SL146

My husband and I will be traveling to Italy beginning late June for 14 nights flying into Venice and staying for 4 nights before traveling to the Amalfi Coast and finally leaving from Rome. Thus far, our itinerary is as follows: Venice - 4 nights, TBD 2 nights, Positano - 6 nights, Rome- only 2 nights as we have been to Rome in the past.
I am unsure of what to do with the two days between Venice and Positano. Here are the options I am considering:
1. Is it best to take a high speed train and spend the two nights in Florence? I am not sure that two nights paired with train travel will be enough.
2. I have also thought of flying from Venice to Naples and spending the two nights in Capri or Anacapri. 3. Recognizing we want to visit Pompeii, I also wondered if we should use those two nights to stay in Naples, rather than backtrack from Positano.
4. Another option would be to shift the itinerary to allow for 3 nights in Soriano Nel Cimino rather than Rome. It would then be Venice (4) Positano (6) Soriano Nel Cimino (3) Final night (1) at airport hotel. I don't know much about this area, nor can I find any reviews anywhere on the Timeshare (available at no cost).
5. My final thought was to extend Venice to 5 nights and Positano to 7 nights and just do day trips from each locale.
I appreciate recommendations. Flights are confirmed. Venice accommodations can be extended and Positano hotel dates can be adjusted, so I am still pretty flexible.

bvlenci

Spending the two nights in Florence or Naples makes the most sense logistically. Both put you closer to Positano than Venice would be.

If you leave Venice early in the morning, you would have nearly two full days in Florence. While it wouldn't be long enough to see all the artistic treasures of the city, you could see most of the city itself and visit one or two museums, plus a few of the churches that have magnificent Renaissance art displayed. If you're not an art lover, two days is just about the right amount of time for Florence.

Two nights in Naples would give you time to visit Pompeii and the archaeological museum in Naples, where most of the art and artifacts from Pompeii are kept.

I don't think it makes much sense to fly from Venice to Naples. It might save you a little time, but if you consider the time getting to the airport and the fact that you have to arrive two hours early, in my opinion the time it saves doesn't compensate for the additional hassle.

I've never heard of Soriano nel Cimino. I'm sure it's a lovely little town, and it's a very nice and under-appreciated part of Italy, but, unless you have a car, you'd be kind of stuck there and you could see the town in 20 minutes.

To get from Florence or Naples to Positano, I suggest taking the train to Salerno and then a boat to Positano. There are direct trains from both cities.

Your trip has you traveling nearly the entire length of the Italian peninsula, so a lot of your vacation will be spent just getting from one place to another. I myself would prefer to skip Positano and extend the time in Rome, a city where I've never succeeded in seeing all I want to see. (I live in Italy and go there several times a year.) You could perhaps plan a future trip for a longer visit to southern Italy.

nytraveler

I would look at a couple of nights in Sorrento as an alternative to Capri (although that is a good option). The problem with Positano is that getting from there to see sights in other areas (Pompeii, Naples archeo museum) can be very time-consuming and complicated.

Sorrento could be a pleasant stopping place with much easier access to Pompeii and a day trip to Capri by hydrofoil before heading to Positano.

sandralist

Unless you are committed to not renting a car, and only want to see highly popular tourist places in, I recommend Soriano nel Cimino, which is located in a beautiful and fascinating part of Italy with lots of easy day trips (by car) to famous sights and excellent food and wine

http://www.frommers.com/destinations...-cimino/706984

http://www.tuscialets.co.uk/tuscia/about-soriano-2/

http://www.culturediscovery.com/abou...el-cimino.html

If you do google searches with the name of the town and words like "undiscovered" and "visit" and "authentic" you will come up with more info.

SL146

Thank you so much for these ideas shared in the two replies! Venice and the Amalfi Coast were the two specific places we wanted to so see on this trip. Although not exactly practical, we know we need to try to keep it as simple as possible. I agree that the train is a better way to travel. I was just trying to cut down on time, especially if we end up just doing Venice and the Amalfi Coast.

Since we will not have a car, you make an excellent point regarding the small village. It would be expensive to get there and could be explored in much less time than would justify the expense.

Sorrento does seem like it is more accessible for multiple day trips, but I wonder if it is too similar to Positano to justify both. Thoughts? Positano just sounds wonderful! Is a day trip to Capri enough or would we be missing its charm by not staying overnight?

SL146

I see other thoughts came in as I was typing! I will take a look at those links! Thank you. No, we wanted to avoid renting a car.

kja

If art and architecture are of interest, then Florence is well worth a visit (but in that case, 2 days will likely not be enough).

Naples might also make sense, although again, you wouldn't have much time to see its highlights.

IME, Capri is much more magical after day trippers leave, so if you are interested, you might carve a night or even two out of your time in Positano to stay in Capri instead.

Enjoy!

SL146

Thanks for the Capri thoughts - given the time of the year with all the visitors, that makes a lot of sense! I do think I am shying away from Florence due to limited time.

bilboburgler

Ok I give up TBD means what? I sometimes get CT and AC just about gets past my brain but TBD I can see it's a TLA but WTF?

ekc

To Be Determined.

If you want to see Pompeii, I would spend your extra 2 days in Naples (not Sorrento) so you can see Pompeii via train (easy) and the museum in Naples.

Great choice to stay in Positano and with 6 nights you could consider an apartment rental. But do start looking - many places get booked a year in advance. I will be there again in late June and booked our apartment in August.

Depending when in "late June" you will be there, there are a few festivals along the AC that you may be able to attend.