Would staying in Sorrento (with a car) and day trip to Rome, Amalfi, Pompeii, Beach...etc from that city? Is this a crazy idea? I dont like the idea of moving every 3 days and not seeing what we want to see. Id go into rome once in the 6 days and then one more time on our way north.
Posted by
nederland, colorado, usa
127 posts
take Ms.B's advice, and add a day: rome =3 days..don't even BOTHER if just one day..a waste...i have posted this idea b-4: you are traveling traveling traveling...and will miss what it is allll about.my most memorable expierences , in rome as well as everwhere else..was just SITTING, breathing, LOOKING, doing NOTHING, going NOWHERE.
Posted by
OP
USA
351 posts
Thank you...we have 5 months to plan so I am trying to get all the things that will not work out of the way. We fly into Rome so we will spend 3 days in Rome.
We will train to Sorrento and Do Amalfi, Pompeii and Capri in 3 days. We can then train to Venice?
Or drive to Venice (Pisa is a must for the kids).
We then plan to go North to Zermat/French Alps.
So we dont need a car in Rome and what about driving to Sorento. I recall driving Amalfi 20 years ago with my wife. Are tours to Amalfi, Pompeii, Capri going to cost much more from Sorrento VS us driving to the sights?
Posted by
OP
USA
351 posts
thanx jim, I know.
as I shoot ideas out, I get back some great feedback.
Now I even think Trains will work best and give up the car idea.
Posted by
Los Angeles, CA, USA
1449 posts
I'd see if I could drop the car off in Naples and then take the train into Rome and then stay there a nite on your way north. Or drop the car some city that the Eurostar stops at on the way to Rome. Rome is a long way from Sorrento for a round-trip day trip, getting into the city and parking is going to be a hassle and time consuming with a car compared to a train that drops you right at the Termini station.
Posted by
In the Mountains, USA
689 posts
David,
You should get a good road map of Italy and really look at all these cities and their locations to one another. You will find they are much further apart than day trips!
Posted by
525 posts
Sally is so right about looking at the map. My husband and I were in Tuscany/Umbria area for 5 days and our itinerary went out the window as soon as we picked up our car. It takes a lot longer to get from one point to another to visit for a day then it takes a couple hours to tour the town then drive to another. We only saw a handful of hilltowns of what I had on the list. It just took too long from Orvieto to tour the area, even if the towns were within a 20-30 mile radius. Rome in one day is so unrealistic. By the time you get to Rome and try to figure out where you want to go, you've lost a half day. You "will get lost" if you are walking. Two "full" days in the larger cities is what I would do next time.
Save Rome for at least the last two days of your trip if you are flying out of Rome but arrive the afternoon the day before you leave. (Speaking from experience from last October/November, 2007.)
Posted by
Knoxville, TN, USA
7209 posts
I personally think Rome and Sorrento are too far apart to actually do an enjoyable trip between the two. Besides, these 2 place have a wealth of things to see and experience. A daytrip to either will just be wasted time...especially with a car!
Spend a few days in Rome. Then train to Sorrento and use Sorrento as a base for Pompeii and Naples. Also, when in Sorrento you will BE at the beach...no daytripping needed. There are buses that will take you for a stunning ride down the Amalfi Coast...again you don't need a car.
I don't know how far "north" you plan to travel but even in a northerly direction towns like Florence, Pisa, Venice are easily accessed by train. And don't bother taking a car to Venice because you'll just have to park it at the giant parking garage with all the other tourists who thought having a car would be a good idea. Learn from our mistakes and don't bother with a car.