Itinerary help - arriving at FCO going to Sorrento (options)

Definitely press on to Naples if not the whole way--that train ride will be a great nap opportunity, but wandering around Rome all day will be a struggle (even though it's Rome--sleep deprivation is painful).
I usually ask to see the entire itinerary for this kind of thing, because so much of it is about overall balance. That said, since you wanted to see Naples anyway, this could be a fun day, though a big chaotic city might not be the ideal scenario to share off jet lag. (But you get Naples at night, so it works for me.) If Pompeii is in your plans, then you can see the archeological museum (next morning, when refreshed) before heading off.
I also think if you can manage the initial train trip, then it is really not that much more to get on to Sorrento. Ultimately I think I'd poll the family: press on to Sorrento or day in Naples.

You could end up standing on the regional commuter train from Naples to Sorrento, in the heat, without AC. Add that to jet lag, and it sounds perfectly awful to me.
We used private transfers, Aldo Limos, which was convenient, but expensive, around $500, Rome-Sorrento.
Naples to Sorrento hotel was about $100.
I think the night in Naples sounds quite reasonable .
Have a great trip!

I agree with polling your family. However my feeling is that it's not all that much more to push on to Sorrento, vs staying in Naples that first day. It's one more train ride - at most 90 minutes if you just miss the Circumvesuviana train departure. (Or a private car and driver) Of course if someone in the family has endurance difficulties or mobility issues, then disregard.

Naples can be pretty noisy and hectic- some may call it chaotic, so I'm not sure how enjoyable that would be if walking around jet lagged and tired.

Hotel in Naples the first night sounds like a good plan. You can drop your luggage if the room isn’t ready yet, get some pizza and do as much or as little as you want.

Just be prepared for Naples - we were there last week and everything was covered in graffiti. It was weird seeing places that looked like the South Bronx on the outside but were very nice inside. We rode the regular Trenitalia train from Pompei, not the CSV that goes to Sorrento, and it was fine but a/c wasn’t an issue in January! It sounds like the CSV resembles a New York subway. So if you’re not comfortable riding an unairconditioned #2 train from the Bronx to Brooklyn you may want to take a ferry or arrange a private transfer.

Good luck with the trip!

RE Naples to Sorrento: Just noting there is the Campania Express in addition to the Circumvesuviana--I've always been under the impression it is better but hopefully others can confirm.
https://www.sorrentoinsider.com/en/campania-express-train-schedule
https://www.visitpompeiivesuvius.com/en/naples-to-sorrento-train-schedule

My experience is that when the trains get so backed up,running late , that crowds form, and if a train comes into a station, everyone rushes on. No one knows if the train is a Campania Express or not. It's so jammed that it's not possible for any staff to check tickets. That's just one traveler's report. Good luck!

You might want to press on to the Airbnb in Sorrento on day 1. It is not that far from Naples. You are arriving early in the day.
You can catch a train from FCO to Naples bypassing Rome. It is walking distance from the airport exit, and the ticket machine for the train is user friendly. You will need to switch trains in Naples.
There is an express train between Naples and Sorrento that eliminates many of the stops on that route.

I believe there is only one direct train to Napoli Centrale from FCO at 9:38, journey is 1 hr 55 min
You should be able to make that, but delays happen.
Best advice is to wait til you land to purchase those onward train tix.

There are multiple trains to Naples from Rome every hour so you have options, LE to Termini- it’s just adding another “seat” .

What is your check in time in Sorrento? Will you be able to drop bags at Airbnb?

If you want to see a bit of Naples this is your chance unless you day trip from Sorrento.
I don’t like one night stays but in an itinerary like this it’s usually worth it

How long will you be in Sorrento? Plans there?

We went from FCO to Sorrento in May 2023 and if I had one do-over we would have stayed in Rome and travelled the next day wide awake. Naples is reasonably simple to get to, but the next leg to Sorrento is more chaotic.

