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South of Italy in february? Is this itinerary a good choice?

Hey! We are a group of 3 friends going on trip in Italy very soon (first two weeks of february) before our winter session start in Torino. We want to see a bit of the country before school start and we are looking for recommandation!

What we plan to do (still in construction) :

February 4 : Napoli

February 5 : Stay in Napoli

February 6 : train to Pompeii in the AM and train/bus to Amalfi coast in the PM (stay the night, we haven't choose the city yet. Tho I have hear some people say that the Amalfi coast is not a great destination in that time, because transportation i harder to find and a lot of shops/restaurant/hotel are closed. If that's true, let me know and i would glady apreciate recommandation on other place near to stay that are worth it or if I should just spend more time in all the other places mentioned).

February 7 : Stay in Amalfi coast

February 8 : Car rental in Salerno and drive to Matera where we stay the night.

February 9 : Stay in Matera

February 10 to 12 : We are not sure, we would like to find a great agriturismo that is well located in either Umbria (near Assisi) or Toscana.

February 13 : Arrive by car to Firenze where we return the car.

February 14 : Stay in Firenze

February 15 : Firenze in the am, then train to Torino to arrive at around 5/7 PM.

What we dont want to see (yet haha) :

Milano, Venezia, the northern province (Piemonte, Lombardia, ...), the lakes and Liguria (since we are going to be so near and it will be easy to go back)

Rome (easy to go back for a weekend and it would take to much time out of our 12 day trip to visit)

Sardegna and Sicilia (we want to go back when it's hotter and have more time).

Thanks a lot in advance for your feedback and recommandation, can't wait to visit Italy!

Posted by
15943 posts

I think Salerno is a better choice than the AC villages. Then either use the rental car or take the bus to visit the Amalfi coast from there. In February it should be relatively traffic-free to drive the AC and pretty easy to find parking. At least that was my experience - read about it here. There's a fast train from Naples to Salerno. It's probably easier to visit Pompeii as a day trip from Naples or Salerno. If you go from Salerno, take the train, then a taxi to the "back" entrance. From Naples, take the Circumvesuviana (metro) to meters from the main entrance. It's a long way from Pompeii to an AC village - metro to Sorrento, then long bus ride to the AC.

Driving in Toscana and Umbria in February is not very scenic. I did it in late March and the vineyards were just black stumps and the trees were still leafless. I had more challenges driving here than in any other place in Europe - read about that here.

Posted by
2 posts

Oh I see thanks a lot. Instead of the Amlafi coast and Umbria, would you recommend something else or you think we still are going to have fun and enjoy it.
Thanks.

Posted by
1196 posts

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That portion is very rushed. It's a long drive from Matera to Tuscany or Umbria..
Why don't you look at skipping those last two and go from Matera to Abruzzo or Le Marche, instead, and then head for Bologna and north to Torino?