we just booked an Airbnb overlooking the sea in Massa Lubrense, We’re staying about 7 nights I would like to visit Capri, Sorrento and maybe Pompeii perhaps Florence? We don’t want this trip to be rushed what would be your recommendations on visiting each of these cities? Things to do? culture to experience? rent a scooter to get around locally in Massa Lubrense vs a car? Etc..
Posted by
Minnesota 🎒
16618 posts
Hi Gina -
Florence is too far away to day trip from Massa Lubrense; it's a minimum of 3 hours by rail from Naples, and you'd have to add the time to get to Naples on top of it. Capri and Pompeii are more do-able from Sorrento (bus to Sorrento; ferry to Capri, and bus to Sorrento and Circumvesuviana train to the scavi).
This is, of course, if you do not have a car....which comes with its own challenges including very dense high-season traffic in the region and parking restrictions/scarcity. How are you getting to Massa Lubrense, and from where?
https://www.massalubrenseturismo.it/en/how-to-get-to-massa-lubrense/
https://www.sorrentoinsider.com/en/sorrento-to-positano-bus-schedule?route=sagata_sorrento
If your trip is this summer and you intended to have a car, read up on the planned odd-even license restrictions for driving around coast.
https://www.capri.com/en/e/useful-info#:~:text=A%20system%20of%20alternating%20license,2024%20on%20the%20Amalfi%20Coast.&text=Initially%20the%20system%20will%20be,April%2024th%20to%20May%202nd).
What to do in Capri depends on your interests: lots of ideas on their website and no, you do not need any tours - which the website does its darnedest to sell - if you just do some reading up (we've spent 2 nights on the island). It's largely pedestrianized.
You could choose or not to take a tour at Pompeii. Guides can be hired at the entrances, in advance for small-group tours, or private guides; the latter being the most expensive option. The Mondo small-group 2-hour Pompeii walk has been a popular choice, otherwise search the forum for other resources. The scavi is HUGE and impossible to cover in a day. We spent 5+ hours there (my 2nd time) and couldn't poke all the corners.
Scooters: almost universally advised against as a means of transport unless one has considerable prior experience with them. Italy is no place to learn to ride a Vespa or similar.
Posted by
Wyckoff, NJ, USA
7939 posts
Because you are staying beyond the end of the Sorrento terminus Circumvesuviana train line, busses will be key to daytrip excursions. Since you have an Airbnb (I avoid that, because they harm the real estate market for locals) your exact location may be a secret until the last minute. Presumably your owner/investor will have a map with bus stops and bus numbers, and where you can buy bus tickets. Since Sorrento has only one unattractive tiny beach, you want to find out if Massa has a beach (I don't know.)
Sorrento is an important destination, for ferries (down the cliff to the marinas) and the Circumvesuviana station (where a lot of busses stop as well.) You can take a (second?) bus down all the way to the marinas, or walk to the town square, where there is a pay-elevator to the marinas (or a free staircase.) You won't have that much trouble getting a bus in Massa Lubrense (download the schedule if possible), but in Sorrento, the busses to (for example) Positano and Amalfi tend to be VERY crowded from May to September. You can be forced to wait for the second bus after you arrive before you can get on, seat or standing.
I agree that scooters are a suicidal option. You do not want a car in this area. It would be a huge annoyance. There is virtually no parking on the Amalfi Coast or at ferry terminals.
Posted by
27 posts
We just got back from staying at Villa Tatano in Massa Lubrense which also overlooked the gulf.. We had 7 people and rented two cars. Worked perfectly. Not brave enough to rent a scooter. We stayed in Naples and did the Pompeii visit from Naples but you can certainly do that via train from Sorrento. We took the ferry to Capri and Positano on different days. The views are spectacular at both places but two of my kids decided to stay back after Capri and enjoy the pool, laying out and drinking instead of walking around in positano. Both places are worth visiting and the chair lift in Capri is a must but I did not see either place as something to do all day.
We drove to dinner in Sorrento and Lo Stuzzichino is a great restaurant in Massa Lubrense.
Parking was not a problem. There are parking lots designated with a big blue P. parking on the road would be an issue.
Hope this helps and is not too late for your trip.