Intro - another first-timer :)

You have about a week. Amalfi town is lovely, but Ravello (right above it) is spectacular. Or Praiano, on the water, less crowded than Positano. Ravello has lots of stairs, as does Positano.

Or you could base in Sorrento and daytrip to towns along the Amalfi Coast, Paestum (ancient temples and a beach), Capri, Pompeii and Vesuvius.

To get from Rome to Sorrento or the Amalfi Coast, I suggest a train to Naples and then private transfer to your hotel. Or you could fly Toronto-Naples with a change in Rome, then private transfer from Naples to your hotel. Train from Rome to Naples takes about an hour 15 minutes, departs about every hour.

See roninrome.com for how to deal with transportation.

Hi Chelle,

You've raised a ton of questions, so be prepared for a ton of possibly conflicting (lol) advice. Given the amount of time - - 9 days max, including travel - - I think your idea of staying on or near the Amalfi Coast is a good one. You'll have 7 days on the ground. First thing I would do is check how much more it costs to get to Naples on the same ticket as your flight to Rome. If it's feasible money-wise, it will enormously simplify things. You can get a very inexpensive bus (10 euros?) to Sorrento, right outside the entrance to the terminal at the Naples airport. Google Curreri bus for details. Sorrento is a good base, because from there it's easy to get to Pompeii, Capri and the Amalfi Coast towns. It's mostly level, unlike Positano; and there's also enough going on there to satisfy your desire for a little nightlife. Thinking about your husband's knees, there's an elevator you can access from outdoors to get from the town down to the waterfront.
One thing, on packing. Don't go overboard on the prescription for packing light. It's a pre-occupation of some of the posters here, which I consider a form of craziness (unless you're backpacking, which I also consider a form of craziness). There's no reason, on such a short trip, to spend any time on sink-washing. I take a 22" case and a rolling tote. I'm able to get a week's worth of underwear, a lot of clothes, toiletries, shoes, books, etc. in them. My husband takes the same, and he always has a lot of empty space, even after we load all the electronics in his bags.
I do advise you to get cracking on finding lodgings. I'm in the process of planning our next trip for April/May. As early as July, quite a few places were showing no vacancies for that time. Booking.com is a great resource You can pm me if you have questions.

Buon viaggio,
Rosalyn

My wife and I love Italy; we can go there every year and be happy. We've made 3 trips there since 2005 and next month will head to Sicily. Trip 1 was Florence, Venice, Bologna, Rome. Trip 2 was Milan, Lake Maggiore, Pisa, Lucca, Sienna, Rome. Trip 3 was the Amalfi Coast using Sorrento as a base and getting to Amalfi, Positano,Vesuvius, Naples, Pompeii, Herculenium, Paestum and Rome. Our 4th trip to Sicily will conclude in Rome. Notice a pattern? We always end up in Rome....our favorite place in Europe,

We are both in our mid 60s. We always travel by train (except for this trip to Sicily where we need to drive. Train travel in Italy is a pleasure. The only problem we had was when he had to postpone a day trip to Orvieto when there was a fire on the line there. We got there the next trip.

A couple of logistical things. To travel from Rome to Naples by train means taking the train from the airport into Rome Termini, an easy thing to do as there are special trains, and transfer to a train to Naples. As crazy as that sounds, it might be better than flying from Rome to Naples. We almost always travel 1st class and have never bought tickets in advance unless we were in the station the day before our trip and purchased tickets then. Otherwise, we always bought tickets the day of travel without a problem. The automated ticket machines are easy to use and offer english. Just be aware (there are multiple threads on this topic), the automated machines in Italy generally require chip and pin credit cards, not mag strip cards. Although the fees are expensive, we sometime use Travelex prepaid credit cards loaded with euros for these occasions. They should be available at the airport in Toronto. Just remember if you are traveling by train that the platforms are not like local commuter lines here. The doors are not level with the platform so you have to carry your luggage up the few steep steps. So packing light in essential.

Since we travel by train, we almost always stay in hotels near the station, even in Rome where the Termini area generally is not highly regarded. But we have a 4 star hotel we always stay in a few blocks from Termini that we love and we are in walking distance of most things.

Rome is amazing. Don't be put off by scare stories. I grew up in NYC, so I naturally have eyes in the back of my head. We've never had a problem. One thing I do is to where a belt bag that a use when I go birding and that holds my birding guides. I use it on our trips to hold guidebooks like RS. It hangs over my front pants pocket where my wallet is. Someone would need to work very hard to get into my pocket with the weight of the bag over it. Again, I would not be put off by Rome at all. On this trip, we will spend two days there and having been there 3 times and seen most of the tourist sights, will probably just wandering around, soaking thing in. Love Rome!

By the way, we don't speak Italian but having grown up in NYC, in the 1950s and 1960s. the cadence of the language and its rhythms are familiar.

Sorrento made a great base for seeing the Amalfi Coast but it means traveling to all the other places. We got to Positano and Amalfi by boat from Sorrento. Naples by boat one way and the Circumvesuviana train the other. Used the same train to get to Pompeii and Herculinium. You'll certainly hear scare stories about the train but we were on it at all hours and never had a problem.
If you are wary, stay in the first car with the motorman.

