Hello,

i am travelling to rome 17th may.
i will reach fiumicino airport late in the night so plan to spend the night in a hotel nearby then hire a taxi next day and off to naples.
I plan to spend 2 days in naples after which i plan 2 days in sorrento so that i can cover amalfi.
my que is mostly about the plan of staying in sorrento and then road trip to positano etc. Please share ur driving experience in may as i heard it is more stressful than enjoyment. Is it true that the traffic is really bad? And if the ofd even rule applies in may?

Based on one trip only, driving on the narrow Amalfi coast road was go, stop, back up to let bus get by, repeat. Not conducive to enjoying the gorgeous views. We took a city bus from Sorrento and it took almost 2 hours to go the 19 miles to Amalfi.

Ideally, hire a driver so you can really enjoy the view. Maybe take the ferry back to Sorrento...check schedules. Please report back...maybe our one-time experience wasn't typical. A motorcycle would be the most maneuverable!

Consider Rome to Naples/Sorrento by train. The roads are boring and are subject to delays, while the trains are comfortable and probably far less expensive.

Why would you hire a taxi from the airport to Naples? That seems like it would be terribly expensive and the train is so much better. I took the slow train to Naples and I recommend the non-stop.

Thanks guys for your response.
i have a 2.5 yr old with me so i thought i will rent car for 5 days so that it will be convenient and i can stop anywhere i like. It is costing me 300 euros for 5 days but yes now based on what i read and answers from you guys i might reconsider my decision.
from what i understood traffic issue is in sorento/positano/amalfi area. Is naples also bad with traffic? I now have few options:

1) not keeping car at all and plan eveything using the public transport
2) keeping car only for 2 days while in naples to see the city and then covering sorento/positano/amalfi using public tranport
3) keep the car for 5 days but in sorrento hire a driver ( i guess this will be super sxpensive option)

kindly let me know ur suggestions considering we are 3. Me my wife and 2.5 yr old.

thanks a lot for ur replies.

A car is a bad idea. You have to drive, not see things. You have to park, expensive if available. and often not near where you want to be. You will have damage to pay for no matter how good a driver you are, since the kamikazes surrounding you will not be that careful. ZTL fines can be very high. If you do not know what ZTL's are, don't use a car. Please benefit from the experience of the people posting here.

#1 is your best option.
You absolutely do not need a car in Naples!
With a 2&1/2 year old, I would not take the bus between Sorrento and Positano!
Take a ferry between towns on the Amalfi Coast or hire a driver and take a tour.
Take the train between Rome and Naples.
I would take the train from Naples to Sorrento,
but one option would be to have a driver pick you up in Naples and do some kind of a tour before dropping you off in Sorrento. I have not done it, so just an idea.

Thanks guys , I will go with option 1 then.
I have 18th to 22nd May with me.
So my plan is:

1) Go from Fiumicino to Rome City center on 18th . Cover coloseum trevi fountain , have lunch and take bus to naples ( i have already been to rome so dont want to spend much time there)
2) reach naples around 8-9pm on 18th.
3) Cover naples 19th and 20th.
4) take bus from naples to sorrento 20th evening
5) 21st and 22nd cover sorrento/amalfi/positano
6)23rd back to rome

My que: I plan to use flixbus . Does anyone have experience with it. I have used it here in Sweden but not in Italy but i assume it is good.
I plan to take ferry between sorrento and positano and amalfi. Hope that is the right option?
Anything "must do" that I am missing in this plan?

I'm just curious, if Rome doesn't interest you, then why aren't you flying into Naples?

Are you departing from Rome on the 23rd or simply returning to Rome that day? Where will you spend the night of the 23rd? Asking because there might be a better arrangement of days.
if you are in Rome center anyway, you might prefer a train for getting to Naples. I don’t know the times or cost, just prefer trains in general, find them more comfortable.

I mentioned the train in an earlier post as I agree with Sassafras that trains are more comfortable than busses. On the train you can get up and walk around. If you need bathrooms they are a little better on a train than a bus, assuming the bus has one.

I still think you would be better off to fly into Naples if that can be changed.

Definitely take the train from Rome to Naples! The bus can run into terrible traffic that can add a couple hours to the expected time. I know this from experience! I wouldn't want to be stuck on a bus with a toddler. Even without a delay on the bus, the train is much faster.

The best train ride I have ever taken was from Rome to Naples. The worst bus ride I have ever taken was -- every bus ride.

I’d have to say mine was from Amalfi to Positano. A short enough ride, but the SITA bus went so fast along the curving road and I was almost throwing up my breakfast. Couldn’t wait to get off, I had to sit down by the roadside for a bit for my stomach to settle!

We took the ferry on the return, fabulous views of the towering cliffs and hillside towns from the water, though the actual ferry was quite crowded. The buses too, even in end April!

When Sassafrass wrote "With a 2&1/2 year old, I would not take the bus between Sorrento and Positano!" I remembered feeling a bit queasy on the bus!

Yes!

P_M The price for gothenburg to naples is twice and that too no direct flight and flight time also 11hrs. So i preferred flying to rome instead (direct 3hr flight) spend a day there and then off to naples. We have been to rome before but not with our daughter so we want to spend some time there as well.

Sassafrass : i will return to rome 22nd night or 23rd sometimes in the afternoon as I have return flight at 6pm on 23rd

AJPeabody SusanP Thanks for your inputs.

I hvnt yet booked any bus tickets so based on suggestion from you guys I will take train as well and ferry between sorrento positano. Thanks a ton !

thanks geetika TDudette