Read day 1 of my Trip Report to get an idea if what it was like for us.

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/trip-report-2-weeks-of-day-trips-from-sorrento

What are you hoping to see on this trip? A highlight for us was the Archeological Museum in Naples after seeing Pompeii. If you were to stay an extra night in Naples you could do that while you're already there instead of backtracking to Naples from Sorrento as a daytrip. The museum helped us tie together what we saw in Pompeii and Herculaneum.

It would be nice to have your full itinerary, especially total nights, and your plans for the night before your flight home from ... ? Also, whether you have flown to Europe a few times yet. I have no children, but I keep reading how school starts too early for teenagers.

We slept in Naples because our flight from The Chelsea Flower Show got in after the last Circumvesuviana. But your question is a matter of personal travel style. There is no single "right" answer. One issue is whether you plan to buy advance-discount, non-changeable train tickets to Naples, despite the risk of air delays.

I won't use AirBnb because of how it damages local housing markets. But aren't your check-in hours very limited? This is a peak time of year in an incredibly overcrowded place. A sedan can only carry 4 guests, but luggage could fill the trunk. How important is cost in your decision?

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/naples-to-sorrento-train-or-private-driver

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/request-for-naples-advice

Thank you for all of the tips so far.

I was going to post our full itinerary in another post for people to review, but I'll post here too as it relates to this question. We originally planned the following:

Arrive in Rome FCO on Day 1
Days 1-5 in Sorrento with day trips to Pompeii, Capri, Naples and a beach day in Nerano or Positano
Days 6-9 in Florence with a day trip to either Siena or Bologna
Days 10-13 in Rome
Day 14- flight home from Rome FCO

My wife and I traveled to Italy 15 years ago and spent 3 days in Naples to begin that trip, but we flew into Naples which wasn't possible this time. Flights were too expensive. Naples was probably my favorite place we visited. We didn't visit south of Pompeii on that trip so the Sorrento area is all new to us.

Thanks for posting, I was just afraid that you might think you could wake up in Sorrento and fly home from FCO the same day. Sorrento is not very comparable to Naples, but it is an excellent base for the kind of daytrips you are planning. Are you aware of how much this area (Sorrento-AC) are sort of victims of its own success? The crowding is incredible, I hear. (We went in May, ten years ago, and the lines for the bus to Positano were already longer than would fit on the next, half-hourly, bus. Air Conditioning is very important in your hotel.

I also wanted to hear about experience with jet lag. Sorrento is indeed a slog from FCO, but you are not going "down to the Boot", after all.

Your itinerary is identical to one we did back several years ago. Except we went directly from FCO to Positano with a private driver. We were also a party of 4 and yes, it was expensive but how nice to just let a driver take care of everything and drop you at your hotel. My motto is make your trip as stress free as possible. And if you run into any glitches with the trains it starts your whole trip negatively.

Have a great trip.

A large part of the cost of a private driver from FCO to Sorrento must surely be the approximately 150 miles to be covered between FCO and Naples. Frequent Leonardo Express + Freccia trains cover that distance in 2 hr. 15 min., so a private driver is unlikely to save time on that segment. If I was uncomfortable about dealing with two train changes when (quite possibly) severely jetlagged, I'd look at the cost of private transportation between FCO and Sorrento. I'd consider taking the train to Napoli Centrale and arranging for a private driver just for the Naples-Sorrento segment.

However, it looks as if same-day rail tickets for the adults will cost 66 euros each. I believe the 14 year old will qualify for a 26-euro children's fare--assuming he or she will still be 14 on the day of travel, but the 15 years will be considered an adult. So the rail fare itself is likely to be 224 euros.

Some lodgings in Sorrento are far enough from the Circumvesuviana station that a taxi is needed. If yours falls into that category, it you'd need to include taxi fare in the cost of doing the entire trip by rail. I believe taxis in Sorrento are very expensive.