August in Naples and the Amalfi Coast

Hi there,

I've been to Naples a couple of times and just loved it.
I will say that if you plan to go in August, it will be blisteringly hot and humid.
You feel the humidity more than the heat.
I was last there in September 2019, and I had at least four showers per day the whole trip.
Absolutely get accommodation with AC in each room, especially bedrooms.
There is plenty to do in the area!

I would never visit southern Italy in August due to oppressive heat. Look at later in September or early October.

There's plenty to do there, enough to keep you busy for many days.

But August in southern Italy? Sounds like my idea of hell on Earth. I hope you have a VERY high tolerance for heat. Consider pushing the trip out to September or October. Better weather (warm but not blistering hot) and a better chance of some post-covid return to normalcy.

Hi, johnanddoc:

We spent about a week in Sorrento a few years ago, and never ran out of things to do. There's plenty to do and see in Sorrento itself (don't miss the presepe in the cathedral!) And you'd be an easy train ride from Pompeii and Herculaneum, a boat ride from Capri, and within day-trip distance of Positano, Amalfi, and Ravello. Paestum is not out of the question as a day trip either, although that one is a bit trickier.

May I suggest you look up Mondo Tours? They have an arrangement with Rick Steves, and offer what seem to be great tours in the area. We had been signed up for a Mondo tour of Pompeii, but when most of the folks who had signed up didn't show up, the tour was cancelled. But the guide spent about 45 minutes with those of us who did show up, giving us an incredible session on the history of Pompeii and the eruption. He also drew up maps, suggesting where we should spend our time. We were very impressed, and have vowed to take one of their tours at the first opportunity.

The weather issue is your own decision, of course. It wouldn't keep us from going, but we don't mind the heat. There are several websites (I'm sure someone here will post a link) that give historical weather data.

My husband and I were once in Positano in July, with day trips to Amalfi, Paestum, Herculaneum, Sorrento, and Capri, and did not find the heat or humidity to be an issue. YMMV.

We were in Naples and the Amalfi Coast for 10 days in July a few years ago. We could have used a couple more days so plenty to do. We stayed in air conditioned hotels but shat you have to understand about this area is that public spaces are not usually air conditioned. We went to the National Archeological Museum to see some of the artifacts from Pompeii and it was hot! We ended up doing an underground tour of Naples which was fascinating but our original goal was to escape the heat.

We went early to Pompeii and it wasn't too bad (even though not much shade) but coming back to Sorrento was on a crowded nonairconditioned train.

We had a break in the weather half way through our trip which dropped the temperatures enough for us to comfortably hike the Path of the Gods.

Also know that the beaches are rocky and while the very young seem to be able to lay on a towel, we (50s) rented chairs. It was a welcome break from all the hiking we had done but I certainly would not go to that area for the beaches (but then we are from Florida).

I don't want to seem negative as we really had a great time but make sure your expectations are realistic. We are from a hot part of the world but don't walk around as tourists in the middle of the day in summer.

My only advice would be to postpone until October when temps and humidity drop.

And just to know: air conditioning in Italy generally can't be counted on to get you as cool as you would like to be. It is not like ice-cold U.S. air conditioning.

Janet, it's still too cold for some of us!

We are from South Georgia and used to the heat and humidity. Been to Italy several times, including July and loved it.