luggage on Sita bus

Cannot specific answer for SITA busses but our experience with other buses in Italy and Spain is that there is no limit on luggage. Just throw it under the bus. The luggage rack in the bus will hold a small day bag but not much else.

pandora,

Larger items will be placed in the large "hold" under the bus and smaller carry-on sized items will stay with you in the cabin. Be sure valuables are kept in your carry-on bags. As I recall, there are small luggage racks above the seats.

Although there seem to be few problems in this regards, I usually watch the unloading of luggage when the bus makes stops, to make sure my bag doesn't get unloaded by mistake (or pinched).

That being said, I think the "Pack Light" mantra still applies as the luggage bays underneath may be on the small size. A full bus of folks packing everything but the kitchen sink can be a problem.

Also I always place my own bag in the hold, and wait for the hold to close before boarding, and I remove my own bag from the hold at my destination. So yes, packing light is still essential. The hold is only so big anyway, and I have to maneuver my bag around others' bags.

Last year it was a mix of allowing luggage to go in the hold, and in a few cases, having to take it on board, there were also signs posted inside the buses about size requirements for luggage on board, but these were mostly ignored. Long story short, on a few bus trips I had my 20" rolling carryon and my Civita daybag on the seat next to me because they would not fit overhead or under my seat. It would have been a problem if the bus was full, but it wasn't.

This was the first time this happened, I think perhaps because there is no second employee as there used to be on these routes (the second person would load/unload the baggage area and take tickets, now the driver does everything on these routes).

Yet another reason to pack light.

Thanks to all replies,
im struggling with the pack light, I started my thinking off in the light direction but by the time you factor in shoe types alone it feels like too much, but I assume you need walking shoes, dress shoes, sandals and slippers, okay slippers dont take much weight or room.
I thought these sita busses were small and didn't have under bus storage, glad to hear otherwise. Thanks for the idea to watch the baggage being unloaded....that sounds wise given so many cases look similar. ...
do they charge for your ticket and then again for each piece of luggage? Not a big deal as its still far more economical than private transfer. ..just curious. ..

I took the buses around Tuscany between a few of the towns I was staying in. I had my Rick Steves Convertible Backpack with me and i was able to fit it above the seats. I didn't have to put it underneath the bus. I also didn't fill it to capacity. I pack less then light.

When we took the SITA from Sorrento to Amalfi, the luggage hold was quite packed. People were shoving the bags in one side, and a few pieces of luggage fell out the other side in Sorrento! But they were noticed and put back on. So the holds can get full. Make sure anything breakable is packed well, as the bags were just piled all over one another. Now, this was early Sept, so the bus was busy...and a good reason to travel light!

There is usually no charge for luggage storage but I tip the baggage handler a euro or two if he seems to expect it. On some routes, the stowed luggage is tagged and you will get a little slip of paper with a number on it., but people often grab their own luggage and that's when mistakes can happen.

One other thing, if you are getting off the bus with stowed luggage and your stop is not the last one on the route, it may be prudent to remind the driver that you need to get your bag from the stowage compartment.

Oh boy, I better start doing some mock packing.... I was looking at 2 full size cases and 2 carry on...

Yes pandora, you really should. Were those four bags for four of you, or six of you, or how many? On this web site, Rick Steves has a whole section about how to pack light, which is helpful. A basic guideline for traveling in Italy is to be sure each person can move and sometimes carry their baggage by themselves. There are steps in and out of trains and buses, stairs in train stations and between platforms, escalators in major stations that may be broken, stairs up and down from bridges (especially in Venice), stairs and no elevators in many hotels, and sometimes walks from transportation to your lodging, or when transferring between trains, buses and boats. Baggage handlers and bellmen are either non-existent or not there when you might want one. While not every single person on this forum will agree, many of us have learned the value of packing very light (a single carry-on per person, plus maybe a daypack or tote), sometimes by observing others struggle with large, heavy or multiple bags, and sometimes by enduring that struggle ourselves.

Do a mock pack, take all the luggage you may possibly have to carry yourself, and walk it around the block a few times, if you can add a flight of stairs even better.

You will be pulling items out of those bags real soon.

Hubby and I always go carry on and one personal item each on trips (and we've been gone for up to 3 weeks). My mom joined us last year in Italy and she had a big suitcase - which wasn't even huge - maybe a 27-30 inch - and a carry on (she had been visiting my sister in the UK for 3 weeks before we went over, so she had more bags because she didn't have to drag them around while visiting sister). What a P-I-T-A. Especially on stairs (we had to drag the bags from Amalfi to Atrani, which was less than a 10 min walk...but the stairs...groan. And on and off trains. And thru train stations. And on and off the metros. And on and off the vaporettos...and the bus. Hubby ended up dragging two carry ons, I had the big bag and mom had a carry on...and it def reinforced our desire to keep travelling light.

