First Italy trip- input much appreciated
 

Greetings-
I?m new to this board but have read some other posts and found this to be a very useful and seemingly very well informed and cooperative group. I was hoping for some help myself. I?m planning a honeymoon (and first trip to Europe) for early September this year. Tentative itinerary:
DAY ONE: Fly from Boston to Rome
DAY TWO: Arrive in Rome around 10 am, get bearings, and hopefully so some sightseeing in the afternoon and dinner.
DAY THREE: Spend some time sightseeing around Rome and then catch early afternoon train to Naples and continue immediately onto Sorrento arriving around 4 pm. Dinner and night in Sorrento.
DAY FOUR: Spend morning in Sorrento and then noon time train to Pompeii. Return to Sorrento late afternoon on train. (30 minutes each way)
DAY FIVE: Take morning ferry (8:30 am or so) from Sorrento to Capri. Spend day/night in Capri
DAY SIX: Capri
DAY SEVEN: Take noon time ferry from Capri to Sorrento (or Positano if possible). Early afternoon bus to Positano. Sightsee, dinner, and night in Positano.
DAY EIGHT: Take afternoon (3 pm) bus from Positano to Amalfi and then catch bus to Salerno. Catch evening train from Salerno to Rome arriving around 10:15 in Rome. ( MAY BE TRICKY I KNOW)
DAY NINE: See more sights in Rome
DAY TEN: Take 1 pm flight from Rome back to Boston

I am hoping for some input regarding:
-Too hectic?
-Is there a ferry from Capri to Positano?
-Would it make sense to add another day for more Positano?
-Some of my train/bus connections are somewhat tight. Do you need much time for transfers and do things run on time?
-We are budgeting about $200 USD ($160 Euro) a night for hotel, is this adequate for 3-4 star (1st Class/Superior 1st Class)? It seems like there are actually good deals to be found in Positano/Capri for $125-180 USD, are these too good to be true? Can similar be found in Sorrento/Rome? Will there still be availability at this point? Is the internet a reliable method to reserve rooms? (I speak no Italian)
-Is the bus ride from Positano/Amalfi/Salerno worth it or should we just go from Positano to Sorrento and then train it from there back to Rome via Naples? Doe it make a difference either way?

I?m sure your comments will be quite helpful and also prompt more questions. Thank you in advance for your help.

Yes, it is much too hectic for my taste. But, then, I'm not you. Can't help you with hotels as we prefer pensions or smaller luxury hotels that don't qualify for more than 2 stars.

I can't answer all of your questions, but that itinerary has way too much rushing around for my tastes. Especially for a honeymoon - we were so exhausted after our wedding we couldn't do much of anything in the way of sightseeing for about three days - and we stayed in the same time zone!

But it's your trip, and maybe you have a lot more stamina than we did.

Things do generally tend to run on time in Italy - Mussolini's best legacy, I guess.

Minor issue, but to follow your trip, seems like more people say Day 0, depart, Day 1 arrive.

But maybe it is day one of your new life in marriage!? so who am I to pick?

Anyhow, yes, it is a little bit hectic. I wonder if you might be able to find an inexpensive onward flght to Naples (never leave the airport). nd then consolidate your time in Rome at the end.

In rome, 160 euro might end up being closer to 2-2.5 stars, rather than true 3 stars, but maybe you will find a gem at a bargain price. It won't kill your honemyoon.

If this is a "typical" Sunday honeymoon departure, and you arrive on Tuesday - - are you setting yourself up for something you have to do on the next day? (like go to work?). If that's true, despite how crammed your trip is, I might recommend shoertening by one day.

Congratulations on your imending marriage... and...

Best wishes,

Rex

There is a regular bus from Sorrento to Positano, and regular ferries connecting Positano, Capri and Sorrento. Instead of trying to stay two nights in each of these places, why not just stay in one and take leisurely day trips to the others. My pick would be Positano.

Picking Positano as a base does make it a bit harder to get to Pompeii, but you will more than make up for lost time by not having to pack and move luggage around.

Last year I met this cute young couple starting their honeymoon after flying through Rome and training down to Sorrento.

They had left the day after their wedding and were so exhausted just from the stress of the wedding, planning the trip and flying that she had her shoes off and was popping aspirin and he looked like a deer ready to lie down in front of the appoaching headlights!

Take it easy, it is a honeymoon first of all, you can always travel together later.

