainy and dreary. I plan primarily outdoor focused trips (in May) and always have a plan b--luckily Naples is right there with a million things to do. How comfortable are you with winging it? What does the rest of the trip consist of?

https://search.ricksteves.com/?button=&date_range=2y&filter=Travel+Forum&query=Amalfi+Coast+March

I was in Amalfi Coast October 2024 (third week) when it was rainy, staying in Minori. I can attest that when it rains, there is absolutely nothing to do. Ferries were not operational, so that left SITA buses - and having transited via Salerno the day before without ferry and it was crowded then even in so late in the season, so traveling to the other towns was not an option.

Minori, although delightful, is delightful for a reason - less tourist traffic. But that comes at the price of having less tourist shops (i.e. like you see in Amalfi, Positano, and Ravello. They have a small Roman villa and museum which I toured in the rain. Beyond that, it was far too soggy to do anything else in the area. Which meant I was holed up in my hotel room with a book. And a book I read in one day, too, which meant I needed to find another for the last half of my trip in Naples!

All that having been said, if you decide to go in March, plan accordingly should it be too soggy to sightsee.

OP SBB,
I happen to know the zany poster 'zebec' (zee-bek) over on the Fodors forum. Kathy above, does as well. She and I once met him in a bar. Complete jerk, but he does do good TRs.
He and his wife apparently spent all of March 2023 in Minori plus Ischia and Procida. They afterwards created a pair of their notorious TR photo essays. Those are always loooooong and quirky mixes of music, humor, logistical tips plus imagery. The first TR which is about the AC, is linked below. The second is titled 'Beyond Capri: an Ischia TR.'
Maybe some ideas for your planning?
I am done. The end.
https://www.fodors.com/community/europe/costa-damalfi-a-tr-1719110/

I see my forum vets Katherine & Kathy have chimed in!

I've been to the A.C twice in March, and have based once in Sorrento, once in Salerno. Pros and cons to both. Both have excellent food, maybe an edge to Sorrento. More things to do in Salerno as it's an actual city, with a charming Old Town, not quite as touristy as Sorrento. And transportation-wise, I would give the nod to Salerno in that the only way to the A.C. from Sorrento is the SITA bus. That's really the only route from Salerno as well with the ferry not operational yet, but I think it's easier to find a driver--which we utilized this year in April to visit Vietri, Ravello & Minori--out of Salerno.

Thank you to everyone for your gracious guidance. I will talk with my husband, but we may save Amalfi for a future trip in late Sept/Oct.

To the others who share my motion sickness malady... I do very well with Meclazine 25mg, which is available over the counter as Bonine. My doctor provides a refillable prescription every year; along with Zofran. If I use the Zofran - things are BAD, but it provides relief without my head rolling around against the head rest of the car seat, with my eyes crossed and my mouth slack, rendering me semi-unconscious. I like to have the Zofran in addition to the Meclazine for both motion sickness support and situations where nausea sets in for any reason. I am thankful to have medication that works for me; some people are unable to find any relief and it is miserable. Pre-Meclizine stories about my motion sickness, which I have unfortunately passed to our children, are now part of the family lore.

My first visit to Amalfi was in the end of September, great weather and apparently way less busy than the summer! I vote that!

Hi Jay!