Is the first week of November too late for the Amalfi Coast, Sorrento and Naples? Will things be closed for the season? Would it be better to go mid-October? Thanks for any advice.
No effect on Naples, the rest would depend on your specific plans, so I would not rule it out entirely. The area can be better in off season due to intense crowds in season.
The ferries on the AC stop running or go into reduced mode on Nov 1st and the coast follows suit and allows goes into reduced mode. If you want the in season Amalfi Coast experience October is going to be better. Keep in mind that the weather gets less predictable heading into October and especially November.
We were in Salerno for 8 days in end of October 2024 and the weather was okay to great the entire time, but it is variable year to year.
Have a great trip,
=Tod
I've been in Amalfi twice. The first time the second week of November. We had one really nice day, and one cooler day with some rain. My recollection is the ferry was not running, buses were a little crowded. Some of the Sorrento restaurants were going on vacation until Christmas season, and when we were in Positano, many of the stores were closed. We don't shop so we didn't mind.
The second time we were in Amalfi was the end of February. We stayed in Salerno where everything was open. It was a fun city, great old town, wonderful cathedral. We took a bus into Amalfi. We went to Amalfi town and some of the smaller towns. We did a hike thru lemon groves above the city. It was sunny, probably in the 60s. It was lovely.
Vietri sul Mare was lovely and busy. Not sure if that is considered Amalfi
Definitely not too late for Naples
I visited the area twice, both times in February. Both visits were great. I was lucky that I had good weather for 4-5 days seeing the AC, based in Salerno with a car.
As to your trip, what do you want to do while you're there? Is it your first time in the area?
Naples has plenty to do. I spent a day doing the RS walking tour - slowly, stopping in every place. I used another day to go out to Caserta; another day exploring the city and revisiting the archaeology museum. I would have liked to do a day trip to Ischia. If you stay close to a metro station, you can get quickly to the train station for the Circumvesuviana ("CV") to all the archeological sites and Mt Vesuvius.
Sorrento is at the other end of the CV. It also has regular ferry service (weather-dependent) to Capri and some good restaurants. There's not much to see in the city, it's hilly and the rooms with lovely views may not be convenient to the CV, which is about a 10-minute uphill walk from the town center. BTW the ferry pier is a long stairway down from the center to the shore. There was an elevator near the center to access the shore but it wasn't running while I was there. All the tourists shops were open. The only access to the AC is by bus. The winter schedule is run to accommodate the locals, lots of buses on weekday mornings and afternoons for school kids. Not many in the evenings. In February there were always seats on the buses I saw (never rode one).
Salerno is my preferred base for seeing the AC. Prices for restaurants (some very good) and lodgings are significantly lower than in Sorrento. It's generally flat. There are high speed trains connecting it to Naples and points north. The road from Salerno to Positano is the most scenic part of the coast. And you can even visit the Greek temples at Paestum. I rented a car in Salerno for 5 days . . . and returned it without a scratch. I wrote about the experience here.
Happy to answer any questions. ehugs.