Help with last minute Southern Italy trip

Lucky you!
I’d consider pairing the Naples and Amalfi area with the Cilento coast just to the south. I’d save Sicily for when you can devote at least two weeks. I just don’t like the compromises that have to be made to do both. There was a great article in the NYT about the Cilento in the last year and a few of us have been there and can advise. You could spend all that time around Naples, the cost, and the islands, giving you time to perhaps stay in some of the less hectic locations within that area.

Maybe a day trip to the Amalfi Coast and stay on Capri for several nights. I agree with saving Sicily for a separate trip as it needs a minimum of two and a half weeks.

Thank you for the responses. I was afraid I was trying to fit too much in. I'll look up the Cilento area - have not heard anyone mention that before

My revised thoughts with leaving Sicily out this trip is (I have 11 nights total):

Sorrento - 4/5 nights. Day trip to amalfi/ravello area, and hoping to get to Paestum unless this is too far to day trip comfortably. Insight on whether I might be better to add a stay in AC rather than back and forth to Sorrento

Capri - 2/3 nights

Naples- 3/4 nights with Pompeii/Mt V day trip and early US departure 4/20

Nights are loosely based on what is feasible and availability. Wondering if this is making sense. Thanks!

Last year in April I spent about 10 nights between Naples, Sorrento, Capri and Amalfi and in hindsight the Sorrento nights were a mistake. If I were you, I would spend 3/4 nights in Naples, 2/3 in Capri and the nights you allocated to Sorrento stay in Amalfi (town) and use it as a base for Positano, Amalfi, Ravello and Atrani.

Yeah I admit Sorrento just does nothing for me, nor do I like long day trips, so I would stay on the Amalfi Coast because you can do anything you wanted to do from Sorrento from Naples. But you might look over the day trip options and compare the two a bit more and decide. City, island, coast is a great plan! (I think Paestum would be easier from Naples than Sorrento or the coast).

11 days is probably good for Naples and environs including the Cilento, though you really just have nine days to visit when you exclude the travel days. We had just six days, last April, as part of 30 days in Sicily, Puglia and a trip through the Cilento to Naples.

We spent a couple of days in the Cilento on our way to Naples from Puglia. We were there in late April, like you plan this year. Weather was still a little cool and rainy, so you need to plan with that in mind.

Our Cilento highlights

• Hotel Marulivo in Pisciotta. Just a delightful inn. Nice town high on the hill with magnificent views. Wonderful restaurant nearby - Osteria del Borgo, where we had our best meal on our 30 day trip
• Paestum - Tremendous Greek ruins, later Romanized. Nice museum on site.
• Tenuta Vannulo - a spa for Buffalo as our innkeeper in Pisciotta described it. Wonderful farm where mozzarella buffalo and gelato are made. Very close to Paestum
• Day trip to Castellabate.

You will want to have a car to get around the Cilento. You do NOT want a car for Naples, Pompeii or the Amalfi Coast.

We did not have time to enjoy some hiking that tempted me, nor did we gave the weather to enjoy a boat trip from Palinuro to its Blue Grotto that we wanted to take. Palinuro is quite near Pisciotta.

Here is some advice we received for planning our southern Italy trip last year. https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/naples-and-environs-suggestions-per-favore Acraven’s advice on Naples in that post is tremendous.

Our Naples highlights were the Archaeology Museum - and I am glad we went there before our day trip to Pompeii - as well as our guided tour of Pompeii. And, of course, SpaccaNapoli.

I wish we had a bit more time in Naples and its environs (and better weather) to have enjoyed more of Acraven’s suggestions And, I wish we had spent more time in churches in Naples and not gone to the Capodimonte Museum.

A few more thoughts.

From Naples, we did a day trip by ferry to the island of Ischia. That was a delight. Might be a lovely place to spend a night or two and enjoy some spa time or hot springs. Our Trip Report is at https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/southern-italy-30-days-three-ways-to-travel

Lonely Planet’s regional guide to Naples and the Amalfi Coast also covers various islands, including Capri and Ischia, and it includes a good bit of information on the Cilento.

Buon Viagge.

We spent 2 weeks in Sorrento in late April of 2023 and loved it. It's a perfect base for day trips to Capri, Amalfi Coast and Pompeii and the other Vesuvius sites. Here's my Trip Report if you're interested. https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/trip-report-2-weeks-of-day-trips-from-sorrento

In summary:

• Spent 12 hours over 2 days at Pompeii and a quick visit to Oplontis.
• Day trip to Herculaneum. I love comparing the 2 sites.
• Tie those two together with a trip to the archaeological museum in Naples.
• Loved Capri much more than the Amalfi Coast.
• Positano overrated, Ravello our favourite along the AC.

You're spending enough time in the area around Naples that you might well benefit from buying a Campania ArteCard:

https://www.campaniartecard.it/whats-included/?lang=en

I find the website extremely sluggish, so I recommend installing the Artecard app and exploring there (I know it's annoying to have to do that). For me, the only way to buy the card I wanted, the 365-day Gold Card, was through the app. Neither of the two places in Naples supposed to be selling them worked out. There is now a second 365-day card, the "Lite" version, which seems to have the same benefits but allows just one entry rather than two at each site. These long-duration cards do not have any transportation benefits. I found transportation in the area very inexpensive, and within the city of Naples I mostly walked, so I didn't mind not having transportation covered.

It's important to make a record of the numbers you'll see (perhaps both a confirmation number and a card number) while purchasing the card in the app. That way, if connectivity isn't good when you arrive at a museum or other sight, you can show the ticket seller the number and get right in. I had to do that once or twice.

Oh my!

I was there in November 2024 and spent a week in Amalfi before going down and around the toe, instep, heel and up.

You are going to find costs high. I originally was going to stay in Sorrento but then realized I was traveling the AC every day so opted for Hotel Fontana in Amalfi. I would try to stay in Naples, do Capri and Pompei, etc from there then head to AC. Flying out on Easter Sunday may require the night before at the airport or close to it. Remember Easter Monday is also a holiday.

Thank you all for your kind and thoughtful input.

I still have some research to do but think I found a schedule and hotels that have availability and should work for us. We are going to have a few travel days but in close proximity so hopefully that will minimize the hassle a bit. I'm sure it's not perfect but I know we will have a great time. I still need to find guides for a few outings but that is next.

We will head to Sorrento from our US flight for 2 nights and will likely visit Pompeii from here.

Ferry to Capri for 3 nights. We are looking forward to seeing the island after-hours and relax.

To Positano for 2 nights and plan to get to Amalfi and Ravello.

Last stop is 4 nights in Naples with possible day trip to Paestum before our flight home from here.

Loved the Archaelogical Museum in Naples, the mosaics were fabulous!

Naples and Paestum are at opposite ends of the area.

Amalfi Coast involves a lot of stairs and hills. I'm in my late 50s and my knees and calves are screaming in pain after a 26,000 step day.

I really enjoyed Il Nido outside Sorrento. The free shuttle into town was perfect. Sorrento is real. I quite liked the two sides: real life and fairy tale tourist alleys.

We had a car but only used it to get from one place to the next. I've always wanted to drive this road and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Even in our car, I had the urge to lean right, lean left!

In Amalfi, we stayed a Diecisedici. It was last minute, not cheap but not pricey, I quite liked Amalfi. I would base myself there and then take buses or ferries to get around.

Things will start to wake up in April. So many hotels amd restaurants were in the middle of cleaning, renovations, etc. this week but should be getting back online in mid-April.