Pompeii, Herculaneum, the Amalfi Coast in October and testing question to return to the US

Hi Mari!
I'll wager my beloved Travelpro 2-wheeled suitcase that the majority of RS posters who have traveled the Sorrentine/Amalfi Coasts have done so independently or with a combo of indy travel + a few organized day or 1/2-day tours. It is NOT a difficult part of Italy to do on your own, and not one that's difficult to do by public transit either (we have) although some folks are fans of private transfers just for certain A's to B's.

Before getting into the various how-to options, does your 8 days include your travel days from home and back? How many nights total will you have on the ground in Italy, and were you planning on spending ALL of them doing the coast +archeological sites you've listed? And any physical mobility issues we need to be aware of? The more you can tell us about yourselves, the better the gang here can help. :O)

Editing to add: here are a couple of websites that will be helpful for browsing some how-tos and weighing your options. Sorrento would be a really good base, IMHO, for what you want to do/see as it's a short ferry ride from there to Capri, as well as a short ride by local commuter train to Pompeii. Herculanum isn't all that much further by same train. Do be aware that ferry runs around the Amalfi Coast (they only run seasonally to certain locations) may not be all that frequent by end of October but could depend on the weather. Buses are available all season.

https://www.sorrentoinsider.com
https://www.capri.com

For testing, in Rome, many pharmacies will test, hold your passport for a few hours, and give you results. There are also self tests that can be done, proctored by video for "official" results, otherwise they can be taken for your own use. There is testing at FCO as well, but most prefer not to wait until the last minute. You need results that are within 3 days of departure.

For transport, a train to Naples is quick and easy. From there, if cost is not an issue, then yes, a private driver can get you where you need to go. If you are more frugal, the Circumvesuviana train goes from Naples to Sorrento and has stops for Pompeii and Heraculaneum. For the Amalfi coast, there are buses and taxis. Ferries run as well, less often, but if you plan around them, it's OK; there is a ferry from Sorrento to Capri.

For our upcoming April 2022 trip, I have booked tours of Pompeii, Herculaneum, and Oplontis/Stabiae with this company:

http://www.pompeiin.com/en/Pompeii_Tour.html

We will be staying in Pompei, close to the archeological site. After Pompei, we are going to Salerno, which will be our "base" for the AC and Paestum. The proprietor of our B&B in Salerno is going to pick us up in Pompei and take us to our new digs in Salerno for a very reasonable fee.

First, decide on everything you want to see. I would find it difficult to see both Herculaneum and Pompeii in one day. You can easily visit both from Naples or Sorrento. Read up on both to see where you would rather stay. The archaeological museum in Naples has all of the "stuff" that was removed from Pompeii, so many wish to include that too.
You can take the ferry to Capri from Naples or Sorrento.
When you arrive at Rome, you can take the train to Naples, or there is a direct airport bus you might find convenient.
If your schedule fits, the buses and trains are fine. If it makes your life easier to book a driver, then by all means do so. In this itinerary, I'd be looking at a taxi from the port to the train station.

You may want to consider using Mondo Guide for a day trip to Capri from Sorrento. Sign up for it as a Rick Steves Shared Tour. The RS shared tours link is easy to find on the Mondo Guide website, and the concept and details are well explained. The cost is 100€ per person. You get picked up at your Sorrento hotel and go to Capri on a small private boat. The min. group size is 6 and max is 12. The tour is a "go" as long as at least 6 people sign up.

Mari-

You are exactly right- having a car in Amalfi is an unnecessary headache.

When you say 8 days- exactly how many NIGHTS will you be IN Italy?
Count your trip in NIGHTS not days.

If you are flying RT Rome then you will need to be IN Rome the night before departure. If you plan to spend any of your time in Rome - put those nights at end of trip. Go right to Amalfi area on arrival.

