Train vs. Car from Rome to Sorrento

Driving is slower than the high speed train from Rome to Naples, and it is easy enough to take the local train, the Circumvesuviana, or a ferry from Naples to Sorrento. You would also take the train to Pompeii and can check your luggage there, at the site, for the time you are touring. Much safer than luggage in a car. Once done with Pompeii, you take the Circumvesuviana again to Naples and a taxi to your hotel.

As to public trans options in Sorrento, it is very small and mostly walkable, or you can take a taxi as needed. You cannot really expect to drive in the town of Sorrento or in Naples for that matter due to restrictions. Best to not have a car.

We need to know the month of the year and your guest count. But if you use the Search box (top center) for this popular subject, you will find overwhelming advice not to rent the car. Everyone says the luggage checking at Pompeii works great. (We went to our hotel in Sorrento before any excursions. I can see why you are saving 2 x 50 minutes on the Circumvesuviana train by stopping at Pompeii on the way. And some people hate the crowds and musicians on the Circumvesuviana. But every night we walked back to our hotel in Sorrento, we saw a stationary line of cars (reminiscent of California) waiting to enter an underground parking garage on the edge of Sorrento. Parking is a nightmare on the Amalfi Coast. We hired an expensive car service to make the most of 8 hours on the A.C. It was worth it.

The airport in Naples is a very short distance from the city center. The morning cab ride from Galleria Umberto took about 20 minutes and I was glad I stayed in the heart of the city that night