Yes, very hectic. But having said that, I have done something similarly hectic before.
To answer a few questions:

I would probably take the bus Positano -> Amalfi -> Salerno and then train to Rome. There are direct trains from Salerno -> Rome.
If you go Positano -> Sorrento, you'll need to take CV train to Naples and then change again for Trenitalia train to Rome.

There is a ferry from Capri -> Positano. Not sure if it runs in Sept, hopefully someone else will know.

Pack light, as you are moving around a lot!

Thanks so much for all the repsonses thus far. I was afraid it was a bit hectic. As for timing, the wedding is on a Saturday, we are doing nothing Sunday, and planning to fly out Monday around 5 pm. We would get home and have the weekend to relax again before work. I may add in another day to the trip as well as cut down on some trvael. Thanks thus far.

Thanks again for all of your help. I've made some changes. Please let me know if this sounds better/easier. I added one day as well. Thank you again.
DAY 0: Depart Boston (2 days after wedding) around noon for Naples
DAY 1: Arrive in Naples sometime around noon. Get on a ferry/hydrofoil ASAP to Capri. Spend night in Capri.
DAY 2: Capri
DAY 3: Late morning/noon time ferry to Sorrento (or directly to Positano if possible) then on to Positano. Stay in Positano.
DAY 4: Positano
DAY 5: Take day trip from Positano to Pompeii (3-4 hrs) via Sorrento and return to Positano for evening.
DAY 6: Positano
DAY 7: Take bus from Positano to Salerno via Amelfi. Then board train to Rome.
DAY 8: Tour Rome
Day 9: Tour Rome
Day 10: Fly out of Rome to Boston in AM

This seems far less hectic. Again, people have been very helpful, both on this topic and on the board in general.

Greetings and best wishes on your marriage. Please take a deep breath and remember that the honeymoon is the most important part of this trip. Rome alone would be enough - Sorrento, enough, as well. When you look back on this trip, what sense of it will you want? If it were my honeymoon - oh, my goodness - were it were my honeymoon - I'd spend it all in Rome, wandering back streets, interacting with those wonderfully friendly Romans, visiting the sites that will take your breath away, absorbing 2000 years plus of incredible history but never having to make a deadline or push myself and my new spouse. I've been to Rome twice and each time wished for more - more la dolce vita. Wished for the time to meander and pretend and imagine. Pompeii will blow your mind away. Half a day is not enough. I guess it all depends on what you want - mandolins or madness. Slow down - and remember you are beginning a life together. Move slowly into it. I have to say that Italy is perfect for a honeymoon - maybe even more so than Paris, my favorite city. Good luck, my dear.

rparmele1,
Your revised itinerary is VERY reasonable, much better and will be a wonderful trip. It's a nice pace and will allow you to see a beautiful slice of Italy. Everyone has different opinions but as this is your first time to Italy, I think you've done a good job with this itinerary. Don't listen to people who say you need to spend the whole 10 days in one place - that's a nice luxury for people who have visited a place many times but not for your first trip.

Go ahead and book it and figure out your hotels. For hotel recommendations, there are plenty of suggestions on this site (just do searches like "Positano hotels") and you can always check reviews on Tripadvisor.com. You can definitely find them for $200 a night if you are a bit flexible - some places like Capri and Positano are quite expensive so you might not always find a 3 star, but it's doable.

You're doing this the right way by planning ahead. Enjoy.

There is a bias on this board for staying in place more than moving around and it is my bias also. Think about your preferences as couple and make sure that it is okay with both of you to be moving around a lot. I like to get into one place and take day trips more than I like to move around to much. Do you think you might stay in one place for 4-5 nights at a time and pick just two places to visit instead of three? I know it doesn't seem like it now, but a wedding is intensely stressful and traveling can be stressful also, better to minimize that and enjoy each other.

I applaud you on working out this great new plan! For your first trip you are doing a good job planning so far. I would keep this new trip and pick some nice hotels from the search box here and you will have a wonderful time.

Hi rp,

Much better itinerary.

How important is Rome? A honeymoon on the Amalfi Coast in September would be terrific.

You could fly into Naples (a night there would be interesting. You could leave your luggage at the hotel and go to Pompeii, come back and) take the ferry to Capri.

Take the evening ferry to Positano and spend the rest of your time on the coast
and return from Naples.

The AC part of my trip report might help you.