Assuming you have 8 nights and do want to visit Rome I’d suggest 5 nights in Sorrento and 3 nights in Rome. (That's not much for Rome but you list a lot of things in Amalfi)
Sorrento is not actually on Amalfi coast but it is delightful, great restaurants, beautiful views and easy access to all the other locations- Naples, Pompeii, Herculaneum, Capri, Amalfi coast towns. Each of those needs its own day, so decide which places you want to see/visit and go from there. Spend your evenings enjoying Sorrento.

Since your trip is late Oct you need to be aware that ferries typically run thru October- weather permitting- and some of the smaller towns will be shutting down late Oct.

Transportation around the Amalfi area is really quite easy.
Take direct train to Naples then your choice of private driver or Circumvesuviana train to Sorrento. There is also the Campania Express- not sure how late in season that runs- only works if the timing works for you, few trains a day.

We used this company for a pick up at Naples station to Sorrento, then again to take us to Amalfi. About 100€ each leg.
www.topexcursionsorrento.com

We used Mondo Guides
www.sharedtours.com for a tour of Pompeii and a trip to Capri. Both were fantastic, well worth the money. The Capri trip was super fun, the guide for Pompeii was engaging and knowledgeable.
They also offer an Amalfi coast drive day trip that is very affordable.
I’ve never seen a bad review of any of the Mondo Guides tours.

As for COVID test before departure- there are several options.
You can ask your hotel to book you an appointment at a nearby pharmacy.
You can self test w/proctor (check with your airline which test is accepted- United has all this info on their site, and it is elsewhere on this forum- do a few searches).
You can find a test location yourself- train station, pharmacy etc.
Or check the lab locations here and book your appointment with https://www.doctorsinitaly.com/covid-swab-test/
Test must be done within 72 hours of departure, a Rapid Antigen test will suffice.

Get the RS guide to the area- there is a small pocket version of the Naples/Amalfi area that is quite good.

Lots of info- ferry/bus/train, etc
www.sorrentoinsider.com

Campania Express
https://www.eavsrl.it/web/campania-express-2021-en

With some clarification of what “8 days” means we can help you sketch out a great visit.

https://search.ricksteves.com/?button=&date_range=2y&filter=Travel+Forum&query=sorrento+amalfi+coast&utf8=%E2%9C%93

Oh my gosh! This is all so helpful!

So, our plan is to arrive in the AM in Rome and immediately head to Naples for the night. That second day we plan to see the archeological museum (which many have told us is a must see). But we wouldn't spend a second night in Naples, preferring to travel on to Pompeii in the AM. We would see Pompeii and spend the third night there, heading for Herculaneum the next day returning to Pompeii for the fourth night. And then on the fifth day we were planning to head for Sorrento and tour as much of the Amalfi Coast as we could for two more days (including a trip to Capri, if possible/time permitting). Then we'd head back to Rome for our afternoon flight home the next day. But we didn't know if we'd have to get to Rome even a day earlier than that for the Covid test. It sounds like the quick tests are being permitted (at least for fully vaccinate people, like us), correct?

Thanks so much again, and hope this gives more information. We welcome any and all guidance! We are vaccinated and finished with staying home. I'm in my late 50s and my husband is 60, but we tackled Egypt, Jordan (including Petra - climbing everything), and Israel in the same 2-week trip in 20l9, so we are still up for a little more adventure travel. Thank you!

So, our plan is to arrive in the AM in Rome and immediately head to
Naples for the night. That second day we plan to see the archeological
museum (which many have told us is a must see). But we wouldn't spend
a second night in Naples, preferring to travel on to Pompeii in the
AM. We would see Pompeii and spend the third night there, heading for
Herculaneum the next day returning to Pompeii for the fourth night.
And then on the fifth day we were planning to head for Sorrento and
tour as much of the Amalfi Coast as we could for two more days
(including a trip to Capri, if possible/time permitting). Then we'd
head back to Rome for our afternoon flight home the next day.

