Sorrento for 10 days???
 

I am planning on traveling to Italy for the first time with two friends in July for 9-10 days. I would love to see Rome, Florence and Sorrento, but my friends would prefer to stay in one location, Sorrento, and use it as a home base. I've gone through a lot of the posts which have been very helpful, but I didn't come across one staying as long as we're planning on staying. Any suggestions on what to do in/from Sorrento or if you think it may be too long would be greatly appreciated!!

Hi NYC-05, to be honest with you if it was me and I was going to Italy for the first time there is no way that I would spend 9 to 10 days staying in Sorrento. That does not mean I do not like Sorrento I do, although personally I love a small town about 6 klm south of there by the name of Massa Lubrense even better.

But to be in Italy for the first time and spend the time the entire in Sorrento, which I assume is the entire length of your trip. No thank you.

Are you flying into Rome? I think I would tell your friends to go ahead and go down to Sorrento and you will meet up with them about 6 days later. I would get acquainted with Rome.

Not sure of course because you do not indicate where you are flying into and out of but will assume that the airport is Rome.

May I gently suggest that you sit down with your friends and you all have a conversation about what your ideas, wants and expecations are regarding this trip. Going to Europe is to expensive to just "give in" to a couple of friends that may not have anything in common with you as to what you would expect from going to Italy.

Hi

I think your friends are a little tentative about travelling from place to place. There's no need to be. It's very easy and cheap in Italy. They have an excellent rail service. You do not want to miss Rome - that would be a BIG mistake. I would spend at least 3 or 4 days there (taking into account air travel issues). I think all 3 destinations are possible but a little rushed. You may have to cut out Florence unfortunately. From Rome to Sorrento is very easy and cheap - simply take a train to Naples then Sorrento.

Buon viaggio

I agree. While Sorrento is fun to stay for a couple of nights, 9-10 days would be way to long and you will miss out on much of Italy. A couple of things it does make a good base for. Going to Pompei or Hericulum from Sorrento is only a 20 minute train ride - so that is a good base for that. And if you want to explore the Almafi coast, its good for that too. As well as going to the island of Capri (total tourist trap). But I would definitely stay in other places, otherwise you will spend all of your time going back and forth and not enough time just soaking in the atmosphere. In Sorrento, stay at Hotel Minerva for a splerge - it has incredible ocean view rooms up above the city. We loved it.

Hi NYC,

Good advice above.

>I would love to see Rome, Florence and Sorrento,...<

Good idea. Rome, Florence and Venice would be even better.

Spending your whole visit in Sorrento is sort of like visiting the US, staying in Virginia Beach and making daytrips to Norfolk, Richmond and Washington.

It's a nice place in which to relax, but you are missing a whole lot.

((I))

I agree with the above posters. I usually like to stay in one place for several days but 10 days in Sorrento is way too long.

Day trips to Rome from Sorrento would be 3+ hours each way so even if you wanted to take off and see Rome w/o your friends you'd spend the greater part of the day traveling to and from Sorrento.

Why do they want to base themselves in Sorrento (ask them that) and what do they want to see from there.

I've been to all the places you mention and, for my money, I'd spend the 10 days in Rome. The diversity of sightseeing and night life is greater than in Sorrento. You could do day trips to Florence from Rome (1.5 hours each way on the train).

What I find works well when traveling with others is that everyone chooses their top 5 sights to see/things to do and then agree that everyone gets to do what is most important to them. That way everyone goes home happy.

Changing hotels once in a 10-day trip isn't a hardship. If you do 6 days in Rome and 4 in Sorrento you'll get a flavor of 2 different aspects of Italy -a city and a suburban/seaside area.

From Sorrento you could see Pompeii, Capri, and the Amalfi Coast (Amalfi/Positano/Ravello). You could day trip into Naples since it's only an hour on the train.

I wouldn't miss Rome or Florence on my first trip to Italy.

