I am planning a two week trip to the Amalfi area and am considering three nights at each of the following: Ischia,Procida,Capris,Positano and Ravello. Alternatively we could stay at one or two places and day trip to the others. We like to hike,go to the beach,wander around towns and eat at small local places. I thought by settling in for three days at each place and due
to the short travel times it would be actually more relaxed and a better way to see the area. Any comments or suggestions would be appreciated.

Hi cpi,

The AC is not a large place. It's only about 35 mi from Sorrento to Salerno.

Capri, Ischia and Procida are much alike. I would stay on Capri and visit the other two as daytrips.

Ravello makes a nice daytrip from Positano (or Vice Versa). You could stay in one or the other.

Have you considered visiting Pompeii, Herculaneum, Paestum and Naples? Sorrento is a more convenient base for these.

You might want to consider 4 nights on Capri, 6 nights in Positano and 4 nights in Sorrento.

You might also want to consider Praiano as an alternative to Positano. See www.lesirene.com and my trip report
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34451044

Enjoy your visit.

I think that 3 overnight locations is optimal. Think hard about the nightlife that you care to experience. Daytripping is great, but it's harder to travel about at night, especially if you are relying on public transportation.

Depending on your nighttime interests, Ravello (outdoor summer concerts), Capri (after the tourists have left), Positano, or Sorrento are all interesting options.

I've stayed in Capri, but not Ischia or Procida. From what I've read, I have to disagree with Ira. My understanding is that these three are not "much alike." I would say that Capri is the glamorous sister of the other two, and draws more daytrippers and consummate shoppers than Ischia and Procida, which have the reputation of being much more laidback.I'm sure there are posters on the forum who could address this much better than I can.

Anyway, I've been to the Amalfi Coast, Capri, Sorrento, and Ravello a few times, and I'd recommend that you pick no more than three destinations for your trip.

From Naples, the hydrofoil to Ischia takes about 40 minutes. To Capri,it's 45 minutes.

From Sorrento, which has a less hectic port than Naples, the hydrofoil to Capri takes about 30 minutes. I don't know if there's service from Sorrento to Ischia.

Capri and Positano are definitely worth a few days each. I don't think I'd stay in either of them much longer than that, although I particularly love Positano. From Positano, it's easy to day trip to Ravello, so I don't think you need to spend an overnight there. Ravello is inland, and tends to be more isolated than the other destinations.

Good luck, and have a great trip!

By the way, it is possible to get to Capri from Positano, although sometimes the boats are cancelled due to bad weather or rough water conditions. This seems to be more of a problem in Positano than in Sorrento or Naples.

Also, I think it IS possible to get from Capri to Ischia. I remember another poster writing about it, but I don't have the details. You might want to search fora poster named STEVE JAMES, who seems to have a lot of good info about the area.