What's the best doable day trip from Naples? Sorrento? Capri? Somewhere a little further away?

Sverlooking the bay. Capri is an island and I would say it has more interest. But, consider a trip to Pocida and Ischia, places that aren't discussed as much.

A trip,to one of the islands can be nice. Capri is, IMO, overrun and tourists as hell, but Procida is more laid back. Less than a day? Depends on how much you do. There are no big sights, but we wandered happily for 2 full days and ate well for little money.

Sorrento is nice, more sights, more tourists but less so than Capri. Rick Steves covers it well in his guide.

Are you going to see any of Naples? It is a very rich destination itself.

I'll be in Naples for eight days, Rome for four days: Two days in Rome, eight days in Naples, two more days in Rome, then home.

Generally when I use one city as a base — in this case, Naples — I do a maximum of two day trips. I want to venture out, but I don't want to give short shrift to my primary "target." (I've been to Rome several times, once for two weeks, which explains why the city is a kind of bookends this time.)

Sorrento's nice and worth a visit, if only to eat some great food and wander the rabbit-warren streets by Piazza Tasso.

Or, for something completely different, take the train down south to the ruins at Paestum (90 min), then double back to tour Salerno on the way back to Naples. Right on the train line.

Sam, the wonderful day trip I made from Naples was by train to Paestum, where there are 3 very intact ruins of Greek temples, right in a row. They are from 550, 500 and 450 BC, and represent some of the best examples of Greek temples anywhere, including Greece. They are set among some not-so-great Roman ruins. There is also an excellent modest-sized museum, displaying some of the art from the ruins. I especially enjoyed the displays of what these Greek temples looked like when in use, painted in bright colors, very different from the plain grey stones of today.
Especially since the light on the ruins tends to be best in the late afternoon or early evening, I would (and did) spend the earlier part of the day in Salerno, where a 10-minute walk either through the modern commercial center or along the coast, leads you from the train station to the old medieval city, with a lovely cathedral and more. If you get an early start, you could also visit the nearby coastal ceramics town of Vietri sul Mare, which is a short bus trip from Salerno. I didn't get to Vietri sul Mare, as I had glitches in buying my train ticket in Naples in the morning (ticket machine didn’t work, ticket office had a long line) and I missed my intended train, but it appears to be a lovely town.
90 minute train ride between Naples and Paestum with a stop in Salerno. 30 minute train or bus between Salerno and Paestum, shorter bus, train or taxi between Salerno and Vietri sul Mare. Great day!

Sorrento doesn’t warrant its own day trip, there’s just not much to it. I thought Capri was pretty great, but it’s criticisms are legit. If you get a really early ferry to Capri, you’ll miss most of the tourist crush.

You sound very interested in Pompeii. If Roman history is your thing, I highly suggest seeing Herculaneum as well. They are very different sites, and I found both to be pretty mind-blowing. Herculaneum is rather close to Naples, and is often open into the early evening.

I would highly recommend Ischia.
The ferry over takes about 90 mins if I remember rightly.
Once there, you can either take local buses around, or hire a Tuk-tuk, which is what we did to get to the enormous castle at one end of the island.
Very quiet and gorgeous there!

I'd second the recommendation for Paestum, but would add the Royal Palace at Caserta to your list of possibilities.
It's an easy 40 minute train trip from Naples, has incredible gardens and fountains - well worth a whole day in my opinion.

I'm intrigued by the idea of a day trip to Paestum (from Naples), which has been recommended by at least two individuals responding to my original post.

I have, however, been looking at trains (via Trenatalia) from Naples to Paestum in May and I find that the earliest available train leaves Naples around noon, which is too late for a day trip, especially considering the one-way journey takes an hour and a half.

Rick's January 2018 concise guide to Naples and the Amalfi Coast says: "Most recently, trains [from Naples' Central station to Paestum] left at 6:50, 7:25, 7:55, and 8:55" in the morning, then not until 12:07."

I can't find those early trains.

Input regarding this issue would be most helpful.

Sam--

If you're looking on the Trenitalia site, I'll bet on the search you're not putting an early enough hour. Put 6 for the hour on the departure next to the date and see what comes up.

On the Trenitalia schedule, I see 4 trains between 6:50 and 8:50 am, less than 90 minutes to Paestum, with a stop in Salerno. Schedule may be different on weekend days. What date and day of the week are you checking?

I vote for Capri. On Capri there are 2 cities - Capri and Anacapri. Both are small and can be seen in a few hours. If you go early you can see Capri before the crowds get bad. Then head to Anacapri; Anacapri is more laid back and not as crowded. It is a taxi ride from the port or town of Capri. Take the chairlift up Monte Solaro, you can enjoy a drink or cappucino while looking at the spectacular views of the entire island.

Thanks to you, Jay. I took your advice and entered an earlier departure time (6am) for the Naples to Paestum trip and I discovered an early morning option that suits me for my day trip. I'm taking an 8:50 am train to Paestum on May 9.

I've had some trouble, however, with my return trip to Naples, which leaves Paestum at 7:51 pm the same day. I filled out the appropriate information and, for some reason, the transaction encountered trouble. I still don't have the ticket. I sent an e-mail about my problem and also called the available 800 number.

You won't want to be in Paestum nearly that long but do plan to see the excellent archaeology museum (check which day it's closed). Take a bus or train to Salerno and spend the rest of the day there - good restaurants, interesting historic center, sandy beach and pleasant strolling along the seaside promenade - stop in at Nettuno for gelato - it must be the best, since there's nearly always a line.

Or consider starting in Salerno and going to Paestum in the afternoon - the temples are especially lovely in the late afternoon sun to sunset and are floodlit from dusk (though sunset may be pretty late in May).

I've had some trouble, however, with my return trip to Naples
There is no need of advance buying of tickets for the Regionale trains. They have a fixed price and are non-reserved. Buy a return ticket (andate e ritorno) at the Naples station.