Sorrento/Positano/Capri

I think it is a great plan. Most people do not stay overnight in all 3 places since they are close but I see the benefits of doing so and time wise you have a good amount of time to see everything. As long as you are fine packing up and moving to 3 locations I like it.

One question on June 5th, without a rental car what will you do with your luggage? Really not that big a deal I imagine you are doing a day trip that comes back to Sorrento and your hotel in Sorrento could hold your bags for you.
You really would not want a rental car for anything else so not recommending one just curious how you planned out this day.

How are you traveling between all the cities with your luggage? How are you getting from Naples to Sorrento?
We will be using Sorrento as a home base for this area, but we are only staying a few days.

I'll just point out that getting from Sorrento to Paestum is not easy. After researching it, we opted for a tour with Golden Tours.

Easier to spend the night in Paestum or Salerno than to get there from Sorrento. Try Hotel dei Templi, at the boundary of the archeological site in Paestum, or one of the hotels near the Salerno train station in the pedestrianized area.

We've based in Sorrento 3 times, for a week each time. I don't like moving or using precious time to move. It's easy to visit all these places from Sorrento. We absolutely love Sorrento, it's charming and relaxing. We really enjoy getting around by the Circumvesuviano train or boats/ ferries to all the places you've listed except maybe Paestum (only place on your list we haven't been).

It would have been useful to have the month of the year, since ferry schedules and general crowding are seasonal. If you are going this May (2017), you will be lucky to get your fifth choice of hotel.

As noted, Vesuvius is in the opposite direction from the far, far away Paestum. That day schedule is destined to fail. Look at Google Maps.

You have made a huge commitment to the AC. That's fine, as long as it's what you want. I don't think it's worth that amount of time, but huge numbers of posters here, U.K. and otherwise, would disagree with me. (I've been to Sorrento twice, total five nights.) Perhaps I can concisely explain my reservations by observing that you are going to pass a different outlet of the same international soap/cosmetics/luxury leather/lady's accessories/jewelry franchise on each day. How many of them do you need to see?

Do you have any idea how much time you plan to spend in Pompeii? How will you travel to Positano? It makes a difference, but the roads are always jammed up in high season, and there is no other way to get to Positano.

Edit: If you use the desktop version of this site, it has a Search box and you might find a couple of posts from people who both managed and failed to arrange "Paestum from Sorrento".

We paid our Sorrento luxury hotel's local travel partner 240 Euros for an 8-hour car and driver to visit the Amalfi Coast as a day trip. That might not be enough time for you, but we saw (with free time on foot) Positano, Amalfi, Ravello, and drove through two smaller towns.

You can get to Positano (and Amalfi) by boat from Sorrento, which is my favorite way.

I think you can visit Pompeii and Mt. Vesuvius from Sorrento in a single day (bus to/from Pompeii), but I think you'll need most of a day for Paestum alone. You'd need a bus from Sorrento to Salerno, then bus or train to Paestum.

How will you travel to Positano? It makes a difference, but the roads
are always jammed up in high season, and there is no other way to get
to Positano.

Tim, during high and shoulder seasons there are ferries which travel to Positano from Sorrento; we took one for our day-trip there. However, they cannot dock in Positano if the seas are rough.

I don't think that Vesuvius and Paestrum are remotely possible to do from Sorrento and then BACK to Sorrento on the same day. Besides being in completely opposite directions, other posters have the noted the complexity/time involved just getting to Paestrum.

You've probably done the homework on Vesuvius but if not, that one involves a climb from bus stop to top viewing area that some travelers have said to have been more than they bargained for. If you do it, wear very sturdy footwear. Quite honestly, I'd skip that one as you can see the cone itself from multiple spots around the region.

I'd also personally eliminate the move to Positano and just stay in Sorrento.

What's missing on your itinerary? The ruins at Herculaneum (Ercolano) - which I'd do instead of Vesuvius - and the archeological museum in Naples. Could be that you plan to do the museum when you return to Naples on June 11?

Normally I don't have this much trouble planning a trip but for some reason I am this time...I am all over the place and can't make a plan. Yes, I have researched this but I always end up with questions :S

I have read lots that say stay in Sorrento and then others that say don't go to the AC and stay Sorrento b/c it isn't part of the AC and the views are better along the AC. I have read don't do a day trip to Anacapri/Capri..you need to stay there to experience. I was advised to do the ancient sights from Sorrento as it is easier for transportation but then move on. I agree moving often wastes a lot of time so should I do 5 nights in one place (Sorrento or Positano or ?) and do day trips (Herculaneum, Pompeii, Capri etc) and then do 2 nights in Naples.

We will be using public transportation to see most things and probably do the tour for Paestum as others have suggested.

There was a question on how I was going to get from Sorrento to Positano ...I was looking at a private transfer but haven't received a response yet.

Also there was a question as to which year...we are going June 2017. I know I need to hurry up :)

I really appreciate the feedback.

