Am planning a 7 day trip to the Amalfi coast.
Would like to visit Pompeii, Capri, Naples,
Sorrento. Where would you suggest a good base
(Naples, Sorrento?) and can you fly to Naples, or have to go thru Rome? This includes husband, and 20 yr old daughter

does 7 days include travel days to and from italy? Where will you be travelling from, and when?

Hi HC - Why base in Naples or Sorrento when you can stay in Positano!

The minor inconvenience of travel is far out-weighed by its spectacular setting ... on probably the most beautiful coastline in Europe.

Have a look:
http://www.pbase.com/mightyone/positano&page=all

Steve

I recommend Amalfi. It is a beautiful, charming town with a good selection of nice hotels. You can board the boat to Capri and all other coastal towns. By car, you reach the Naples area (Pompei, Vesuvio) in 45 minutes. The drive between Amalfi and Positano is one of the most spectacular drives in the world.

We are traveling from Jacksonville FL and will have 7 days on the Amalfi Coast.
Am planning as I get and your suggetions.

How about a car hire from Rome to Naples -
expensive?

Oooops...Forgot to give Month...It will be
mid May.

Hi HC,

If you mean this May, I suggest making hotel arrangements stat.

You can certainly fly into/out of Naples.

I suggest spending 2 nights in Naples with a visit to Pompeii.

Then stay on the AC.

Positano or Praiano (6 km E) are good bases for visiting Capri, Amalfi and Sorrento by ferry or bus as appropriate.

You can take the Circumvesuviana commuter train to Sorrento and then the SITA bus to either.

You might find my trip report helpful:
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34451044

Ira’s Italy Photos
Praiano http://tinyurl.com/ygbows
http://www.ofoto.com/I.jsp?c=11knfe8...0&y=1tkcm7

Positano
http://www.ofoto.com/I.jsp?c=11knfe8...1&y=x6te72

Naples
http://www.ofoto.com/I.jsp?c=11knfe8...&y=-28lwh4

if I remember correctly, the fee being driven from Rome to the AC is around $350.00 My wife and I considered that, but decided on taking the train from Rome to Naples, THEN getting a private driver to take us to Positano.
I would stay at one of the towns along the Amalfi coast versus staying in Naples. Too much driving back and forth if you stayed in Naples.

If you don't want to drive, I'd strongly recommend basing in Sorrento, as it's a transportation hub and there are lots of accomodations and restaurants to suit various budgets. You can fly in and out of Naples, there's a local train (more like a metro or subway) that goes from Naples to Sorrento--and has spectacular scenery all around the Bay of Naples. We (husnad and I) spent 5 days in Sorrento last June, and did day trips to Capri (ferry and hydrofoil are both frequent--great connenctions), to Pompeii (also on the train line, about half way between Sorrento and Naples), and to the Amalfi coast (private tour operator, by car). May will be a great time to be in Sorrento, because it's really not as heavily touristed as it will be in July and August; it wasn't too bas even in mid June. You can get better hotel deals then too, and there's more availability. We stayed down below the main part of town in the fishing port area, at the Hotel del Mare--small rooms, but biggest breakfasts we had anywhere in Italy. Yes, it's a tourist town, but so is most of the rest of the area. If we'd had more time, we'd have done an addional day trip up to Naples to visit the archaeological museum (can go either by train or ferry/hydrofoil), and perhaps to Paestum (Greek ruins). May is not yet high season by any means, so boat transport from some of the smaller towns (Postitano, etc.) may not yet be too frequent. When we flew back home out of Naples, it was through Milan (Milan-Boston), but flying through Rome may work better for other destinations; we did have to book a cab for our departure, as our flight left very early.

We, too, spent 5 nights this past October in that area - loved, loved, loved it! We chose Sorrento as our base after much research. We stayed at Antiche Mura and were very pleased with room, service, location. The reason we chose Sorrento was because of our daily excursion plans/transportation/time. One day we hired a driver to "show" us the Amalfi coast & all it had to offer - marvelous day. One day we took the train to Pompeii - easy & very doable. One day we took the train, again, to Naples to the archeological museum - again, great experience. One day we took a boat to Capri - stunning scenery. There were wonderful restaurants in Sorrento and the evenings spent at Piazza Tasso were glorious. Hope this helps with your plans somewhat....

Thanks to all...I'm getting close! Have chosen Positano for 4 days ( doing day trips) and Capri for 2 then back. Now need to firm up hotels ( many booked...I know I'm late) and transfers. Suggestions for car service?

Hi HC - From where - Naples?

There are a number of Positano and Sorrento-based drivers who have been recommended here:

- Positano-based

www.positanocarservice.com
www.flaviogioia.com
www.limocarservice.net
www.benvenutolimos.com (Praiano)

- Sorrento-based

www.tourofitaly.com
www.francescomarrapese.com
www.cuomonet.it
www.seesorrento.com

Naples-Positano will normally run about € 100.


If you want a transfer from Rome, rates vary considerably between € 300-400. It's best to shop around ...

The same drivers will probably give you the best quote.

Otherwise these Rome drivers get good reviews:

www.limoservicerome.com
www.airportshuttle.it

Hope this helps ...

Steve

We used Francesco Marrapese, as mentioned by Steve James, for our driver service from Naples to Sorrento and then hired him for our day trip along the Amalfi Coast - we were very pleased. He was delightful.