We are visiting our College daughter while she is studying in Rome at Loyola Chicago/Rome campus. We are doing two weekend side trips with her. She is pretty busy during the week with classes and we were thinking of possibly taking the train to Naples to go to the museum and see a few sites?
We had taken the train before to Naples then got Private car ride to Sorento we booked in advance. . Is this doable for a day in Naples?
Thank you.
Sure, it is a long day, and it depends what you want to do, but trains can get there in an hour, two hours, or three hours. So you could take a fast train about 7 AM, get to Naples a little after 8 AM, be there all day, take a fast train back at 8 PM, returning to Rome a little after 9 PM. Of course there are earlier return options. You can basically get back to Rome faster than you can get to Sorrento by train.
As for what to see, Herculaneum or Pompeii are possible, the Archeological Museum, pizza. Capri may be a stretch just due to ferry logistics.
Can you stay a night or 2?
There’s a lot to see and do in Naples
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/napoli-finally
Thanks we have been to Pompeii on our last trip which is one reason we would love to see the Archaeological Museum and of course would love to try pizzas in its birthplace. I know Naples would be great for a longer trip but we don't have an overnight to spend there. We are going to Siena and Orvieto for our two weekends with our daughter. Will look at the fast trains. That is what we took last time. Thank you.
The RS guide has a good self-guided walking tour for Naples that starts across the street from the archaeology museum. It also explains how to get to the museum by metro from the train station.
I've had better pizza in Rome than in Naples. The most famous place is da Michele expect long lines for lunch and dinner but in-between it's okay. The choices are margherita or marinara, in 3 sizes. For a really good, home-style cooked meal, go to da Carmine
on via dei Tribunali ( I believe you pass it on the RS walk).
We had taken the train before to Naples then got Private car ride to Sorento we booked in advance. . Is this doable for a day in Naples?
It sounds like you have plenty of experience. Later you say that Pompeii is not the objective this time. As long as you have a low-priced, non-changeable, non-refundable Freciarossa train ticket (i.e. really fast), it's a reasonable plan. It takes almost as long to get to Villa d'Este or Hadrian's Villa from Rome, by Metro and bus or train.
But you imply there's more than Naples to the trip. The Amalfi Coast (which does not include Sorrento) is a bit more remote, even by private car. Herculaneum and Oplontis are little closer to Naples than Pompeii and Sorrento, and are both accessible by Circumvesuviana. Have you considered Caserta Palace as well? Don't overlook the Farnese Marbles if you go to the Naples Archaeological Museum.
You don't give the month of travel, but note that we waited over an hour for a seat at a mid-famous pizza place in Naples. I mention that also because the Naples museum can be stuffy and crowded. I'm spoiled by their traveling fresco show that came through NYC this year, but the Naples display layout can be poorly lit in places and hard to see, like flat cases in front of wall displays.
I have done day trips to Naples from both Rome and Sorrento and it is easily manageable. We took an early Italo train out of Roma Termini and had plenty of time to visit the Capodimonte Museum, The National Archaeological Museum and various churches and restaurants. Another time we did a day trip from Rome to Pompeii and it was great too. We even had a couple of hours in the late afternoon look around Naples that day. Much easier from Sorrento but certainly not a problem. Good luck!
