Sorrento to Paestum

If you're into Greek ruins, Paestum is pretty spectacular. You can wander among three excellent ancient Greek temples, the oldest of which is about 2500 years old. They are surrounded by the ruins of an ancient Roman city, which developed while maintaining the pre-existing Greek temples. There is also an interesting, relatively small, museum at the site. Paestum is easy to access by train from Naples, about 90 minutes as I remember, passing through Salerno. When I went from Naples recently, I stopped for a couple hours in Salerno. From the Paestum train station, it is about a ten minute walk to the ruins. From Sorrento, I understand it is feasible but difficult and lengthy to do a day trip to Paestum. You would need to travel Sorrento to Amalfi to Salerno to Paestum, and then back again. This trip by public transportation would involve some mix of boats, buses, and trains, with careful planning of connection times. might be more palatable if you spent a night at either Paestum or Salerno. Would probably be possible but difficult in one day by rental car, or car and driver. I don't know if there are any group tours to cover this route, I kind of doubt there would be a market for that.

An overnight in Paestum would solve a lot of transportation issues. Plus, there is a beach near the ruins. Hotels will usually pick you up at the train station and drop you back there. As Larry said, the ruins are spectacular and the museum is excellent.

I think Paestum is worth visiting to see the well-preserved Greek temples and museum, but plan for an all-day trip from Sorrento. I did it as a daytrip a few years ago, taking the bus to Amalfi and spending time there before taking another bus to Salerno. I took a bus to Paestum, but train is also an option. On the return, I took the train to Pompei, walked about 20 minutes to the Pompeii Scavi station and took the Circumvesuviana back to Sorrento. Don’t remember the exact time I left in the morning, but I got back around 7:30. Note that the Paestum train station is unmanned and doesn’t have ticket machines, so you’ll need either a pass that covers the train or to buy your return train tickets in Paestum. If you don’t want to combine Paestum with time along the Amalfi coast, then I’d suggest going via Pompei as it’s faster. Taxi or bus between the Pompei stations is an option if you don’t want to walk.

Another option for a day-trip to Paestum from Sorrento is Golden Tours. We decided that public transport was too lengthy and complicated. We were very pleased with our tour. Of course, on a tour, you don't get to linger as long as you might wish. However, we thought it was a reasonable trade-off to be able to avoid the time we would have spent on buses and trains.

I did quite enjoy visiting Paestum several years ago, especially since it was completely uncrowded, and was glad that I spent the night there.

Thank you all so much. Your comments are very helpful.

We hired a car service to drive us from Sorrento to Paestum for a day trip and it was a highlight of our trip. We loved Paestum and we would recommend eating at the Mozzarella di bufala - the plate had several types of Mozzarella cheese and it was all delicious. We asked our driver to stop at several of the smaller towns along the Amalfi coast going back so we could walk around and photograph. Great day.

I can look up our car driver if you're interested.

Absolutely worth seeing.

We did it as a day trip from Sorrento two summers ago via the Circumvesuviana and train from Naples. Made for a long day but was worth every minute. Aside from the historical beauty of the place, it was quiet and uncrowded. Made for a wonderful break from the crowds in Naples, Pompeii, Sorrento and elsewhere along the Amalfi Coast.

If I remember correctly, there also may be a way of getting off the railroad in the modern town of Pompeii and finding your way to the Circumvesuviana. This would keep you from having to go all the way back to Naples. My memory is a bit hazy about this but I seem to recall the railroad stopping at the station in Pompeii and thinking we should have gotten off there. How you would get from the railroad station to the Circumvesuviana stop by the ruins (distance, time needed, logistics, etc) might be something to research if you don't want to go all the way back to Naples. Though we were on the Circumvesuviana many times from Naples to Sorrento (by the way, don't be concerned about scare stories about the Circumvesuviana) it is a very long ride between the two.

But yes, Paestum is a must see place.

Do be vigilant about the Circumvesuviana if it is crowded.