On September 13th my husband and I will be traveling from Rome to Amalfi on our honeymoon. We are actually staying at the Belvedere Hotel, located between Positano and Amalfi (closer to Amalfi). Can someone recommend the best way to make the trip without a car. Should we get to Sorrento by rail and then take the bus to Amalfi, stopping at our hotel on the way (if the bus will stop)? Or take a ferry from Naples to Amalfi (but then we still need to take a bus to our hotel)? I would appreciate any comments. The more specific, the better (name of ferry line, railroad, timetable information, etc). Thank you!

You can use a car service out of ROME and they will drive you down....
That way, you can see all the sights along the Med and not have to deal with the hairpin turns on the highway between all the port towns...

Good car service:

[email protected] ( email addy)

send to the attention of Andrea--
He will set you up with an A/C Mercedes and and English Speaking driver...

The website is www.limoservicerome.com

I would e-mail your hotel and ask them the fastest way there. The train (about 1.80 euros) takes 1 hour from Naples to Sorrento, then the bus (about 1.80 euros too) takes 1/2 hour to Positano, and another 45 minutes to Amalfi. Then you'd have to get to your hotel. You could take the train down to Salerno, then a 70 minute bus ride to Amalfi. Personally, I thought the bus ride was a highlight of our trip with it's spectacular scenery, and hair-raising driving - but everything has to give way to the buses - even if it means backing up 6 cars to get it around a corner!

The ferries don't always work, especially if it looks a tiny bit rough, and they're seasonal too. Type in ferries to Amalfi under search, and you should get a few websites. Try trenitalia.com for train timetables. Good luck and have a wonderful time in that magic part or the world!

Alison - It's quicker to go via SALERNO
(- the Sorrento route takes much longer).

Check www.trenitalia for direct ES or IC trains from Rome to Salerno.

Salerno-Amalfi by ferry takes approx 35 mins., - or by bus it's about 70 mins as Amanda says.

Hope this helps ...

Steve

Hi,

Limo from Rome will be 350-400E. However, since it's your honeymoon, why not train to either Naples or Salerno and hire a limo to take you to your hotel (about 90E).

If you'd rather not splurge, I am told that the bus ride from Sorrento to Amalfi spectacular, as is the ferry from Salerno to Amalfi.

I have in my notes:
Ferry from Salerno
Salerno (P.zza della Concordia) ? Amalfi: 3.5 E 35 min
08,40 ? 09,40 - 11,30 ? 14,10 ? 15,30

Buses from Sorrento
a06.35 - 08.25 - 08.50 - a9.15 ? 09.40 ? 10.05 ? 10.45 - 11.25 - 12.35 ? 13.10 ? 13.30 ? 14.05 - a15.15 - 15.50 - 16.25 - a18.15 - 19.05 - a20.05

a Daily except Sunday and bank holidays

Have a wonderful honeymoon.

We took the train from Rome to Naples, and then the commuter train from Naples to Sorrento and a cab from Sorrento to Positano. I would not take the bus....watching these vechicles try to make the hairpin turns on the Amalfi coast is painful....and scary. If you do the cab route, just negotiate the fare before you leave. Our driver was excellent and very informative. Also, Sorrento is charming.....I absolutely loved Sorrento. If you get a chance to pause there, that might be nice as well. Enjoy your trip....it will be wonderful.

Hi Lizzie,

Would you mind telling us what cab fare you negotiated?

Thank you all so much for your input. It is very helpful!

I believe our fare from Sorrento to Positano was between $30 and $40. Our driver was very agreeable and willing to negotiate. They charge extra, I believe, for luggage over a certain amount of pieces.

With your help, I have looked up the schedules for the trains (trenitalia) and ferry service (metro del mare). It looks as if there are only two ferries a day leaving from Salerno to Amalfi. Is the hydrofoil schedule the same? Can anyone tell me how to look it up? Also, do they leave from the same location?

Since we will need to get from Amalfi to our hotel (in between Amalfi and Positano) anyway, we may opt for a taxi or limo service from Salerno in the end.

Again, thank you.

Alison - There are several ferries daily between Salerno & Amalfi/Positano - weather permitting.

Departures are from Piazza della Concordia jetty, 3 mins walk from the railway station.

Here's the current timetable listing:

http://www.hotelolimpico.it/english/linkferry.asp

It says it's valid till 31/10/03, though it might be best to phone to confirm.

Hope this helps ...

Steve

alisonnyc,

We spent Sunday in Rome doing Mass at the Vatican and sightseeing around the Colosseum (yes, it's open Sundays).

We left Monday for Amalfi (actually, Ravello) on a train leaving Rome at 11:30 AM. It went through thundershowers south of Rome (glad we weren't driving) and stopped in Naples, then continued on to Salerno, arriving around 2:30 PM.

The Salerno train station is in a small plaza a couple of blocks from the sea. We bought tickets at the newsstand there for the SITA bus that stops right there in the plaza and goes up the coast to Amalfi. Again, more thundershowers and spectacular cloudscapes, and I was clicking and whirring away taking pictures instead of worrying what's around the next corner. Saw lots of Benzes backing up to get out of the way of our bus, which finally stopped with its back end over the seawall in Amalfi, where the Positano and Ravello buses depart every half hour or so.

I'm convinced that's the only way to go. You only have one coonnection to make, in Salerno, and it's in the same seaside plaza as the train. The SITA buses are nice and EXPERTLY driven. It's also the least expensive way to go.

The ferries may be fun (we took a couple), but can be pretty rough if the weather isn't calm. They don't run as frequently as the buses.

Hi,

Metlc has the best route from Rome to Amalfi. From there you can take a cab to your hotel.

You might find www.multimap.com helpful for orienting yourself.

Thank you all, for your thoughtful responses!