You will have a great time without a doubt. I could go on for a long time about how vibrant the country is. Yes, it has its problems: you will experience crowds, see some beggars, and be aware of pickpockets. Yes, sometimes there is an element of chaos and confusion underlying things. But the country functions well in regards to tourists. As RS says, just take it all in with an open mind and heart.

Hope this extended paean helps.

Hello Chelle,

I am so excited for you! First, do NOT be worried about safety in Italy. I felt much safer in every Italian city and town that I have been in at midnight, than I have in any American city during the day. Violent crime is rare. Just be smart about your belongings and you should have no problem.
I think a week in Sorrento would be wonderful. The Amalfi Coast is SPECTACULAR! Although not technically part of the AC, Sorrento is close enough for me to consider it together. I have stayed in several places on the AC and one trip we based in Sorrento. We loved each trip.
If you are able to add a few days, you could visit Rome. Just keep in mind that you need to be in the city of departure, the night before.
Well, I will leave the logistics of travel to those more knowledgeable.
I just wanted to give you a little encouragement.

Wow, thanks so much for the replies! Awesome advice. So essentially we should be able to get off the plane in Rome, hop on the Leonardo Express to Rome Termini, purchase tickets for high-speed to Naples and be there in 70 minutes? I don't know why I thought they had to be booked in advance. When using the kiosk to purchase tickets at the station, does it show you the available seats in each class? I just want to make sure we'll be seated together.

A flight connection to Naples from Rome will add a few hundred dollars to the flight, but if we spend a night in Rome we're paying for a hotel there so probably 6 of one, half dozen of another. I think I'd almost rather have one brutal travel day, get it out of the way then just go at our own pace.

I'm probably too focused on packing all my stuff on a carry-on, but I almost see it as a personal challenge. And I love the idea of not waiting on luggage carousels. Anyone who has experienced Toronto Pearson's baggage handling will appreciate what I mean, LOL..

Well this gives me a good start, I'm going to focus on choosing a hotel and getting our flight worked out. I'm sure I'll have more questions as I go (like hotel recommendations) :D

Also for reference, I forgot to mention I'm in my mid-40's, and my husband has 12yrs on me. We're pretty active and have no issues walking and getting around, just my husband's knees with lots of stairs. But if there are elevators available that's perfect.

Thanks again!

Thanks Linda, I think I'm probably reading too much about pickpockets and got myself worked up. I'm from Toronto and my husband is from Chicago, we're adept at navigating big cities. Difference being beggars and bums in Toronto are more polite, lol. And as my husband points out we were at far greater risk traveling in Mexico. Just fear of the unknown I guess! :)

If at all possible, fly into Naples! take the http://www.curreriviaggi.it/ to Sorrento 1H15m 10euro
This is not a "bus" it's a motor coach with room for luggage underneath and a very comfortable ride.

This is a great hotel http://www.ilnido.com/ They have a shuttle van that will pick you up at the Curreri Viaggi stop and also shuttle you back and forth to Piazza Tasso.

Or as Zoe mentioned, Praiano which has it's own beach. More of a resort atmosphere, but with good connections to other towns.

I have stayed at I Nido in Sorrento and Hotel Margherita in Praiano and loved both for different reasons. ( we try to travel on a moderate budget)

You guys are awesome. I just found out I can get an Air Canada flight from Toronto to Naples with connections in either Munich or Frankfurt (2nd leg of light with Lufthansa), for the same price of a Toronto-Rome flight. Decent connection times too. That might be easier. Two more questions...

• I have available dates for both April and May, if you had to choose which month would you go? and
• Has anyone used Maiori as a base? There looks to be some nice places to stay there.

Hoping to get everything booked this week :)

We have connected to Naples via Munich on Lufthansa and it was quick and easy. i understand that the Naples airport has been significantly upgraded, or is in the process of being upgraded, in the last year or so. We went directly from the airport to Sorrento via a bus that was right outside the door to the terminal. Let us off in Sorrento right across from the Circumvesuviana train stop and ten minutes from our hotel.

Yes the ticket machines in the train station let you select seats so you can sit together. Once you use them once, you will get the hang of it. Tickets print in Italian so be sure you know the words for window, aisle, etc.

I had one more thought, more a caveat, for you. I don't know if you are aware that April 25 and May 1 are national holidays in Italy. There is a huge tendency for Italians to make the whole week into a time for a vacation. If you are thinking of traveling that week, make sure, before you buy plane tickets, that the places you want to stay have availability. Myself, I'd just avoid that week.

I would go in May. Better weather, longer days, and hopefully still not too crowded. Although, I have gone in both July and August with heat and crowds but it is SOOOO beautiful, hardly anything can spoil it for me.

Oh, good point Rosalyn. I knew May 1 was a holiday but I didn't realize they turned it into a whole thing, lol. I'm looking now at the 3rd week of May. I think most of the kids are still in school then. At least, I know they are in Canada.