Trip planning for Amalfi coast and surrounding areas

You do not need 13 nights on the AC nor would I spend three nights in Naples, two in Sorrento and two in Amalfi. Pick one base and stay there. Sleeping in Naples isn’t a bad idea but I do recommend a couple nights on Capri.
See the AC from the coastline (bus or car) and again from sea (ferry). If you take the bus, get an early start and wear sea bracelets on each wrist to avoid motion sickness.

What’s special about Matera is the sassi area, where people lived in the caves until modern times. There are some cave churches with ancient frescoes, similar to what you can see in Turkey. A guided walking tour is a good idea.
I do recommend staying over a night on Capri, but either Sorrento or Amalfi, not both. They are close enough to each other that it seems foolish to use up time moving from one to the other. You might also consider Salerno, with a day trip to Paestum.

We need to know how you wish to spend your time in order to advise you how to spend your time. If you just want to see each place, this is fine as is, and you could add an excursion into Basilicata or Puglia. For taking long boat trips, hiking, seeing Pompeii, etc., some more time would be advisable. I know I could fill 13 days in the area and I've been before.
I hate long day trips, especially among crowds, so I am all for moving hotels. Sorrento at night is not like Amalfi at night and both are light years from Naples at night. So much of these decisions are about personal preference.
While there are some superficial similarities between some Andalucian and Pugliese towns, Matera is nothing like either. Highly recommend it!

I'm following this too. We are going in July (I know, I know - it's crowded - but it's just what worked with our schedules). We want to see all the sites, visit all the towns - Capri, Positano, the Amalfi Coast Drive, Pompeii, etc. but also some time to relax. I'm honing in on Amalfi - but wonder if it's too far out of the way.

laura the best thing to do is start a new thread with your details--arrival and departure point (times if you have them--at least search the flights so you know what's likely if you have not purchased yet), the list you shared here of what you wish to see, and how many days you have--plus any other details you think would be helpful.
Amalfi is actually a fine base because it is on the ferry route, and you want to prioritize ferries over the crowded buses. But, Pompeii is a long slog from Amalfi and Positano--too far for a day trip in my opinion (though I'm sure some do it--but I would not do so in July!). Some people choose to stay in Sorrento for that reason and do day trips to both. Nothing wrong with that, it's just not my preference. I would definitely want to be on a real beach with kids in July--such as Minori and Maiori, which are closer to the mainland so day trips are more realistic. Some people pay for private drivers to stop with them at Pompeii (luggage in trunk, driver with car) en route to the Amalfi Coast. You can also do it with public transport. If you are flying out of Naples, the easiest thing to me is to stop at Pompeii on the way there and then stay last night in Naples (where you can see the stuff from Pompeii in the archeological museum).

We spent 9 nights in the area, 3 bases
Sorrento 4, Amalfi 3, Salerno 2
That was a nice amount of time. We were able to easily visit all the locations we wanted- Pompeii, Capri, Ravello, Positano Paestum
I think 6 or 7 nights would be just as nice- 2 bases.

Have not yet been to Matera or Alberobello. On the list.
I’d want at least 4 nights to cover that much ground.

You could pick up the car in Salerno.
Have you driven in Italy before?
It’s a lot of driving, I’d probably save for a future trip and give the Puglia region the time it deserves.

Consider putting your 3 nights in Naples at end of trip.

Fly to Naples
Sorrento 2 or 3 nights- great place to get over jet lag.
AC town 2 or 3 nights- consider transportation
Ferry to Salerno- pick up car- could stay 1 night
Drive to Matera or Alberobello- 3 or 4 nights
Drive to Salerno or Naples - drop car
Naples 3 nights
Fly home

Have you been to Rome?
That would be so easy.

Fly to Naples- train to Rome
Rome 4 nights
Train to Salerno then to Amalfi Coast town of choice. 6 nights 2 bases
Naples 3 nights
Fly home

I urge you not to regard Matera etc. as adjacent to Sorrento or the Amalfi Coast. Transportation there is a different project than the (already significant) effort needed from Naples to Amalfi.

