Italy Honeymoon

In Sorrento we dropped in off season at the Grand Hotel Excelsior Vittoria and got a wonderful room at 1/2 price/ $275.00

I posted a detailed spreedsheet at my blog with all the links for where we stayed.

Don't forget Rovello! If I could only do two, I would do Sorrento and Rovello and see the others on the way. But it would be easy to spend a night in each one. capri is a easy day trip from Sorrento. Stop at Pompeii eary, either on the way in or out. They have a bag check on site for free.

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Hi Lindy,

We stayed in Sorrento for 3 days this past September, and we stayed at Hotel Settimo Cielo, the hotel had a fabulos balcony, and the rooms were very big. The front desk was always very helpful. We would stay here again!! When we were in Rome we stayed at Hotel Smeraldo, which was in a great location and the price was reasonable. If you have any specific questions about either hotel, please feel free to let me know, or send me an email. Thanks!

Audrey

I find Sorrento a better value than Positano or Capri. It also has the most hotel choices & best connections for trains & ferries. We've stayed at Settimo Cielo & it is a great value (use RS discount5% or cash 10%). The pool is in the shade alot but the balconies and views are great. Breakfasts are mediocre. Go to www.tripadvisor.com and you can read people's opinions & see great pictures of lots of hotels. Also love the Minerva across the street with its beautiful rooftop pool but it's more expensive and they have less balcony rooms. I don't think you'll find jacuzzis very easily. For the most romantic sunset have cocktails on the terrace at the Hotel Bellevue Syrene(little hard to find but amazing! I'd recommend splitting your nites & spending the first in Sorrento.You can easily daytrip to Capri on the ferry & take the train to Pompeii for a morning visit.When we went to Positano for 2 nites our Sorrento hotel held most of our luggage for our final night in Sorrento. In Positano I've stayed at Villa Tartana which is lovely & not high up on the cliffs.Positano is more romantic & Sorrento more fun I think. The seawater in Positano was not very clean when we were there & my husband was bitten by a jellyfish so we like our Sorrento pools more. In Rome we enjoyed Hotel Campo de Fiori with a rooftop terrace & great but small bathrooms(www.hotelcampodefiori.com)in a great location.You may not need 250euros in Sorrento & upgrade a little from a budget hotel in Rome(especially with a so-so location). Maybe 6 nites Amalfi & 4 Rome?

Thanks so much for the replies! I'm going to look at all the hotels right now. I know jacuzzis are not easy to find, my finance really wants one so I'm trying but haven't had any luck.

I was worried about the water not being clean, I guess I'm spolied after going to the Caribbean.

I did look at Hotel Campo De Fiori from Rome and it looks great. I think we will have to up our budget for Rome to get a good location and nice hotel, we'll just cut it somewhere else, maybe airline tickets will go down!

Lindy:

You basically have the same itinerary my husband and I used for our honeymoon in 2007! One difference is we started in Rome and then made our way down to Positano.

If you are going straight to the Amalfi Coast from Rome, I would take the train from Rome to Naples (not a very long ride)and see if you could arrange a private car to take you to Pompeii for the afternoon and then drive you to whichever city you choose. We did this and even paid our driver a little extra to take us through some of the other towns besides Positano and to get acquainted with the area. It was nice to be a private car after being cooped up in a plane for so long - definitely worth the extra expense. Plus, our driver was a wealth of information.

As for accomodations, I would check out the Albergo Miramare in Positano. Rosarita is awesome and will schedule boat rides to Capri, make restaurant reservations, etc. She was great and always so pleasant.

The balconies at this hotel were amazing - ours actually wrapped around to the side of the hotel, so we had a great view of the water as well as the town. My husband and I spent an entire afternoon sitting on our balcony reading and enjoying the day. Plus, they'll serve breakfast on the balcony for you if you want. Our room didn't have a jacuzzi, so I'm not sure if the hotel has them.

Lindy, you might want to check out a post from Anne "Loved Our Fast Paced Itineray", posted on 11/19. It includes a link to her photos which are great and may help you decide!

Try the Hotel Navona in Rome. Just off the Piazza Navona, it is perfectly located. No pool, but in Rome I do not think a pool is necessary. With a 150 euro budget you probably won't find a hotel with a pool. You could also stay at a B and B - just google Rome accomadations and plenty of sites will come up. Alot of great hotels in Sorrento under 250 euros. I would suggest staying there all 5 nights for your home base. I have also stayed at the Settimo Cielo and is was very nice. I would take the ferry down to Positano and Amalfi - a much more enjoyable trip than a bus or car. Pompeii is an easy day trip by train from Sorrento. Positano has a great beach.

A different opinion from the other Mike who posted -- I'd take the ferry one way either to or from Sorrento, but the drive along the cliffs is pretty spectacular and we were glad we took it.