Ira?s Trip Report

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34451044

see also

Helpful Information: Italy

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34443340

Thank you all yet again.

Ira, I read most of your travel journal that you supplied the link to and found it very helpful. We've heard so many great things about Positano and are hoping to base ourselves there but it seems if we couldn't find adequate (unique mix of cost, amenities, and availability) accommodations there we really could not do much wrong by setting up anywhere along the coast such as Praiano, etc. Correct? Thanks. As for Rome, I think we are both excited about seeing it so we will probably try to work it into the trip. Your advice makes sense though too. Regardless, we're looking forward to it, now we just have to get some luck in booking it.

I've developed a formula that results in maximum enjoyment and minimum stress.

Do half as much in twice the time

Here's how - first I figure out everything I could possibly see and do in a given time period, say for two weeks.
Then I select the equivilent of one week's worth and then cut that itinerary in half.

I learned this in Florence the hard way. I started at 8am and finished at 7pm and walked all day and never stopped. I was exhausted all the time.
After that trip I made myself a couple of promises. 1. I would come back. I didn't have to do it all then or never and 2. I would leave plenty of time to wander and be lost, for opportunities to be surprised by what I stumbled upon by accident.

Now I put in effort on the front end of my trip.
I read extensively, so that I get the full flavor of the sights when I'm there, I get the benefit of the resonance of history and meaning.
If I particularly love Caravaggio or Fra Angelica or Miro I find out where their works are before I go. And if I see a church door in Rome, I go in.

Please accept my best wishes for many years of happiness.

Hi rp,

As I noted, room 12 at the Le Sirene has the same view as from the Le Sirenuse in Positano at a much lower rate.

The orange bus runs from Praiano to Positano on a regular schedule, and the SITA bus stops right near the hotel.

We will stay there again when we go back. Use the money you save over Positano to have dinner at La Strada in Praiano.

Ira- I have an e-mail to Le Sirene about availablity in early September but haven't heard back. Will I be out of luck? How much lead time would you say I need to find something? Thanks.

when are you traveling??

Hi rp,

Have you heard from Le Sirene?

Hi rparmele,

I am also planning a first trip to Italy this August/September, but to celebrate my 8th wedding anniversary. Congratulations to you!

After reading many posts on this site re: hotel recommendations, I reserved a room (with a terrace & sea view) in Positano at Villa Rosa (E140), a superior double (with terrace & sea view) at La Minerva in Capri (E195) & a room at Relais Banchi Vecchi in Rome (E110 -- near Campo d'Fiori). web sites below:

http://www.villarosapositano.it/entrance.htm

http://www.laminervacapri.com/en/index.html

http://www.banchivecchi115.com/inglese/

Villa Rosa & La Minerva were also recommended by Karen Brown's guidebook.

I just got back from my first trip to Italy, had booked hotels myself after researching books and on-line. Was nervous about what the hotels would be like , but all five we stayed were great ( and were 2 - 3 stars). From the experiences I had, if you are on a budget, I definitely would NOT go to 4 stars, the 3 star places were exceptionally nice. The hotels and rooms are ALL immaculately clean, they are apparently regulated closely there. All were very classy, with great staff and service, and the rooms/bathrooms were all bigger and nicer than i thought they would be.
We also travelled alot, and it was tiring, although the trains are great, you are still repacking and lugging your luggage around, so pack as light as you can! (You can wear things more than once or twice, as long as you have enough clean underwear :) !! You should go to Pompeii from Naples, it is very close. Capri was beautiful, we were only there 1/2 day, the weather was cloudy, but it is a place I'd like to go back and spend more time in!! My 12 year old son announced that when he gets married, he wants to honeymoon on Capri!! We did a quick tour of Pompeii in about 2 hours, probably 3-4 is better, but we saw alot of it. (House of Vetti is closed for renovations!!!)
Had great food everywhere, worst meal was an expensive place we found in a guide book. Look for smaller, not commercial looking or places that are advertising alot - everyone makes their own pasta, fresh sauces, fresh cheeses, etc. You almost can't go wrong, and you don't have to spend big $$.
Few quick tips: dont bring travellers checks, no one takes them. Use an ATM or Visa card. Many of the hotels have these cruddy 700 watt hairdryers, so if that is an issue for you, bring one and an adapter or buy one there. They also dont give you hair conditioner or washcloths/face cloths. there are many guidebooks, I had two but used my "Italy for Dummies" alot, was very helpful. Enjoy, and have a wonderful honeymoon- you certainly picked a memorable place!! Ciao! (p.s.- most everyone you need to speak to speaks english...)