Pompeii the site, amazing. Pompei the town, rather dreary I'm afraid. I'd take a second look at Naples or Sorrento as a base for visiting those places. They are apples and oranges, so the choice is up to you, but distances are really not long enough to change bases that many times. I'm not at all averse to short stays in order to get a change of scenery, etc., but life is too short to stay in Pompei.
If you are staying in Sorrento, you can have just one base. (Luggage can be stored at Pompeii if you want to stop en route). If you stay in Naples, then you could next stay either on the Amalfi Coast (different from Sorrento) or on Capri.

I agree with valadelphia
That’s a lot of moving/hotel changes in a very small area
Pompeii town has zero appeal
The train from Sorrento to Pompeii is very easy, cheap and only takes about 30 min
About an hour to Ercolano

Still not clear how many nights you actually have?

Please use Google maps to visualize the area between Naples and Sorrento. No one sleeps in modern Pompeii city. Even people who never take public transportation at home use the gritty Circumvesuviana train to get from Sorrento to their day trip location.

Even people who never take public transportation at home use the
gritty Circumvesuviana train to get from Sorrento to their day trip
location.

This and if you're lucky you'll be serenaded on your journey by an accordion player.

I could see staying in Pompei if you were coming in high summer and wanted to be there before the doors open, but in October the weather will be perfect.

I'll agree as well that it's a lot of moving around. Also that Pompeii (the town) isn't the best choice for spending 3 nights. I am a little confused about your itinerary but guessing this is what you'd planned?

Day #1: arrive in Rome; transfer to Naples; sleep Naples
Day #2: archeological museum; transfer to Pompei; sleep Pompei
Day #3: Pompeii scavi; sleep Pompei
Day #4: Herculaneum;; sleep Pompeii
Day #5: Sorrento; explore Amalfi Coast: sleep Sorrento
Day #6: Sorrento; day trip to Capri; sleep Sorrento
Day #7: return to Fiumicino for flight home

Did you have an 8th day in there that I'm missing? If not, I'd consider this:
Day #1: arrive in Rome; transfer to Naples; sleep Naples
Day #2: archeological museum (make sure it's open on this day) and Herculaneum; sleep Naples
Day #3: transfer to Sorrento: do Pompeii scavi en route (check your bags at the site); sleep Sorrento
Day #4: explore the Amalfi Coast; sleep Sorrento
Day #5: day trip to Capri; Sleep Sorrento
Day #6: return to Rome in afternoon (could also do Pompeii Scavi en route on this day instead)
Day #7: fly out of Fiumicino

If you have an 8th day, all the better for either adding another day to Naples (give the museum and Herculaneum each their own day + add some other sightseeing in the city) or the coast (could give Pompeii Scavi its own day).

If you don't recommend a guide or tour, how does one get from Pompeii to Herculaneum to Sorrento and then to the ferry for Capri (and then back to Rome).

the land part is easily done with the Circumvesuviana train. We got the Campania artecard that includes some museum admissions, transit in Naples, and the train. See https://www.campaniartecard.it/?lang=en

We stayed in Sorrento and did day trips (including to Naples) from there; I would do that again, although a night or two in Naples would be nice. Don't miss getting a pizza! Da Michele is supposedly where pizza was invented, although we liked the pizza at Trianon across the street better.

I would recommend a guide in Pompeii; we walked around with a guidebook and don't think we got nearly as much out of the visit as we would have with a guide. You can hire one in advance, or at the gate they are lined up and organizing tours (not sure if the latter are authorized, but, hey, it's Italy).

There's not a lot of love for Pompei on this forum, or in the RS books. But we will be staying there in April 2022; Pompeii/Herculaneum and related sites are the main reason for our trip, and I just don't see the point of staying in Sorrento and day-tripping to where we really want to be.

I am hoping against hope that we will be able to take our trip, and that I can submit a trip report about what it was like to stay in Pompei.