italy2012

We will be driving from Bologna to Ascoli Piceno in mid-September to visit family. Our next stop is Positano. While we COULD drive to Naples (airport or train station?) I am a bit concerned about driving that route. I cannot seem to find a train route that makes sense. I would appreciate any advice.

As far as Naples to Positano, I am considering a driver but am open to other options for getting from Ascoli to Positano.

Thanks in advance!

mama_mia

Traveling from Sulmona (Abruzzo) to the Amalfi Coast, we returned our car in Salerno. I think if you plug in Ascoli Piceno to Salerno on google maps, you would see a similar route. The last portion A1/A30 skirted Naples. Salerno was not bad for returning the car, and we then planned on a bus to Atrani (on the AC) but ended up sharing a cab.

Someone else might give better info on ease of driving into Naples for return.

sandralist

Consider dropping the car off at the Naples airport and getting a taxi from there. The Naples airport is on the ringroad that skirts central Naples -- you would need to pass the airport to drive to Salerno. It is similar to any ring road of any older city in America. It's basically an elevated highway, and it is not different from any other toll highways you will be traveling in Italy.

I think if you drive all the way to Salerno from Ascoli Piceno you will miss the ferries, and bus or taxi are your only options. (Bus makes many people nauseous and can be quite slow going due to traffic in September.)

Otherwise, have you looked into the possibility of dropping off the car in Terni and taking a train from there to Naples (and onward to Positano by taxi?)

bvlenci

There is a bus from Ascoli Piceno to Rome, where you could get a train to Naples or Salerno. Here are the schedules:

http://www.startspa.it/uploads/alleg...-FIUMICINO.pdf

If you were to catch the 8 AM bus, you'd be in Rome's Tiburtina bus station by 11:40, too late to catch the 11:45 train from the adjacent Tiburtina train station. If you catch the 12:30 train to Naples from Tiburtina, you'd have time to get a bite to eat in the station, and could be in Naples by 2 PM. That wouldn't be much longer than the drive, if you stop for lunch en route, and especially if you run into heavy traffic near Naples (as we have in the past). If you prefer to go to Salerno, you could change trains in Naples and be in Salerno before 3:30.

The drive as far as Naples isn't bad, except that there can be traffic jams. If you drive, I would try to avoid the route that takes you close to Rome, because it gives you two potential traffic jams.

Leely2

I am also doing this drive--interested in the responses. Thanks for asking and good luck, italy2012.

italy2012

Thank you for the responses. Are there any concerns about safety on this route? I am reading about fake accidents and other scams. We drove from Florence to Ascoli and from Ascoli to Rome a few years ago with no problems.

bvalenci-I do not know if we could drop a car in Ascoli.

sandralist

Where did you read this? And what other "scams" are you talking about?

One caution that is repeated for all travelers driving anywhere in Italy is not to leave a vehicle full of your stuff parked at an AutoGrille/rest stop or hiking trail head, with nobody in the car. If you are stopping for lunch, more relaxing to go to to a countryside restaurant with parking right outside the door. Take your electronics with you into the restaurant, and have your luggage covered and out of sight in the trunk/boot.

bvlenci

There are such faked accidents, where the supposed "victim" pushes for a cash settlement. These happen in all countries, though, and they wouldn't happen on the autostrada. In fact, they're not very frequent.

http://www.codici.org/archivio-comun...-fiancata.html

bvlenci

If you can't turn the car in in Ascoli Piceno, then I would definitely drive at least as far as Naples airport. If you get a taxi from there, as Sandra suggested, you'll waste a lot less time than if you turned the car in in Rome. I think the taxi would cost about €200.

sandralist

I don't think a taxi from from Naples airport to Positano would cost €200, but I could be wrong. If you've booked lodgings in Positano, e-mail the owners and ask the cost. Here is an older thread about costs that might be helpful

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...o-positano.cfm

I am of course aware of faked accidents in all countries. I was specifically curious about what italy2012 had read, and from what source. I have heard repeated warnings about various kinds of highway banditry around Catania in Sicily, but had not heard similar stories along the route from Ascoli Piceno to the Napoli airport.

Blueeyedcod

Official taxi fixed fare to Positano is 120 euro

http://www.comune.napoli.it/flex/cm/...?51d77d0d85ed9

You need to inform the driver BEFORE you get in the cab that you want this fare. There is a laminated fare chart similar to the PDF on the above link in the passenger seat pocket of all cabs by law. If the driver refuses this fare, simply point to the chart or better still print or photograph the PDF on the above link and show it to them.
Sometimes some of the drivers give tourists a story along the lines of 'no fixed fares from the airport' etc. - this is not true. Stand your ground and you'll be okay.

italy2012

Thank you all for your responses. I have done so much reading, I could not tell you specifically where I saw the comments about the "accident" scams but it was from more than one source. Bvlenci, going to Rome (3hours) and then going South seems rather time consuming. If you, knowing the region, do not have a concern about driving to Naples I will take your advice. I will definitely contact the owner of our B&B for suggestions on transportation from Naples airport to Positano. Grazie Mille!

Leely2

italy2012, do you mind if I hijack this thread a bit? I have a few other questions about this drive, but it seems redundant to start a separate thread given the similarity of our routes.

If you do mind, I will post independently. Just let me know. Thank you!

bvlenci

I just looked it up, and found that there's a fixed fare of €120 for a taxi from Naples airport to Positano.

http://www.aeroportodinapoli.it/taxi/

If you decide to take a taxi from there, you might want to print the page and take it along. Some drivers are a bit forgetful when it comes to fixed fares.

italy2012

Leely2--hijack away! ��

italy2012

Bvlenci--Grazie Mille!

Leely2

I was just wondering if the drive from Ascoli to Naples airport is scenic, if there are any especially worthwhile stops to make en route, good restaurants for lunch if we decide to make it a leisurely trip.

Google shows the drive straight through as 3 hours 36 minutes. Viamichelin has it at 4 hr 16 minutes. Which is more realistic?

Thanks!

sandralist

There are usually many, many good restaurants of note everywhere along a driving route in Italy, and the key to choosing one is when you will be leaving Ascoli Piceno, and thus where you will be during the Italian lunch hour. I usually take a look in advance at Fred Plotkin's Italy for the Gourmet Traveler and the Slow Food Osterie d'Italia guide and see what they recommend along my route, and pick a place that looks convenient to where I'll be around noontime. Traveling with luggage, I tend to favor countryside or village restaurants. I always call in advance to make sure they will be open, and to make a reservation if I am traveling on a weekend.

I also purchase a guidebook for every Italian region I will be traveling through and look in advance to see if there is anything I want to stop to see. I take the guidebook with me on the trip, or xeroxed pages of the relevant sections.

Leely2

Thanks, yes, I have quite a few guidebooks for various regions of Italy, but not for Abruzzo, which I guess is the ground we'll be traversing (for the most part) on our drive.

We aren't in a huge rush, as we are dropping the car off in Naples and then staying there for five nights. Then to Ravello for a few.

sandralist

Do you have food guidebooks for Italy? They will include recommendations for Abruzzo. I believe that the Osteria d'Italia is now available as a downloadable app. The Italian is quite easy to decipher. You can also look online for Michelin recommendations, which will include inexpensive neighborhood places (not Michelin starred high end places)