Hotels vs Rentals in Positano / Getting there

I'm not sure you can avoid steps in Positano. It's either up or down pretty much everywhere!
(We chose to stay in Amalfi as it's just a wee bit flatter and a better transportation hub)

Train from Rome to Salerno- then ferry to Positano
Train from Rome to Naples- driver to Positano (about 120euro?)

Or you can go public transpo the whole way-
Train to Naples- Circumvesuviana to Sorrento- bus to Positano.

Do you want to spend time in Rome or Naples or Salerno before or after or are all of your 5-6 nights meant to be in Positano?
No matter you will need to be in your departure city the night before.

Where you spend your first night really depends on what time you get to Rome- how comfortable you are with traveling further that day.

We used this service for a couple of transfers last May- Naples to Sorrento and Sorrento to Amalfi
they were terrific
https://www.topexcursionsorrento.com

Sorrentocars is another good company. Transfer from FCO about €340; from the main Naples station [Milano Centrale] €120 as mentioned above. Train time from the FCO airport [Fiumicino Aeroporto] to Napoli Centrale is 2 hours with a change downtown.

Rome to Salerno a train to Salerno and a ferry is doable, but not IMO from the airport, as trains are less frequent and take longer.

Amalfi Coast towns are described on www.positano.com. I've found it's much easier to get around from Amalfi than anywhere else. The Residence Hotel is right across the road from the port and the bus stops. Positano there are luggage porters, no vehicles at the port.

With three of you, it makes more sense to take a taxi from FCO to Roma termini @ 48€. Then a train to Salerno 2 hours and finally a ferry to Amalfi 40 minutes.

But have you considered flying into Naples instead of Rome. Take the Alibus to Napoli Centrale train to Salerno 42-54m ferry to Amalfi.

If you don't want stairs, the town is nothing but stairs and massive numbers of expensive boutiques do a day trip to Positano and stay in another village.

For an overview of the towns on the coast see this.

https://travelaway.me/beautiful-places-amalfi-coast/

We prefer not to climb down lots of steps to restaurants and shops, some steps are ok to get a nice view, just not an excessive amount.

Have you seen this. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DdwjDWwf2AU

I will let you apply your definition of what constitutes 'excessive' to what you see

Positano is nothing but steps. We went down a bunch to get to our hotel but then there was nothing but more steps if we wanted to do anything. We stayed here and Amalfi and liked Amalfi better. There are steps in Amalfi too but nothing like Positano. You can take the ferry to Positano to visit and frankly the view from the water is the best.

We stayed in Amalfi because it is the transportation center and we wanted to hike. We stayed in Positano because of the beautiful pictures we saw which were all from the water. A friend told me, after we already had reservations, that they stayed in Amalfi and visited Positano. We should have done the same.

This is all very helpful info., the more I learn about Positano, the more I feel it would be better visited for the day via ferry. Hopefully, there will be ferries in April?

Last summer we stayed in Lucca as a base for NW Tuscany. We absolutely love it. Even in the middle of summer, it wasn't super touristy. It was pedestrian-friendly, and, therefore great to explore on foot. There were shops and restaurants, and they were mostly affordable. It had train access for day trips, so it was a dream for those without a car. There was so much to explore all day only within the walls of Lucca, so we love that.

My sisters and I are looking for something similar to Lucca in southern Italy. I will look at the other AC towns, but perhaps our home base for 5-6 days may not necessarily be the Amalfi Coast, so we are open other suggestions. Besides having the option to ferry around the coast, we would also like the chance to explore wineries and gardens/countryside with beautiful April flowers in bloom.

Sam

Ferries start running early April- always weather dependent- but if they are not running there is a bus
All info here
https://www.sorrentoinsider.com/en/ferry-schedule?from=amalfi&to=positano#

Like others above- we were very glad we stayed in Amalfi. We spent a few short hours in Positano- crowded, high end shopping, better views OF the town from the ferry.
We took the bus TO Positano from Amalfi drops you at top of town- then walked down thru town and took ferry home to Amalfi

Be sure to visit Ravello and walk out to Villa Cimbrone- the gardens and views are lovely

If you are interested in visiting Paestum (it was one of our favorite days) consider spending 2 nights in Salerno.
A nice quiet town with a flat waterfront to stroll along, a really fun passiegiatta every evening and just a short train ride to Paestum.

We split our time between Sorrento 4 Amalfi/Ravello-3 and Salerno 2
From your comments on Lucca it seems like Sorrento might be better suited to your likes. Sorrento center is basically flat and just a "walking around" kind of town.

Hello, you might want to consider staying in Sorrento and visiting Positano.

I agree with the last reply. You might be better to stay in Sorrento and take a day trip to Positano, either by bus, taxi or private car service. Sorrento is relatively easy to reach from Rome. As you noted, take the high speed train to Napoli Centrale and then use the Circumvesuviana, the Campania Express, private car service or the Italo bus to Sorrento. There are lots of nice hotels and restaurants in Sorrento, and it's relatively flat for the most part. As the others have mentioned, Positano is mostly hills and if you have an easy hike down to the harbour, you'll face an uphill hike on the way back to your hotel.

Regarding accommodations, I don't know of any apartment rentals. As a solo traveller, I always use hotels as I prefer to get a place that provides a full breakfast, and it's nice to have the assistance of the hotel staff in getting touring or restaurant suggestions. I've stayed in both Sorrento and Positano, and prefer Sorrento as it has better transportation options for touring. If you want information on hotels in Sorrento, I'm sure the group here will be able to provide lots of good suggestions.

For travel from the Rome airport to Roma Termini, I always use the Leonardo Express (€14 PP last time I checked) as it's not affected by traffic and makes the trip in 32 minutes. You can easily buy tickets for that at the airport, but DON'T forget to validate prior to boarding the the train or you'll face hefty fines which will be collected on the spot.

Just to clarify, your trip is taking place more than a year in the future?

After viewing a walking tour of Amalfi, this is exactly the type of base town we are looking for, so will most likely stay there.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ougQYMEic3k

Sam, my wife and I are going to Positano the last week of March as part of our honeymoon trip. If you've got your heart set on Positano, don't let people tell you to stay in Sorrento and see it as a day trip. Yes, it's a pricey town, yes there are steps, but Positano is one of the main reasons we are going to Italy in the first place. We're staying there 3 nights and cannot wait to take in the views and relax (after being on the go in Venice and Florence).

If you're going to be there for 5-6 nights, then I'd recommend at least staying in Positano for 2-3 if that's where you want to go.

Unfortunately for me, the ferries aren't open. My number one plan was to take the train to Salerno then the ferry to Positano. Not only is it only one connection, but I've also heard that the view coming into Positano from the water is astonishing.

Maybe go from Rome to Salerno, ferry to Positano, stay for 3 nights, then go to Sorrento or Naples? Just a thought, but again, if you've got your heart set on Positano, don't let people tell you not to go!