Naples area in one day.

As I'm researching this. I may have a change of heart and think also a little bit with my wallet. It may makes more sense if I'm going to explore to divide the cost of renting a cab or tour guide for the day between 3 people instead of just myself?

Otherwise if I'm going to go to Sorrento and the amalfi Coast Maybe I do a bus tour of some sort by myself?

I'm just not real excited about being bogged down for this day since I will have to have spent so much of this trip babysitting the other two. Torn

Vick, if it were me I'd do both Pompeii and the archeological museum in Naples: do the scavi first and the museum 2nd. These would be reasonably easy to do on your own, and you would be back in Naples prior to having to return to the ship.

Doing the museum 2nd also puts the collection from Pompeii into perspective.
I'd take a cab to the Naples Garibaldi station and buy a ticket on the local Circumvesuviana commuter train: ticket are VERY inexpensive, and you'll want to get off at Pompei Scavi-Villa dei Misteri station, right in front of the main entrance to the scavi. The trip takes about 30 minutes, and trains are frequent.

Then return to Naples via the same train. Tickets MUST be validated before boarding the trains, and checks are frequent so don't forget!

Then head off to the museum, keeping an eye on the clock so get back to the ship in good time. I think I'll have someone more familiar with Naples suggest easiest transport options from train station to museum (taxi again?) and museum to ship.

When I stopped in Naples on a cruise ship last October I hired a driver for my party of 8. We went to Positano, Sorrento and Pompeii before heading back to the ship with plenty of time to spare. If I was you, I would look at cruise critic. There should be a roll call for your specific ship and date. People there are always looking to split the cost of hiring a car or you can post yourself looking for others who want to do the same things you want in order to bring down the cost.

With regard to going off on your own or a private group, you may or may not make it back in time. The last three times we were there on a cruise we encountered terrible traffic jams and our excursions (through the cruise line) were late getting back but the ship waited for us. It did not wait for some people who were last seen running along the pier as the ship departed. If you were travelling solo perhaps it would be worth a chance it you stayed close to the port area. But considering your traveling companions and how they might or might not adapt if you literally miss the ship, I'm just not sure I'd risk it.

The last three times we were there on a cruise we encountered terrible
traffic jams

That's why I'd take the train to/from Pompeii and just allow plenty of time to get to the ship once back in Naples.

From the train station at Napoli Centrale you go downstairs to the Circumvesuvisna platform, as Kathy suggested. On the way back from Pompeii Scavi, take the Cirvumvesuviana to Napoli Centrale and then the metro to the Museo stop. From the museum, take a taxi back to the ship.

I would allow 3 hours each for the museum and the Scavi (maybe more for Pompeii), an hour for travel between the two, another hour to/from the ship. That leaves time for you to have a leisurely lunch on the waterfront.

The Amalfi coast is down the road. But it's a long road (perhaps four hours Napoli-Sorrento-Amalfi and return) and like Capri, travel time can be affected by weather and traffic.

We just got back this past Saturday from our trip. We did Naples Archaeological Museum and found it pretty interesting. We probably spent about 3 hours there. They are doing construction at the port and it is a little confusing to get to the metro, a taxi is around 10 euros.

One shot of advice, if you do take the circumvesuviana train make certian that is the correct train to get on. We were traveling from Florence to Positano and changed trains in Naples. We went down stairs and got on what we thought was the right train only to be told about 45min later we were on the wrong train. They let us off in a small town to catch the train to Pompeii. There were 4 people sitting behind us who said they did the same thing and advised us to take a taxi to the other Pompieii train station once we got to Pompeii. Very confusing, there were 2 different trains and stations about 3 miles apart.

If you change your mind on a driver since you are already in the port you can take a ferry to Sorrento or Capri. Very easy if the times work for you. We rode the ferries multiple times out of Positano. It was a 2 hour trip between Positano and Naples because they go to the island of Capri and then you change ferries to go to Naples or Positano.