Technically, Sorrento is not the AC but that is splitting hairs imo. The AC technically starts just past Sorrento, and both Sorrento and the AC have stunning views (to me, the AC views are the same as Hwy 1 in California).
Sorrento is a charming town with the most amenities and is a great hub for transportation to most everywhere a person will want to go, that's why many choose to stay there. It's actually my favorite place in Italy.
I disagree that you have to stay on Capri, although anyplace, anywhere, where you actually stay and sleep will be a different experience from a day visit. I personally don't like Capri (expensive ferry ride, small, very crowded and touristy, expensive) but you might enjoy it.

As to staying in Sorrento vs. changing your base.
On the same trip we stayed in Sorrento and also Positano and very happy we stayed in both. They were very different, some don't like to travel that way which is fine.

While I really enjoyed Sorrento and the views from where we stayed overlooking the Bay of Naples was incredible, we enjoyed staying in Positano much more. It has a completely unique feel, choosing which view is better would be hard but the view is very different. In Positano there are amazing views on each and every street/alleyway/staircase and many areas to explore for such a small town. If you visit only during a busy day as a side trip you would not get a good feel for the town and the unique streets/stairs. I understand why Sorrento has some major advantages but if I were to return and I definitely will someday I will be staying in Positano and not Sorrento.

Sorrento is less expensive, hotels are larger, much more amenities and large common areas have more perks and more luxurious for the most part. Parking is better. There is more shopping, more restaurants, more to do if it rains. It is larger, the dock is not as subject to weather/tide closings, it is better for logistics to most everywhere.

Staying in Capri again I see advantages to doing so mainly to be on the island after the day trippers leave. If that benefit is worth the hassle of checking in / checking out ; dealing with luggage on and off the ferry, I am not as certain so this would be a coin flip for me. As long as you are patient and don't mind waiting for the next bus traveling with luggage on the bus from Sorrento to Positano is easy, traveling from anywhere to a hotel on Capri with luggage will be a challenge.
As to taking the ferry or bus to Positano, I think the bus is easier with luggage but you should probably base your decision assuming the weather is nice on where you are staying in Positano. If staying near the road, (anywhere high up) take the bus, if staying nearing to the beach (bottom of town) take the ferry. Walking up from the ferry stop to the road level part of town where most hotels are with luggage would not be enjoyable.
I liked Capri and Ravello so much I would love to spend 2 nights in both places even though so close to Positano so would likely choose between one of them to mix with a multi-night stay in Positano when we do return to the AC.

I have not been to Paestum so did not realize that day's travel and back to Sorrento may not work but would trust the other posters who have been there on that.

Sslewc, as you see, everyone has different opinions and it can be hard to make choices based on what people tell you... : ) All you can do is make a plan, then go and enjoy! If you ever return, you'll then know what you liked and what you'd do differently.

I have read don't do a day trip to Anacapri/Capri..you need to stay
there to experience. I was advised to do the ancient sights from
Sorrento as it is easier for transportation but then move on

As Susan said, we all have different interests and all travel differently so there's not necessarily a right or wrong to it! I'll just say that some of the choice may be based on ease/variety of transport to the places you DO want to see? Pompeii and Herculaneum are most easily done by train from Sorrento or Naples. As those two types of attractions rank higher on our personal must-do list than some others, then Sorrento made sense for our base.

I have horrible motion sickness and could never handle the buses around the A.C. so a base with train and/or ferry services here and there is pretty much a must but no so for others. We also prefer to do less rather than more packing up and moving around but others like more frequent changes in scene. So be it.

I will agree that Capri is best enjoyed with an overnight or two on the island as it takes on a different personality when the bulk of the day trippers are gone. We didn't do any shop-browsing at all in Capri but enjoyed a bit of that at the lower-end, non luxury-branded shops in Anacapri.

Just about Paestum, I visited Paestum (and Salerno) by train as an easy day trip from Naples. I had planned to also include Vietri sul Mare, ceramics town near Salerno, that day, but missed my early train due to messing with a ticket machine that wasn't functioning right. The ruins and museum at Paestum are wonderful, best light in the late afternoon.

In my experience, you are right on track to stay ON the Amalfi coast and also to stay ON Capri. Those parts look perfect.
It is Sorrento I would have the issue with. I can see it making a good base to visit all of the above plus Pompeii/Vesivius, but it is not a good base for Paestum. Have you ruled out Naples, which has its own merits in addition to being more convenient for Pompeii, Vesuvius, and Paestum? If you don't want to stay in Naples, then Salerno would work also. Vesuvius and Paestum would be a bit much for one day unless you are much closer. If neither Naples or Salerno works because you do not want to be in a city, then Vietri Sul Mare is on the train line and it would work well. It is difficult to do both ends of the Amalfi coast, so no worry about having more than one base there.

Thanks a ton for all of your advise :) You are all amazing to do this. It is really helpful.

OOOps advice :)