Hello!
Last year, my husband and I spent a month traveling from Rome and throughout the North. An amazing trip! This spring (April 8 - May 8) we will be returning to Italy, but this time to explore southern Italy for a month long road trip. I am planning our itinerary as I type this. My question to all of you who have travelled to southern Italy... what was your favorite place that you visited and why is it a must see?
Thank you for your recommendations!
Posted by
Phoenix🌵
2992 posts
In 2019 sister-in-law and I did the RS South of Italy tour. My favorite overnight was Matera for the cave dwellings; favorite day stop was Alberobello for the tulli houses. But my absolute favorite was post-tour when we drove from Naples to Mongrassano Calabria, the tiny village her grandparents were from. Calabria is non-touristy and beautiful in the mountainous region, but I wonder if you need a family history reason to appreciate it. It was like stepping back in time.
Posted by
Dubrovnik, Croatia
55 posts
Right to Puglia! Monopoli, Bari etc
Posted by
Washington DC
27696 posts
I adore Sicily, but it's a 2-week sort of destination, so not practical on this trip, really. So I'll agree with Puglia, where you could see a lot within a week with your own car. My favorite place there, so far, has been Lecce, but there are many places I haven't been.
If you have an interest in ancient ruins, the area south of Naples is obviously important, with Pompeii, Herculaneum, Paestum (not fair to call Paestum "ruined", though), etc.
Posted by
New York
71 posts
We were in Amalfi Coast and Naples last September and absolutely love it. If you haven't been there, it's a must. Don't skip on Naples. We love the city's hustle and bustle, awesome restaurants and nightlife, gorgeous churches and museums. 3 or 4 days here depending on your interests.
Amalfi coast and Capri worth another 5 days at least. We stayed a couple nights on Capri, super beautiful scenery. Take a full-day boat trip from Salerno to Positano. Stay in Amalfi town and Ravello.
As per further south, we want to return later this year, in October, but this time to Puglia and Sicily. Planning to break my time between those 2 regions. A quick chat with Google AI give me highlights to visit.
Bari
Alberobello
Matera
Lesse
Vieste
Lamezia Terme
Tropea
just to name a few suggestion. Would be interested to hear more about this places or any other.
Posted by
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
4437 posts
We spent 11 days in Sorrento in April and loved it. https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/trip-report-2-weeks-of-day-trips-from-sorrento my one regret is not giving Naples more time. We tried to squeeze too much into one day when it deserved 3 or 4. The Amalfi Coast was our least favourite, but loved, loved, loved, Capri and the Vesuvius ruins sites including Pompeii, Oplontis, and Herculaneum.