Hi,
Looking to visit southern Italy in 2026. Start in Rome, focus on Pompeii, Amalfi coast, Matera, Alberbello, Garganzo Peninsula, and back thru Vieste/Tivoli to Rome. Too much? Any towns you would avoid? Probably 2 weeks of travel time, including flight days.
Also - thoughts on renting a car to do this itinerary outside of Rome?
Thanks much!
The Gulf of Naples area (Naples, Pompeii, Sorrento, Capri island, Amalfi Coast) can easily be done without a car. Take a high speed to Naples, then a commuter train, called Circumvesuviana train, to Sorrento. Pompeii is between Naples and Sorrento. Sorrento is a good base to visit also the island of Carpi (by boat) or the Amalfi Coast (by bus or private driver or moped). Some people prefer to stay in the Amalfi coast, which is not as convenient logistically but quaint and romantic, so it’s up to you.
You can reach Puglia by train, but some of the locations are more efficiently visited by car, like the Garbanzo peninsula (Vieste, Pescichi, etc.). The towns along the Adriatic coast (Pollinmano, Lecco, Monopoly, Ostini, Oltrarno, etc.) are served decently by train, but as you go to the interior (Alberobero, Leccorotondo, etc.) buses may be more convenient. Overall I would consider renting a car for Puglia, for example picking it up in Bari. Then from Bari you can return to Rome via high speed train. Or you can fly home from Bari (with a layover in Rome or somewhere else).
Some people prefer a drive by sighting seeing. Just to say that they have seen that, been there, done that. They are willing to walk by a cathedral, take a picture, and move on to the next week. Others prefer a slower pace where they might spend a couple hours inside that cathedral. Maybe spend part of an afternoon in a sidewalk cafe watching the people walking by.
Are you traveling alone? With two weeks you only have 13 nights and need to knock a couple off for coming and going. That leaves about ten or 11 nights. You also lose at least a half day when changing locations. I rarely spend less than three nights in each location when I am string together a group of towns and villages. So at best you may only have three or four locations to visit. Rome and Naples (Pompeii) will take half so I would pick two more. Use the train, a car for your cities is a super pain especially when find someplace to park it.
So come by let us know what is really critical for you.
It looks like too much for two weeks.
We rented a car for Puglia/Matera. You could pick one up as you depart the Amalfi area.
Well, that's pretty much the route of the RS tour I took a few months ago, so maybe too much for an independent trip?
https://www.ricksteves.com/tours/italy/south-italy
Have you put together a daily itinerary or is this still at a brainstorming stage? Once you see the daily plan I think you'll have an idea of whether it is too rushed for your preference.
You don’t say what time of year you plan to go. If you’re there during high season the Amalfi coast will be a challenge - tremendous traffic and crowds. You may need to take a tour, travel by ferry or rent a motorcycle in order to get into the towns.
We were just in Italy a couple weeks ago. We rented a car when we left Rome and drove to Campania and then to Tuscany. Since we had the car we based in the town of Pompei rather than staying in Naples, then drove or walked everywhere. We did a day trip to Positano and Sorrento - since it was January there was no traffic at all on the Amalfi Coast and the ZTL was turned off in Positano so we could drive down through the town. But it was sunny and 60 degrees F and things were just as scenic as they’d be in the summer. We also did a day trip by train to Naples.
Anyway, if you’re going to need a car for Puglia and it makes sense to pick up / return at the Rome airport then consider driving and staying somewhere out of town for the greater Naples area. Good luck!
Hi
What about going by train from Rome to Bari, Lecce, then renting a car to travel around Puglia, places like Locorotondo, Monopoli, Polignano a Mare, Alerobello and Matera (not in Puglia). How easy is to drive through those Puglia places ? Roads, rules, signals ? And to visit some baches along the way. My husband is worried about driving there, a little stressed (parking tickets, radar, etc. He doesn't speak italian) but I don't see any other way to visit Pescusuola, Torre dell'Orso and other small beaches with little public transport during septiembre.
Thank you
Thanks everyone! We are just at the initial stage of discussing this trip. Will be me plus 2 girlfriends. Sounds like car rental in the Bari area would work but Amalfi area should be ferry or bus. If we picked a central area to stay near Amalfi, with plans to visit Sorrento, Capri, Ravello...where would you stay? Not a fan of big hotels, so thinking VRBO or small family hotel. Can we take the bus from one central location and make day trips?
Also, where would you go in the Bari area. As I mentioned earlier, Alberobello is on the list. Is Matera worth a trip? What other SMALL coastal town(s)? Trying to stay away from large cities except for Rome.
thanks again!
Twice we rented a car in Bari and drove to all the aforementioned towns with Locorotondo as our base. Loved every day and the driving is pretty easy. Can't wait to explore the more southern Puglian towns next time. Don't forget to take a video of the vehicle in the car rental lot before leaving...it saved us from having to pay extra!
The Città Vecchia (old city) of Bari is very pretty. Try not to have a car there as there are traffic restrictions. Rent a car after visiting Bari.
Matera (in the region of Basilicata but near Puglia) is a must as well.
Vieste, Castel del Monte, Polignano a Mare, Monopoli, Alberobello, Locorotondo, Martina Franca,, Ostuni, Lecce, Otranto, Gallipoli, are just some of the many beautiful places of Puglia. You can’t possibly see all of Puglia in two weeks, and you plan to also see Rome and the Amalfi Coast in those two weeks, so you must severely cut your itinerary and choose only some. Do some research online. Use Google Image to get an idea of what places look like.