Travelling light can be done...and your arms, back and people around you trying not to get run down by your bags...will thank you ;)

It was 2 regular cases and 2 carryon between 3 people, and the second carry on is really more of a tote bag...I will do my mock pack and see what happens....and let you all know how I faired...but im not going around the block, neighbors might have me committed! !!😀 the goal is, as everyone points out to make it as stress free as possible. So are the busses really that packed, and if you wait for the next are the odds better? I looked into ferries, but that doesn't appear to be an option for my location...

Well, the goal probably should be one carryon size bag for each person and, maybe, a small shoulder bag. Have no idea what a regular case is. There is no such thing as a regular case. Weight is a big issue. The bigger the bag the heavier it will be. So you might want to do some rethinking.

You gotta believe us. Pack only one carry-on per person at international weight and measure for your airlines. All this info is on their websites.

I pack a 20" wheeled carryon at 15 pounds total max because that's all I can manage on trains and buses and stay human. I pack a lotta light stuff like undies, socks, light tops and pants. In Winter I add one pair of heavy denim jeans and one pair of leg warmers. I wear my walking shoes and pack fabric Mary Janes, and a few fancy nylon socks. Whether I stay one week or 4 months.

On the flight I wear layers and a coat if it's Winter. The cabins are freezing cold, so wear those extra clothes on the flight. Then you can add them to your carryon as you shed them.

You don't want to wait for the next bus. They stop and pick up along the route. That's Not the point anyway. Get in get out. Keep moving at high efficiency. All the "Awareness" in the world won't help you see those looking for people like you, burdened down and hampered by their luggage, slowed down, waiting.

Your luggage must serve you, not the other way around.

Thanks for all the suggestions, and I do realize 100% that the less the easier it will be and im not a fan of waiting for luggage at the airports, but on the flip side I dont want to find myself wearing wine or food stained clothes for the duration of the trip because its all I have....actually and oddly enough, my mock pack proved my clothes would easily fit in a tote but the guys clothing seems to take more planning....on a side note how frustrating it is that in venice tourists pay over double for the vaparetto over residents....when you go to any north american city, public transport is one price for all....just a side beef of mine...in the meanwhile ill keep working on the pairing down of luggage. I also found a website rome2rio that suggests taxis along amalfi coast are fairly reasonable...will look further into that.

Re: your "side beef": I don't know that Venetians pay less per ticket, but I know that there are resident-oriented passes that cover up to a year. Frankly I'm happy to know that people who live in Venezia get some enticement for staying and putting up with all of us clambering all over their city. But I digress.

Not true that public transport is one price for all in North American cities. I can speak for sure that Chicago has multi-tiered levels of pay, and New York does too, but don't know if NY is as varied as Chicago.

And take a Tide stick with you. Using Clinical Secret keeps clothes fresh too. I pack a few dryer sheets in between layers for freshness and scent. You can always hand wash a little here and there. If you pack light tops, you should have plenty.

The Europeans are just as modern - even if the buildings are old - as the US. They have up-to-date washers and dryers and probably more laundromats than the US so it is easy and convenient to wash those food stained clothes. I am not aware of any US transit system that is a totally flat rate. New York probably comes the closest to a flat rate system. With sons in Chicago and New York we have local ids that allows us to travel at discount rates. Denver has a crazy, multi-tiered, zone system very similar to the zone system of London.

I do not know of any public transit system that is self supporting from user's revenue. All system are partially supported by taxes placed on the locals so the locals are paying a lot more. So, maybe, tourists should pay the full cost of operations and locals get a break.

It isn't true that tourists pay double for vaporettos compared with residents.

Some residents are free.

I have the vaporetto card designed for residents and frequent visitors. Tourists pay €7 for a single ride. I pay €1.30, but my ride is only valid in any direction for 90 minutes, so often if I am going to the remote islands I have to pay twice.

And tourists who buy the multi day pass get a break - only €40 for 72 hours. That's for all the rides they can fit in in those 72 hours. I'd only get 30 rides for that money, or 10 a day.

And I had to pay some money to buy the pass.

From my perspective the fare seems high.. .time I factor in my exchange rate I will have paid $ 9.17 for a one way ride...thats all...

You don't go to Europe to save money.

It's a one-way ride IN VENICE.