Best way to get to Sorrento from Salerno?

I would not rent a car, the road is not really driver friendly and parking is an issue everywhere.

Boat/Ferry is certainly scenic, not fast, you would need to find a schedule to see if the timing worked out for you. If you look at a map, you can see that you need to go all along the South coast of the peninsula then around the point to get to Sorrento.

Bus would be another option, or Boat to Positano then Bus. A Driver might be a bit pricier, but with four, it might be tolerable, plus they could pick you up right away and drive you directly there.

Thanks, Paul!

I don't know what the ferry lines are, since they weren't operating when I was there. There are two bus lines, from Salerno to Amalfi and from Amalfi via Positano to Sorrento. If you are going in high season, be aware that there are often long lines to board the buses, you will have your luggage with you on the bus. Expect buses to be full when leaving Amalfi, maybe even no spare standing room. If a bus arrives full in Positano, only as many people can get on as got off. Positano is hilly - are you going to walk around with your luggage?

If it were me I'd skip trying to see the AC en route. I'd check into booking a ferry (maybe you'll need more than one). Be aware that the seashore in Sorrento is at the bottom of the cliffs, the town is perched up above - there are elevators that whisk you up (maybe lines?), there are taxis (expensive and because of the one-way street system, the drive can be a lot longer that you'd think by looking at a map), maybe there are buses, or walking up a helluva lotta stairs. The bus and the Circumvesuviana train station are a tad uphill from the center, less than a 10-minute easy walk.

The other possibility that occurs to me is to take the train farther north than Salerno (if you are not coming from the north) to Pompeii, then a short taxi ride to the Circumvesuviana station and take that train (or the Campania Express) to Sorrento.

If you absolutely must stop to visit Positano, a driver seems to be the best solution. At least you can leave your bags in the car while you walk around and you know that for the long, slow drives, you'll all be sitting down in comfort, and you'll be dropped off at your lodging in Sorrento.

Month of the year is important because of seasonal ferry schedules and multiple ferry companies. This is a long slow trip by land in high season. Are you coming from the Naples direction or from the South? Will you have slept in Salerno? Are you seeing Paestum on the way? How big is the luggage?

I presume you're not arriving in Salerno from the north, in which case it's easier to get to Sorrento from Naples (cheap train or pricier private transfer). If coming from the south or east, I agree it's faster and easier to go on to Pompei (new city) by cheap regional train, taxi to Pompeii Scavi Circumvesuviana station (short ride) and then train to Sorrento. Visit Positano as a day trip from Sorrento to avoid having to deal with your luggage. Renting a car is the last option I'd pick.

We (2 of us) traveled in October 2018 from Salerno to Positano (you can continue on to Sorrento).

If the ferries are running you have three choices with public transportation:
1. Ferry Salerno to Positano, then connect with ferry Positano to Sorrento.
OR
2. Ferry Salerno to Amalfi, bus to Sorrento. (the bus stop in Positano is UP UP UP so you'd have to walk to the bus depot, in Amalfi the bus depot is right at the waters edge. Depends if you have luggage.
OR
3. Bus the whole way (two buses, Salerno to Amalfi, Amalfi to Sorrento.

Ferries run May thru October.
Timetable:
https://www.livesalerno.com/ferry-connections
Here's the bus schedules:
https://www.sitabus.it/en/salerno-sorrento-bus-timetable/

Great tips & advice! Thanks to you all.

We are committed to traveling north from Salerno to Sorrento. We're not going to visit Paestum, and while we would like to spend a little time in Positano, that may not happen. We have a tight window of just 6 hours from Salerno till we need to be in Sorrento.

It's looking like our best option may be ferries or ferry+bus. I will look into those links this weekend.

If anyone knows where to look for a private driver, I would appreciate having that as an option too.

Grazie!

We meant, how do you happen to be in Salerno? Are you sleeping there? Are you coming from Rome or, say, Bari? That's what we meant by North and South. We are asking because it is slightly unusual (in the context of this newsboard, that is) to be approaching Sorrento from Salerno. Do you already own a train ticket to Salerno?

We chose our car service in Sorrento by asking the concierge at our hotel We figured that their local surface travel partner (not a hotel employee, that is) might be incentivized to serve the hotel customers especially well. And we got to put it on our hotel bill. I would (non-professionally) estimate $200 for Salerno-Sorrento, assuming your luggage fits in a five-seat sedan such as an air-conditioned Mercedes. (You have to assume that car has to go or return to Salerno empty.) We used the car for an 8 hours on the AC daytrip from the hotel. So you might want to price in a brief stop in Positano or even lovely Ravello-assuming you have time.