Maybe the frineds have already "seen" Italy or is this their first trip as well? I could understand that if they have already traveled alot in Italy they might want an extended stay on the Amalfi coast. But I agree with the others, for your first trip you would probably want to see more - the idea of several days in Rome and then joining them could be a good compromise. A day trip to Orivieto from Rome would be easy and give a glimpse of another region of Italy. But if you don't want to be on your own, 10 days on the Amalfi coast is certainly not an unpleasant thought now is it? There are quite a few day trips easily done from there so you could have things to do in the morning and just relax in the sun in the afternoons.

Thank you all for your advice! I'm actually supposed to fly into Naples on Eurofly (supposed to be a charter plane?) Should I then take the train to Rome and then return to Sorrento to meet my friends? or start off in Sorrento and then go to Rome and then train back to Sorrento and then fly out of Naples? I wish I researched more before saying yes to my friends!

I think if your friends want to spend the time in Sorrento that is great. I know many many people who spend two weeks sitting on an Carib. island and think nothing of it.

I think also that it is wise for you to add Rome for yourself. I would go directly to Rome from Naples and then finish up your trip in Sorrento with your friends.

BTW if you are into hiking and exploring two weeks isn't enough to be in the Amalfi Coast area. I find so many things to do there that I have to leave alot out when I stay there for a longer time.

Have fun, that is what a vacation is for!

Hi NY,

I suggest going to Rome directly from Naples.

Your friends, if they are on the same flight, can take the bus to Sorrento.
http://www.curreriviaggi.it/

Return to Sorrento, relax for a few days, fly home from Naples.

((I))

I spoke to my friends and this is what they were thinking...Stay in Sorrento, then from there travel to: Naples, Capri, Pompei, Passatano, Rivelo, Ishchia, Posidon, Blue Grotto (forgive the spellings). I'm unsure of traveling to Rome by myself and it would probably be more expensive to stay over as a single? Thanks!

You can do day trips from Sorrento to Rome (two trains), but from Sorrento to Florence in one day? Too long. Why not base yourselves in Rome? It will also be really HOT then, so get a place with a/c. Would they consider breaking it up into two places to base yourselves?

I wanted to say the destinations were not in that particular order...not sure yet..

Hi NY,

>Stay in Sorrento, then from there travel to:

Naples 1 day,

Capri 1 day, includes Blue Grotto

Pompei 1 day

Positano 1/2 day

Ravello 1/2 day combine with above

Ishchia this is a spa.

Posidon ??

What to do for the next 5 days?

((I))

Thanks Ira! Very helpful info/ideas...I might have spelled Ischia wrong..it's the island...There was another place they mentioned, Paestum? Posidon is supposed to be a place with Greek architecture that is different from the rest?

We leave for Italy in less then a week. We are staying 6 nights in Rome (we fly into Rome). We will probably do 1 day trip outside of Rome, but mostly explore there.
Then we are going to stay in Sorrento for 2 nights, 1 night on Capri, and then 1 night back in Sorrento (I used hotel points, so we actually have the Sorrento hotel for 4 nights, so we will just take an overnight bag to Capri). From Sorrento we will go to Pompei as well. We don't want to cram too much into our trip. But I think they way we are dividing things up, we will definitely not get bored, but shouldn't feel overwhelmed.
I've been to each of these places before (backpacked in college with my sister), but we just passed through Sorrento for dinner.
I definitely agree that you have to get Rome in there. But we decided against Florence and Venice b/c getting to them is a lot more time consuming, and we couldn't have seen as much.

NYC_05: Paestum is what you also spell as Posidon. Yes, the architecture there is different: three Greek temples, better preserved than many in Greece, predating the Roman ruins by six or seven centuries. No town around them, only the temples. And a modest little restaurant that makes a wonderful insalata caprese.

But I vote with all the others who have said that 10 days in Sorrento is at least five or six days too many.

Do persuade your friends to spend time in Rome.

