Naples & Amalfi

How many nights will you be in Italy?

What time of year?

Sorry. Meant to add the beginning of June. Two weeks total. So I’m trying to juggle all three places. I know its a short time but it’s what I got! Thank you.

An excellent place to begin is with an RS guidebook! It is truly a great source of information and then you will have an idea of what you want to see and do.

Have you bought your plane tickets yet? Have you thought about buying multi-city tickets flying into and out of Rome and Naples or are you flying round trip to and from Rome? Are you hoping to spend time in Rome, Naples and Amalfi?

We're spending two weeks in Sorrento in April and will do day-trips from there north towards Naples and south to the Amalfi Coast. The hotel we've chosen is Serasale Suites.

My only must-see is Pompeii and the Archeological Museum in Naples. We're eyeing a couple of hikes while on the coast, one is Path of the God's and the other is the Lemon Trail. Both are fairly easy but somewhat difficult to get to the starting points. I'm also eyeing a sunrise kayak trip while in Sorrento. A day-trip to Capri is also in the planning stages.

Here's a link to a post I started a month ago that may help get you started. https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/sorrento-and-amalfi-coast-here-we-come

I can tell you exactly what I would do with that time for myself. But that might not be what your family would enjoy. What kinds of things do you enjoy doing? Water activities, cooking classes, museums, wineries, etc? Also, how did decide on Naples? This is an interesting choice given it’s your first time in Italy. I might recommend Tuscany over Naples.

As April says, it's hard to know what interests you, but on a trip of similar length (15 nights) we flew into Rome and went directly to Pompeii for one night, then 4 nights on the Amalfi Coast in Positano, 2 nights in Naples, and 8 nights in Rome. That was perfect for us. i spent a lot of time with the RS guide book to figure out how many nights I wanted in each place. (We had done Cinque Terre-Florence-Tuscany-Venice-Lake Como on another two-week trip.)

@Allan's link of his planned trip to AC & Naples looks great. Just note that Naples is more hectic than Rome, versus Tuscany which is more 'sedate', though still Italian!

Getting around AC - Sorrento is a cute little town (though not part of AC) & less hectic than Naples if you'd prefer to stay in one place for your trip south. Driving to Positano & the town of Amalfi is along a very windy road. (think Big Sur CA) so I'd take the ferry. One of the prettiest towns is Ravello, up above Amalfi, especially Villa Cimbrone which has amazing views out over the coast. https://www.ravello.com/attractions/villa-cimbrone/

Personally, I prefer the town of Amalfi to Positano, because it feels like a real town versus just a resort on the side of a VERY steep hill.

Are you interested in ruins? Getting to Pompeii, requires lots of walking, consider hiring a private guide. https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/day-tours/guided-day-trips-from-sorrento. And if you wanted to see Pompeii, adding the Archeological Museum in Naples would be an excellent idea & a food walking tour of Naples too. We really liked Eating Italy, but have only done a tour with them in Testaccio, Rome.

Good luck!

One you have your own list of things you want to see/do, you can allot the days easily, but if you cannot fly into Naples, I would still start in Naples or the AC by heading to either on arrival day. Of course if you are arriving in Rome late then that won't work, but most arrive in the morning, and that day is often a jet lagged blur anyway, so nap on the train and then work your way back to Rome so all of your time there can be put together.
Two weeks split between Rome, Naples, and Amalfi will be great.

This is all amazing information, greatly appreciated. I am going to get the RS guidebook for sure. We planned to fly into Rome and spend 4 nights (including the day we arrive) there. I am looking into Airbnb in Trastevere, Via di San Francesco a Ripa (any input about this area is also appreciated). Then from there take the train to Naples. Would you recommend flying out of Naples or returning to Rome for a night or two and fly out of Rome? Thanks again for all this amazing advice! Lisa

For us, it was much cheaper to fly roundtrip Rome--you will just need to search multi-city flights from your airport to see what is possible. IF you do fly roundtrip to Rome, I agree with Valadelphia that it's more efficient to head straight to Naples or Amalfi first unless you have a late arrival time. Then you can end your trip with consecutive nights in Rome.

This is our first time in Italy and I have no idea where to begin.

Beginning in Naples is probably not the best idea for first timers.

Maybe head to Salerno or Sorrento for your Amalfi days and start there then to Naples- end in Rome
Flying RT Rome would work if those are best flights.

Via di San Francesco a Ripa (any input about this area is also appreciated)

The location is excellent, book it.

Read up on what is in Naples to decide if you have interest. The easy course is to stay in Sorrento, but it’s not the only way to do it.
Check your actual flight options rather than polling people. It depends on what they are!