Sorrento, Amalfi Coast - best way to see them

To me it comes down to what other day trips you would do--Sorrento is more of a base, and I find the Amalfi villages more appealing as destinations themselves. It very much comes down to resort town versus village, plus your personal preference on day tripping. Also, add time of year as that can make a difference (for one thing, ferry schedules but also heat and lines). How many in your party? Are you planning visiting Pompeii, Naples, Capri, or doing any hiking?
You could always just do a 50-50 split for the best of both worlds, but I think the questions above will help clarify for you what you would prefer. I'd rather do just about anything than stand in line and be on a long ferry ride (and the bus ride is out of the question) when I can walk among the villages. Others would find unpacking and moving intolerable.

It depends what your goal is. If you’re going to the area to primarily see Sorrento, stay in Sorrento. If you’re going to primarily see the Amalfi Coast, stay in Amalfi. From Amalfi, the other AC towns and Capri are easy to reach. I spent two (or maybe three) nights in Sorrento and that was a mistake. The AC and Capri are filled with postcard views, Sorrento not at all. Sorrento is also packed with people during the day and night as it’s a base for day trippers. It was not a pleasant town to just walk around. The AC towns empty out a bit in the evening after day trippers leave. With six nights, I would spend two in Capri and four in Amalfi.

I think Marco makes good points. Amalfi (or nearby walkable Atrani) is a good place to base if you want to experience the coast at all hours and take ferries to other places or hikes. I say Amalfi because it has the most transport links as most of the buses start and end there.

You have to decide what your goals are, like others have said. If you want to visit Naples, Pompeii, Herculaneum, Capri, and Amalfi, then Sorrento might be good. If you want to ONLY do the Amalfi Coast (and possibly Salerno and maybe Paestum) then Amalfi is your spot.

Where are you coming from/going to before/after these 6 nights?

Need to know time of year

Advice in your previous posts
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/best-way-to-see-naples-amalfi-coast-and-isle-of-capri-in-6-7-days-july-2026

Month of Year??

Next stop on trip? Airport flying home from?

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/getting-around-amalfi-coast

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/amalfi-coast-for-7-nights-itinerary-help

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/one-week-on-the-amalfi-coast

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/herculaneum-and-pompeii-questions

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/naples-to-sorrento-train-or-private-driver

I based in Sorrento and had a beautiful view of the bay and Mt. Vesuvius. It was easy to day trip from beautiful Sorrento: Herculaneum was awesome. We spent four hours there. Bussed up to Positano and then Amalfi. It's all a matter of personal taste, but I was the least impressed by Amalfi. It seemed the most touristy. Although if you can see the Black Madonna it's worth it.

Thank you for everyone's insights. We we are doing Naples and Pompeii prior to heading to the AC & Sorrento. We have ruled out Capri. (Please don't try to convince us otherwise) We are a family of 6 adults who travel well together. on short day trips and long vacations. We need to decide if we want to stay in Amalfi (or Atrani), etc. and take the ferry to the other cities and day trip it to Sorrento. We are unfortunately going the first two weeks of July; coming off of a wedding June 30th in Verona. So yes, I know it will be HOT, TOURISTY, & EXPENSIVE. It is what it is. Just want to be sure we do this part right.

We need to get back to Rome to fly home. My thought is head to Rome the day before we have to fly out and spend the night there and fly out in the morning.

To ne honest-I wouldn’t want to spend 6 nights all in either place
We have stayed in both Sorrento and Amalfi and enjoyed them both-we spent 2 nights in Amalfi both visits-that was enough
Spent 4 nights in Sorrento both times (but did visit Pompeii and Capri from there)
If we ever return we would probably stay in Maori or Vietri and Salerno again.

Would you consider splitting time 3 in Sorrento, 3 in Amalfi? Or 4/2
Sorrento just has a bit more to do, more restaurants, fun shopping etc
From Amalfi-visit Ravello by bus, other villages by ferry

If you stay in Sorrento i would look for a place with a pool-probably more of those in Sorrento than Amalfi

Yes- you need to be in Rome night before your departure flight
If from Amalfi take ferry to Salerno then direct fast train to Rome

We need to decide if we want to stay in Amalfi (or Atrani), etc. and take the ferry to the other cities and day trip it to Sorrento.

I would stay in Amalfi. I assume you’ll be using buses and ferries regularly, so it’s convenient to be close to the bus station and marina. Staying in Atrani wouldn’t be bad, but Amalfi is just better. I stayed at this hotel (link below) right across the street from the bus station and marina, and it worked out great.

https://maps.app.goo.gl/RmaXoaFP5vFtzkLW7?g_st=ipc

I don’t know what you’re looking to get out of a day trip to Sorrento, but I’d skip it and maybe day trip to Salerno instead. Sorrento doesn’t feel like an authentic Italian town, it’s jam-packed with American tourists, and it doesn’t have the attractions or scenic views to make up for it.

Since you'll have already been to Naples and Pompeii, and you don't want me to convince you to go to Capri (we enjoyed it far more than anything we saw asking the AC), then I wouldn't bother staying in Sorrento. We used it as a base for 2 weeks in 2023 and loved it but daily trips to the AC in the summer wouldn't be worth it.

We need to get back to Rome to fly home. My thought is head to Rome
the day before we have to fly out and spend the night there and fly
out in the morning.

Definitely. One thing you'll learn on your trip is that transportation in the region is chaotic, confusing and unreliable. I don't know if it will be useful but here's my Trip Report from 2023. https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/trip-report-2-weeks-of-day-trips-from-sorrento