Ira, I am surprised at your statement. *There is Caserta (www.initaly.com/regions/campania/caserta.htm)
*Herculaneum
*Pozzuoli
*Vesuvius
*2 days visiting Naples
*Exploring and walking the mountain trails which connect the towns on the coast.
*Hiring a boat to secret coves
*Relaxing and strolling
*Ceramic making demonstrations in Vietri area
*sun and sea bathing in Nerano

and many more things to do for the "extra" five days.

Hi,

Add one day for Paestum (Posidon)
A nice way is to take the ferry to Salerno, train to Paestum, train back to Salerno and bus to Sorrento.

That leaves 4 days.

Herculaneum can be done with Pompeii.

Vesuvius can be done with Naples.

One can always vegetate for the rest of the time - that is a perfectly good thing to do on vacation - but why go all of the way to Italy to do that?

If I were going to Italy for the first time, I would visit Venice (3) Florence (4 with a daytrip to Siena) and Rome (3), flying into Venice and out of Rome.

Actually, I would skip Rome, but that's just me.

((I))

Hi NYC,

Six of us, three couples, spent 4 days in Rome, rented two cars, and drove to Sorrento, where we rented the first floor of a huge villa for a week. We were there at the end of June, beginning of July.

We went to Tivoli on our way out of Rome to Sorrento. From Sorrento, we went to Capri, Pompeii, Naples, Paestum, and explored towns on the Amalfi coast. We could have spent another week exploring, having leisurely meals, shopping, and just walking around. Easy to sit for hours and enjoy the magnificent views.

We flew into Rome, and out of Naples. Having a car in Sorrento suited us, and worked quite well, since our villa was a mile or two up into the hills from the town.

It wasn't our first trip to Italy, and we hope it won't be our last. Try to get to Rome, but even if you can't, you'll probably have a wonderful time.

CW

Thank you all for your insights..I hope I can get to Rome...at least for a day or two...and hopefully my friends will join me...but if not, thank you all and CW for your post...I hope I will have a nice time and won't be thinking I'm missing out on Rome...

Ira Dear, I can't imagine why you are writing such odd answers here (or maybe our styles of travel are so very different from yours).

You can't see Naples and Mt. V in one day, how can you even think that? Most people can't or wouldn't want to do Herculaneum and Pompeii on the same day.
I can't even begin to list all the cooking classes, gastronomical tours a person could take in that area of Italy.

And then there is Procida and Ischia.....NYC05, look here and check out some of the excursions your friends can do on their own: http://www.positanotaxi.net/tipologie2.html

I could easily spend ten days in Sorrento! I could spend ten weeks in Sorrento! Of course, I'd be happy to spend that same amount of time in Rome. There's nothing wrong with going to one place and getting to know it well. You'll be back to visit other places later.

If I were looking for advice on the area, Sea Urchin would be my go-to person. She's proven that she's a veritable expert. You might want to take a look at her excellent and inspiring photos.

Sea Urchin...What is your web address? Thanks!

Since she's posted it here before, I'm taking the liberty of posting for her:

www.pbase.com/seaurchin

We are planning on Pompeii and Herculaneum in one day (one LONG day). However, we're used to walking 12+ miles in a day as we hike almost every weekend. Not that we don't expect to be tired at the end of the day!! ;-)

Thanks Grasshopper!

Texas Aggie, have fun and keep in mind that Herc and Pompeii both keep about the same hours, open at 9AM and closing about an hour before dusk.

I'm surprised to read that 10 days in Sorrento would be too long. We're going for 10 days in September and I know our time there will be too short! Unlike most of you, we prefer to take it easy when we're on holiday. We like to make excursions and to explore the area. But we also like to spend some time doing nothing but relax at the beach or the pool. What's wrong with 'vegetating and go all the way to Italy to do that'? Thousands of Europeans fly all the way to the Caribbean or Florida to do *just* that and nothing else! To each his own.
We could never do Venice, Florence, Siena and Rome in 10 days time! Even taken into account that it's only a 2 hr flight from Belgium to Italy.