Again, thank you all. Your help has been invaluable. A few answers to your questions:
-We're planning on leaving Boston Monday 8/30 and arrivng in Naples 8/31, returning to Boston from Rome 9/9.
-We have heard back from Villa Rosa in Positano and Le Sirene in Praiano, both favorably. Quite excited.
-We have sent e-mails to La Minerva and Belsito in Capri and waiting to hear back.
-Our last step is to get a room in Rome for the last leg of the trip.
Some questions:
-Is there any area in Rome to avoid staying in i.e innconvenience and/or crime? Any further suggestions for specific Rome hotels?
-Belsito in Capri quotes rates around 90 E per person but posts on this board seem to be more around that per room than per person. We have an e-mail into the hotel but does anyone here know for sure?
-Using your US bank issued debit card for most purchases is safe, convenient, and economical i.e exchange rate?

Thank you

Congrats on your marriage! And congrats on your fabulous choice of a honeymoon destination - you'll love it! If it's any help, here's the link to my trip report and pics of our trip to Italy last year. We also went to Positano and Siena and had an incredible time. Hope it helps, happy to answer any questions too...

Italy Trip Report:

www.hightide.com/travel
(click on Italy Trip Report)

Direct URL:
www.hightide.com/travel/Italy2003/Italy2003.html

I recommend the Centro Storico - - and Cesari is a good choice, as are del Senato and Santa Chiara, if their rates don't go through the ceiling (they are suffering from over-popularity, perhaps)

Or read about Canali ai Coronari here and make your own decision about whether enough is known about since its refurbishment.

Another Rome hotel we are considering is Hotel Santa Maria in Trastevere, which sounds like a fun neighborhood at night. The hotel looks wonderful on the web site. It has also been recommended several times on this forum and in Karen Brown's & Rick Steve's guidebooks. We were quoted 155E if we showed them Rick's book and paid in cash (normally 207E). Web site:
www.htlsantamaria.com

Hi rp,

Glad you got to stay the Le Sirene.

>Using your US bank issued debit card for most purchases is safe, convenient, and economical i.e exchange rate?<

NO, NO, NO.

Use your debit card only at ATMs.

Use a charge card for everything else.

If someone gets your debit card number and PIN they can wipe out your bank account in minutes.

me again- we stayed in two places in Rome- both excellent, not sure what the prices would be when you are going. Hotel Miami, very close to station Termini (walking distance) and Caesar House (B&B) very close to Colosseum. Both clean, safe, convenient for sightseeing, great staff. Trastaverde is nice, I saw alot of restaurants but didnt see too many hotels so dont know. That area was a bit of a walk from some of the sightseeing., We did walk all around rome, it is possible, we took a cab once, and took the subway once(not scary, but not very extensive, and its only 1 euro) but mostly walked (good to walk off all the great food)!!

Thanks to all. We have everything set except for airfare. Right now I'm seeing about $860 USD each round trip to fly from Boston to Naple and then from Rome back to Boston. Should we book now or wait for a few months to gives rates a chance to come down? Will they come down or just book up? Thanks.

Thanks again for everyone's help. I've gotten some rolled eyes when I mention we're planning on flying into Naples to begin our trip and ferry to Capri. Is Naples really that unsafe? Our plan is to go directly from the airport to the docks. I can't imagine anything worse than any large city in US. Commn sense usually rules. Thanks.

Hi rp,

> I've gotten some rolled eyes when I mention we're planning on flying into Naples to begin our trip and ferry to Capri. Is Naples really that unsafe?

NO

>Our plan is to go directly from the airport to the docks.

I suggest that you try to arrange at least one night in Naples. It has much to recommend it.

The Naples part of my trip report might be of interest to you.

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34451044

rparmele--If you can't imagine that there's anything worse than any large city in the US, you will be in for some unpleasant surprises if you really start traveling worldwide.

my husband and I also went to Capri and the Amalfi Coast on our honeymoon last summer. We loved Capri (stayed at La Minerva -- adored it). One word of caution re. Naples: we also went straight from the airport to the ferry via taxi. This is obvious advice for any foreign city, but make sure you get into a licensed cab and make sure the driver uses the meter. The ride from airport to ferry should only be about 10 or 15 euros. Enjoy your honeymoon!