pgoody

Need some advice:

Venice: Deluxe Room at Hotel Bauer or Superior Room at Luna Baglioni? The room at the Bauer is definitely less money, but want something halfway decent to start off the trip.

Florence: Bernini Palace for two nights and then rent a car and drive to Cortona for 3 nights. What are some good day trips out of Cortona? Thinking definitely Siena and San Gemignano, but need something great for the second day. Will be driving to Rome from Cortona and could possibly stop off along the way, if there are some great suggestions.

Rome to Positano: what's the best way to get there? If we take the train to Naples how do we get to Positano without it costing a fortune? (no buses). Are we better off splurging on a private transfer from Rome or renting another car and driving ourselves?

StCirq

To respond to just one of your queries: I wouldn't spend 3 nights in Cortona. In fact, if you're going in high season, I wouldn't spend more than a couple of hours there. A vastly overrated destination, IMO. But if you must, good day trips include Lago Trasimeno, Perugia, Assisi, and some of the small Umbrian villages in the area of Panicale. You can also take a wonderful daytrip up into the mountains around Cianciano and enjoy the spas, if that whets your fancy.

I'd certainly stop in Orvieto on the way to Rome, and spend a night there if you can.

jnjfraz

I also would not stay in Cortona for 3 nights. If the places you want to visit are Siena and San Gim, then stay in or around Siena. You can then go to Pienza and Montalcino one day, a Chianti loop another and explore Siena for a day. If you are into restaurants, I have a good list. email me at [email protected]

treplow

I agree, stay in Siena as your "center". Defintely stop at Orvieto on your way to Rome. There is a hotel that was a monastery or convent, overlooking the valley. At the time, we wished we had made reservations to staty there. Can't remember the name, now. I'm sure, someone can help you.

bobthenavigator

From Cortona to San Gimignano as a day trip would take about 4 hours RT---Cortona is not a good location for you.
The place in Orvieto mentioned above is La Badia.

kybourbon

A private transfer from Rome to Positano will run about 400€. A private transfer from Naples to Positano will run about 100€. Even if you keep the car, you can return it in Positano. You would probably have to drop it in Sorrento and bus the rest of the way. If you don't have a car on the Amalfi coast then you must bus or ferry, but ferries aren't as frequent as buses and won't run off season or in bad weather.

tuscanlifeedit

1) I would be very surprised, even shocked, if a deluxe room at the Bauer is better than "halfway decent." For me, it would do beyond fine. We may have very different measurements of halfway decent, but I will eat my hat if that wouldn't satisfy most people's definition of the phrase.

2)Well, I got similar advice on Cortona. However, I am looking at destinations to the north, so I'm canceling Cortona for slightly different reasons. But stay somewhere near Siena, and go to Volterra, San Gimignano, and points south. Or, I often think it would be nice to stay at San Gimignano and have the town to yourself in the late afternoon and evening, and do daytrips during the day.

3)My preference for getting to Positano would be to take the train from Rome to Naples, and hire a driver from there. If you ask me, AC busses are gross. My stomach gets sick just thinking about them. If any of you have any sort of motion sickness, I wouldn't recommend a bus anywhere on the AC.

I wouldn't bother with another car. I find driving out of Rome to be a PIA, and then you are stuck with a car in Positano, which is no place for a car.

JudyC

From Rome to Positano, the cheapest way is Rome to Salerno by train, then bus to Amalfi, change bus to Positano.

lovisa

You could also take the train to Salerno and get a transfer from there:

http://www.positano.com/en/c/benvenu...ffeur-services

macdogmom

Isn't there also a ferry that you can take to Positano?

pgoody

There's a ferry??? Does anyone have information on this?

kybourbon

There is a ferry in season so it depends on when you are traveling.
http://www.metrodelmare.com/english

TDudette

Gubbio is a nice visit.

macdogmom

We will be going to Positano in early June and our plans were to take train to Salerno and then ferry to Positano. Thanks for the ferry schedule, kybourbon--that is very helpful.

Gina817

We drove from Naples to Sorrento with our rental car from Hertz. It was surprisingly easy and affordable. Then the gentleman from Hertz drove us to our hotel in Positano.

The gentleman from Hertz dropped off our rental car at the Positano hotel at the end of our visit. We took it from there.
This was very easy and didn't cost too much. Even adding up all of the public transit for my husband and I - the car was close, if not the same in price. This was during September 2009.

tuscanlifeedit

Gina817: not sure I understand.

You dropped off your car in Sorrento, or just left it parked? Someone from Hertz in Sorrento drove you to Positano, and picked you up there? I didn't know Hertz had this service.

Do you know the price?