Sorrento or Positano for lodging

Positano was worth about 3 hours of our time so I’d vote for Sorrento
Transportation from Positano means bus or ferry
Bus will be slow and crowded and since not the first stop you might not get a seat

Take a look at Grand Hotel de la Ville in Sorrento
It was lovely and you can’t beat the view

Also since this is your last stop where are you flying home from?
You’ll want to be in that location the night before departure
Getting from Positano to either Naples or Rome is more difficult than Sorrento
Although I would be in Naples or Rome night before no matter where I stayed in Amalfi

Thanks so much for the help. We will be flying out of Rome and taking the train from Naples to Rome. I did misspeak on the last stop. We are heading to Rome the day before our flight.

We also stayed in Amalfi and liked it very much
Hotel Bussola is right on the water level close to transportation and town, some rooms have balconies

Getting to Pompeii from there is still more work than from Sorrento

" Will staying in Positano make it more complicated to participate in tours such as a Lemon Tour, Pompeii and Vesuvius tour as well as going to Capri for the day?"

I don't know about a tour company's posted options for pickup. But the short answer to your question above is, YES. Positano is popular but, because of distance and the two-lane, congested road, somewhat isolated. (Not "remote", but "isolated.") It is also more expensive and has fewer hotels than Sorrento. Both places book up six months in advance.

Sorrento is, hands down, the best location for INDEPENDENT Day-tripping. I think you meant to ask about NON-independent day tours, however, which I have zero experience with. Positano is a horrible place to get to Pompeii on the cheap from. In season, it does have a SMALLER ferry boat to Capri, AFAIK. The ferries from Sorrento to Capri often have two hundred seats in high season.

Sorrento has only one small beach, sand, located physically between the two marinas. It has an aroma of diesel fuel as a result. It is public, access from the 2 Euro elevator to the center of town. Beaches in Positano are also public, pebbles, but pay-for-chaise or umbrella.

The luxury hotels in Sorrento are not likely to come in much below $400 for a Gulf of Naples balcony. You might get a view window for $350, but prices are set cleverly, like air fares. We sprung for a huge balcony at the Ambasciatori. None of these hotels have private beaches. They do tend to have private bathing platforms on pilings, accessed from the lowest stop on the hotel elevator. There are about 7 (?) such hotels. I think 3 or 4, including the Ambasciatori, have the same ownership. But being able to share facilities isn't worth that much to you. A big breakfast buffet is a big breakfast buffet, if you see what I mean. The only "discounting" in May I found at the Ambasciatori involved "credits" spendable ONLY at the Ambasciatori. We wouldn't normally eat at our hotel, but we did once to use up the credits ...

Christine and I tend to think alike. :O)

I was pretty much done with Positano in 1/2 a day too. Sorrento was much more to my liking as, even if very busy with tourists, it didn't feel as touristy to me, and it was a larger area with more amenities. No idea about Lemon Tours as those were not of interest but I'd say yes, staying in Positano adds time and working around the crowded transport if your tours don't start there.

For Capri, Pompeii and Vesuvius, I'd definitely stay in Sorrento so you have access to the local train (Pompeii and Vesuvius) and frequent ferry runs (Capri).

Editing to add: If you haven't yet, I'd spend some time reading up on what doing Vesuvius involves as it's not exactly a walk in the park, as they say? Even though we're hikers we were fine just seeing the thing rising over Pompeii and the Gulf of Naples from Sorrento and Capri. Anyway, understand the surface conditions and grade you'll be dealing with?

VJ.Taylor - Here are a few recommendations for Sorrento Italy in case you are staying there or visiting. Hotels and Restaurant options.

Hotels in Sorrento with great locations and near public transport:

https://hotelantichemura.com/

https://www.sorrentohotelmignon.com/

https://www.bristolsorrento.com/

Places to eat in Sorrento:
Bagni di Delfino, down at Marina Grande, on the water, excellent seafood.

Pizzeria Tasso:

https://ristorantetasso.com/en/

Il Leone Rosso Ristorante Pizzeria: Via Marziale 25, 80067, Sorrento, Italy:

http://www.illeonerosso.it

O' Puledrone:
http://www.opuledrone.com/

The places you want to visit, the tours you want to take and getting back to Rome will be easier from Sorrento than from Positano. You should be able to find nice water view lodgings in Sorrento for well under $350 per night. Positano is charming, but imo it's better suited for relaxing than day tripping.

Another vote for Sorrento. Excellent base on the Amalfi Coast. Agree with ChristineH for Grand Hotel de la Ville. We stayed there (September) on a tour of Southern Italy a few years ago. I think it will check all your wishes. We gladly recommend this lovely accommodation. Capri? Definitely. Our group took a day tour. It was one of the top highlights of the tour.

Thanks everyone!! Your help is very much appreciated.

Just a comment regarding Capri? While tours are possible, they're definitely not necessary. The island is not all THAT big, and with a map from the tourist info office it's not difficult to find your way around, It also has a good website for picking and choosing things to do. IMHO, best things to do on the island? Just some walking/hiking about to some of the more scenic areas. The chairlift in Anacapri to the top of Mt. Solaro is also fun. What I'd skip? The Blue Grotto. Eats too much time and money for the very few minutes you're in the thing (assuming the sea cooperates) and there have been lots of complaints about the boatmen hassling people for tips.

Just as with the Cinque Terre, I highly recommend staying on the island versus daytripping it, as the best hours are before those trippers arrive and after they leave, but exploring further reaches will help provide some breathing room. Expect the centers of both towns (Capri and Anacapri) to be VERY busy.

Here's the website; ignore the ads/offers for tours:
https://www.capri.net

We also chose to stay in Sorrento. Day trips to Pompeii and Herculaneum were easy and inexpensive on the Circumvesuviana train. That same train also goes to Naples. Another day trip you might consider would be a tour to Paestum. There are three Greek temples there that rival the Acropolis in Athens.

There are regular buses from Sorrento to the Amalfi coast. It is about an hour trip and there are often people standing on the bus. We stood in the line up until it became obvious that we were not going to get seats so we gave up our place to people behind us. When the bus was full we were at the front of the line for the next bus. As I recall the buses were about a half hour apart. The water views from the bus are best on the right side of the bus.

Here are images of our week in Sorrento
Sorrento http://www.flickr.com/photos/stanbr54/sets/72157634654031558/

Thanks for your help, it's appreciated! Thanks for the photos also!!