Besides the comments, be sure to follow the links inside this discussion:

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/amalfi-coast-for-7-nights-itinerary-help

Hi Eugene,
We've been to all of the above. And just last night I was re-reading our old Napoli/AC TR from Xmas '90.
Some opinions and facts:

-Amalfi is a sizable town with all the crowds, prices and touristyness that comes with that (cue Positano too); maybe check out smaller, more sympa Atrani right next door, as a potential base?
-Matera and Puglia deserve a separate trip; btw, Matera's visual identity is different from Andalusian pueblo blancos in that it features a consistently monotone stone throughout, with little of the variance one sees in say, Arcos, Zahara or Grazalema.
-for our March return to the AC (first time in 33 yrs), we'll be happy to skip Capri and its pricey intensity.
-Ravello also makes a nice foil to the crowds elsewhere.
-the poster 'progol' recently posted a nice Naples TR with plenty of fotos over on Fodors forum.
-might it make sense to add those Sorrento days instead to Naples, including Pompeii & Herculaneum?
Anyway, you have plenty of good choices and of course, your own personal preferences.
Hope it goes well.

I am done. The end.

Both Positano and amalfi are easilly accessible via multiple ferry lines leaving from Sorentos harbour

Getting to both Amalfi and Positano by bus, or even hired driver in a busy time is an absolute nightmare imo.

If I was to do them again I’d probably book a place for a week or more in Sorrento, then take a day bag and stay over night in either amalfi or Positano for a night. The boat is soooo much more convenient and accessible than the access via roads

I kinda like it the way you have it, just add some more days on Amalfi. Amalfi is an excellent base to explore from and I think additional days on the Amalfi Coast itself are needed. Having all this time is a luxury. Getting around in the region can either be pricey or time-consuming, a relaxed timeline is it’s own currency here.

If there’s a finer point to quibble, I don’t think Sorrento is necessarily worth two nights just on its own. But if you were planning on visiting Pompeii from there it makes sense. Pompeii is much closer to Sorrento than Naples. If push came to shove, you could drop it in favor of another day in Naples then ferrying straight to Capri. Still, I don’t have anything against it, but it’s kind of a watered down version of an AC town. It is more a nice hub or base than a destination.

Thanks to everyone who contributed to this discussion. It becomes clear that there is plenty of things to do and see in Amalfi cost and Naples to fill my days. I have been to Rome and Pompei, so I don't have to go there, but I am interested to see Herculaneum and Paestum. So I decided to alter my plan, move Naples to the end and drop the idea of driving 3h each way to Matera. Here is my updated plan:
from Naples airport reach Sorrento and stay there for 2 nights. My plane arriving late, so, in reality, it will be only one day there.
Then to Capri for 2 nights
Amalfi for 3 nights
Probably overnight stay in Salerno to see Paestum.
Naples 4 nights, but in reality only 3 full days because my flight back is early in the morning.
We are not young people anymore, so will take it easy. Hopefully, it will not be super busy in the middle of May.

Been in and around the Amalfi Coast twice in the last decade, both time in early March. At that time, the coastal towns were pretty much deserted, and not much was open. Depending on when in May, it could be a little more crowded or very busy. The high season seems to start earlier and extend later, post-Covid.

As others upthread have opined, 9 days in the A.C. area could be too much time, especially with 4 different places. Not that you'd do it, in fact I get your wanting to experience gritty Naples, and the beauty of staying on the A.C. and waking up to those vistas. But I have based in Salerno, dirt cheap at a B&B, and seen the Amalfi Coast on day trips. Salerno's Old Town is charming and a great place to hang. We've also based over in Sorrento, which doesn't have the views the other side of the peninsula does, but has great lodging, it's relatively flat and has I think the best food in the area, with Salerno a close second. And from there we daytripped to Naples, Pompei & Positano. Very easily done.

@Jay, thank you. It sounds like a good option to stay in Salerno and do day trips to different places like Amalfi and Positano.

Thanks Eugene. In fact, tentative plans are next October, on the way from Sicily to Rome by train, we're going to break it up with a 2-day stop in Salerno. We'll be with another couple who have never been, we'll stay at the Hotel Plaza right across the piazza from the train and bus station. Better yet, less than a block away is the port for the ferry to Amalfi, Positano, Capri or Sorrento.

A week would be plenty of time.

Suggest staying in Sorrento and use it as a base to visit Capri, Amalfi and Pompeii.