pgoodpasture

Hello! My husband and I are planning a two-weeek trip to Rome, Naples, and Ravello in late October. Here is our itinerary so far:

10/15: leave US
10/16: arrive Rome
10/16-10/23: Rome
10/23-10/25 or 10/26: Naples
10/25 or 10/26 - 10/29: Ravello
10/29: return to Rome
10/29-10/31: Rome
10/31: fly home

This forum has been so helpful in planning our trip! And as you can see from our itinerary, there are a few spots where we are still unsure.
First, we aren't sure if we want to spend 2 or 3 days/nights in Naples. This will be our first visit. We love art and museums, and we love discovering new places. We are quite comfortable navigating big, chaotic cities. But we are also hoping to really relax on this trip. Rome is an old friend, and we will be enjoying La Dolce Vita there, not worrying about seeing the big sights, etc., instead soaking up the beautiful city, ducking into ancient churches, eating good food and drinking good wine, etc. And Ravello will obviously also be relaxing. So Naples will be our one high-energy destination. Top of our list are Caravaggio, Baroque churches, and the Archeological Museum. We also plan to visit Pompeii from Naples - we have never been. I know that even a week will be too little time to really take in Naples, but is two days ridiculous? Could we use our travel day to the coast to visit Pompeii, giving us two full days in Naples itself? Our thinking has been that we would like to have more time on the AC, especially if we use that travel day for Pompeii and so have 2 full days in Naples. That would give us 3 days on the coast before heading back to Rome, if I am counting correctly.
Second, after reading through many threads on this forum and talking with friends, we have decided to stay in Ravello on the AC. My husband loves the big views from high up and the added green space in Ravello as compared to the coastal towns, and we both like a calm and quiet home. We are not big "sit on the beach" people, though we hope to discover some local swim spots for less organized dips in the sea. I have not landed on a hotel in Ravello yet and would love advice there. We have decided to rent a car - my husband loves to drive, and we have been told that the traffic will be manageable at the end of October on the coast road.
Third, since we plan to rent a car, does anyone have experience with renting a car in Naples v training to Salerno and renting one there? I am thinking Salerno might be the better option, especially since we will be returning to Rome at the end of our trip and can return the car, then take the train directly from Salerno to Rome (at least that is what my research has shown - please correct me if I am wrong!).
Finally, are there boat excursions that folks recommend on the coast? We love being on the water and we like to see the towns from the water and maybe find a secret swimming spot or two that are more easily accessible by boat.

Many thanks for any and all thoughts, advice, feedback, etc.!

SusanP

I love Rome, it's my favorite place. That said, I also love Naples, so I would take a day away from Rome and add it to Naples. There is a lot to see there, and you're losing one day in the city for Pompeii.
The views in Ravello are of course gorgeous.

Every time you change hotels, it eats up at least half a day, so if you have already booked your flights in and out of Rome, the main thing I would do differently is to go directly to Naples after landing and put all your time in Rome at the end to avoid the additional hotel change. If you haven't booked your flights yet, fly into Rome and out of Naples or vice versa.

I wouldn't drive!

Jean

The way you're listing the days is giving a false picture of how much time you have everywhere. Although some transfers take less time than others, you can't count any travel day as a full day of sightseeing. So, whether you say 10/23 will be spent mostly in Rome or mostly in Naples depends on the time your train departs/arrives, but it's not a full day in either place. Ditto 10/29.

What will you use the car for, exactly? Even if (big if) the traffic on the coast road is relatively less onerous (October is not totally off season), you still have the parking issue anywhere you go, and your driving speed will mean even short distances (say, to Positano 16 miles away) could easily take 45-60 minutes... each way. If you had more time, I'd get it. But, two days?

You might also look into the cost of the rental and what your hotel might charge for overnight parking. I've done a few car rental searches recently for possible trips, and rates are high. FWIW, Naples is one of the few cities in Italy that we absolutely won't drive in. I'd pick up at the airport or in Salerno.

I agree with SusanP... Try to put your Rome days together. Moving around in the Amalfi Coast area takes time, so I'd add a full day.

EYWandBTV

We made a similar trip a few years ago, avoiding driving on the coast. From Rome we took the train to Naples, visited, then train to Paestum to see the Greek temples, then train to Salerno (very interesting city, not many tourists), then the ferry up the coast to Amalfi and Ravello. The ferry ride gives beautiful views of the coast. To return to Rome, we just retraced our steps to Salerno then took the train straight to Rome. Here's my trip report:
Rome - Naples - Paestum - Salerno - Ravello Trip Report

HappyTrvlr

We used Naples airport for rental car. Right off the autostrada.

dreamon

I agree with others about clustering your time in Rome to the end and travelling to Naples on arrival in Italy. I wouldn't hire a car as transport in the area is fine; driving is stressful; and parking challenging.

AJPeabody

Flying into Naples instead of Rome (change planes in Rome) saves a lot of changing travel mode overhead in getting to Naples.