Are 3 Full days in Amalfi Coast enough? 4 Full days in Rome 4 full days in Florence

Depends on what you want to do/see (Pompeii, Capri for example that is 2 full days right there and some would consider those essential and maybe others would not)
In general 3 days is not enough. In October you may get a rain out type day out of 13 as well.

Not sure where else you are staying but if I had 10 nights for example and was going to just Rome and AC I would give Rome 4 nights and AC 6 nights to give you an idea.

BTW: to help all better to list the number of nights you are staying at a location, using days can be confusing.

Very subjective question... for us, no. We’ve spent 7 nights there, three times, and it never felt like enough. There are so many wonderful things to do (Naples Archeological museum, Herculaneum, Pompeii, Mt Vesuvius, Capri, Positano, Amalfi) in addition to Sorrento itself. We love Sorrento, walking, exploring, shopping, eating, relaxing. For us even 6 full days is not enough. Increase your time if you can.

sorrento is a great base for the area, just walking the streets at night. which is a good idea as there is plenty to see elsewhere, in the day. if you consider going to other towns by small ferry ( great) ie: positano etc, definitely check to see if they are running. if there are a few of you consider hiring a private driver to get to places down the coast like positano. ( if the ferry is not running)
we generally buy the fast train tickets ahead of time to save money, not sure about how busy they are in october?( eg: rome to naples)

hope this helps

Depends where you've been, what your interests are, and what else you are doing this trip.

If it's your first trip to Italy, 3 nights in Sorrento is fine. You will want plenty of time for Rome and Florence - and hopefully fit in Venice and Cinque Terre. We did an Italy trip in October a few years ago and did not book a single train or hotel in advance. No problem.

4 nights minimum, IMO.
Too many things to see.

You can buy train tickets on the spot. But you can save a bit if you buy early. However discounted tickets are restricted: no changes, no refunds once purchased.

How are you counting 3 days? For most of us, 3 days, especially somewhere like Sorrento which takes a long time to get to and from, means 4 nights there. On the other hand if Day 1 is the day you arrive and Day 3 is the day you leave, then you really only have 1 day.

What do you want to do? You can take buses or ferries to the Amalfi Coast towns (1 day, maybe more), ferry to Capri (1 day), Pompeii/Herculaneum/Naples (possible to do 2 of the 3 in a single day). Do you want to relax, enjoy the beach, wander around the town?

We had 3 nights there in 2015 and we got a quick taste - enough to make me want to go back. We stayed in Atrani (near to Amalfi). One of our days we had a private driver, which was the only way we were able to see Sorrento and Positano. The other day we took the bus to Ravello and walked back to Atrani.

You can certainly see parts with three days, just don't plan a lot. I have it on my return to list for some year, and I'd plan 5-6 nights to do it right.

Yes, 3 days can be enough.

I think 4 nights minimum as that would give you 3 full days. Depending on what you want to see....a day for Pompeii, a day for Capri and a day for the A.C. to visit Positano and/or Amalfi town/Ravello. Have been to A.C. 4x now, always staying in Sorrento, with minimum visits of 4 nights but have stayed for 6 nights too. Have been twice in October and lots of people. We had fabulous weather last Oct. when there. Been several times in July and of course it is much hotter and, of course, lots of people. Have a great trip!

Thank you all for your suggestions. We will have 3 full days in Sorrento.

Three full days means to my way of thinking:

1) Capri
2) Pompei or Ercolano
3) the actual Amalfi Coast--Positano, Amalfi, Ravello

The first two are weather-sensitive, actually all 3 days are. For really crappy weather, your best use of the day--and many on this forum would vouch for it--would be taking the Circumvesuviana to Naples, then a taxi to the Archeological Museum. It has all the art from Pompei and that's only one wing of it. Fascinating stuff.

Good thing about basing in Sorrento is you come back from one of your excursions, take a nap, then you have your pick of maybe 15 great, reasonably-priced restaurants within walking distance at which to dine. Very impressed with the quality of food in Sorrento.

I see you amended your topic, cchirino...

Our first trip in 2010, we had 6 nights to spend between Florence and Rome. I was going to do 3 and 3 but because a buddy had just finished teaching art in Florence for 6 months and fell in love with the place, we did 4 nights Florence, 2 nights Rome. For Rome, it was a scramble, we utilized the Hop-On-Hop-Off bus to drive by the sights (not recommended unless you have a checklist and that's all it means to you) and it was not enjoyable, and we kinda wrote Rome off. Had 4 nights in Florence, it was fine, but the next trip 5 years later, 5 nights was too much. I got tired of the crowds after awhile and I don't need to go back for awhile.

The revelation came when--on our third trip to Italy that took place March last year--we spent a week at an apartment in Rome and...finally...got Rome. We were totally enveloped by it, loved it, to the point that we wished it were a month, that we were just starting to understand the vibe of this world-class city.

Me? Seeing that you've never been to Florence, I'd do 2-3 full days there. You can see a lot in that time. But spend at least 5 full days in Rome. Get a bus pass. Do your laundry. Find a central location that is walkable to everything. Wander & get lost (oh, have a good street map!). Sit & people watch. Make it a point to find hidden stuff--Rome has centuries and centuries of layers of history from which to mine.

Enjoy your planning!

Our first trip to Italy (July 2017) we did 4 nights Sorrento, 3 nights Rome, 4 nights Florence, 3 nights Venice. We loved every moment and left wishing we had stayed longer in Sorrento and Rome to have additional free time to explore. This year we are going back in July and bringing our kids. We've chosen 3 nights Sorrento, 3 nights Positano, 5 nights Florence, 3 nights Rome. Florence will be our base for Lucca/Tuscan Seaside Riviera and Chianti/Greve/Castello di Monterinaldi/San Gimignano. For us, we chose the nights in each area for specific things we wanted to see and do especially since we have our kids this trip. We will of course visit again in the future and know that Rome will be a base for that trip before moving to Cinque Terre (CT in spring is our thought). Perhaps decide which tour options or even free time per area you wish to do and let that guide you. Each area is so special for personal reasons that it is not an easy decision. So back to your question about time in Sorrento... I would stay longer as I found it amazing.

We are spending 7 nights in the Amalfi Coast (3 in Positano and 4 in Sorrento). There’s a lot to do there and we don’t want to be rushed. Does anyone know what the weather will be like from Sept 30 to Oct 6? We’re also spending 3 nights in Venice, 5 nights in Florence and 5 nights in Rome ending in the AC.

If you are ending in Positano, make careful plans for your trip back to your international airport. It is often impossible to spend the last night in Positano, and it can be very difficult to spend the last night in Sorrento, as well.

Right-o, Tim. For a final departure from Positano, I wouldn't chance staying there the last night even with a late Naples flight the next day. And forget about staying in Positano or Sorrento the last night and flying out of Rome--pretty much impossible, fraught with peril.

From Sorrento, there is the Curreri Viaggi bus from Sorrento station, cheap at 11 Euro per. We had a 12:30 flight out of Naples Capodichino, took the 8:30 bus, got caught in a massive traffic jam at Castellammare di Stabia and didn't get to the airport until 10:30, but we had allowed enough time. These are the type of things that can happen at any time, on any given day. Not for the faint of heart.

Yes, I think 3 full days in Sorrento is perfect for a first or only visit. It allows you one day to go to Pompeii or Herculaneum, and Naples; one day for Amalfi Coast; and one day for Capri (haven't been there) if you want or to just enjoy the coast/Sorrento for a day. Again, you can always return, but you shouldn't take any days from Rome or Florence. This sounds like a wonderful vacation.