NYC_05: don't rush it. You're on holiday, right?!

Personally I think the point of this question is that NYC_05 states in her original post "I am planning on traveling to Italy for the first time with two friends in July for 9-10 days. I would love to see Rome, Florence and Sorrento, but my friends would prefer to stay in one location, Sorrento, and use is as a home base".

It seems to me tht NYC_05 thoughts about her first trip to Italy is different then the ideas of her other two friends.

If I were NYC I would not spend the money to go on this trip if I did NOT want to spend the entire time using Sorrento as a home base. Or I would make arrangements to travel elsewhere during this trip, such as Rome which she indicated she wanted to visit.

It is important, IMO, when friends travel together for everyone to discuss what their desires are for their trip. It does not sound to me, from reading NYC's post, that her wishes for a trip to Italy and the wishes of her two friends are the same. Personally I think that NYC would not be happy under the circumstances. But maybe I am wrong. But sure know from what I have read it would not work for me.

TexasAggie-
During one of my visits to the area, I visited Herculaneum and Pompeii on the same day, leaving early in the morning and coming home in the evening, so it can certainly be done, but it's agood idea to read up on both sites first. And also, one can't really explore Pompeii fully in 3 and a half hours, but it was still completely worth it to me,

Another time, I went to Oplontis and Pompeii on the same daytrip, also a good experience.

Hi seaurchin-re you first post to NYC05, can you give some specific suggestions of cooking classes you've taken in the area that you would recommend? I know there's Mami Camilla around Sorrento, have you taken any others?

NYC_05, I also agree with Loveitaly's advice on having a meeting of the minds with your friends beforehand to make sure all of you can have some voice in things, and I seem to read in your post that you want to visit Florence and Rome. I think those 2 cities would be more difficult to work in if you are based in Sorrento than the other way around.
Rome itself could take a minumum of 5-7 days.
Florence maybe less.

That said, you asked about things to do from Sorrento:
I've visited the Amalfi Coast and surrounding area six times, twice for longer periods, and had some amazing and memorable times there, but much of that was because I met and developed friendships with some of the local people.

Sorrento is fun for its' shopping and you'll find concerts in Ravello, and there's certainly no end to the various restaurants to explore. Seaurchin can perhaps give you more specific suggestions on that.

That seems to be the main thing in the area-shopping, eating the incredible food, and enjoying the sun, the lemon and olive groves, the people and the ambient rhythms of life there. If you're from NYC, like me, this can be a rare experience.

Massalubrense (both the town and the commune (like a "county" with different villages) is lovely and more peaceful, and there is wonderful hiking there (It's on the Sorrentine Penninsula, as opposed to the Amalfi Coast).

There's hiking on the "scalinatelli" - ancient stone steps that lace up and down the hillsides. Get a map of the area and Look for "Sta Cosanza" which is a tiny chapel you can hike to on stone path that goes out of Termini (a village out on the tip of The Sorrentine Penninsula with an incredible view of Capri. The little chapel straddles a ridge from where you can have a magnificent sweeping view of both the Bay of Naples and the Tyrrenian Sea at the same time. Not too many people make it up there so it can be pretty dramatic. If a storm is brewing out over the water- you can see it from a great distance.

There are all manner of things to do in Naples, and there is Caserta to visit, and Paestum to the South.

You can go to Ischia and visit the thermal baths at Capo Sant'angelo.

I likw Capri at night.

So if you are seeking activities, I don't think you'd run out of them, if you are willing to try things.

I haven't gone to Italy in the summer months in centuries, but the first time in Italy has never left me-have a magical time with your friends!!!

And as Loveitaly says, talk it over first a bit!

The conversation to go to Italy came up about two weeks ago with my friends and they said they wanted to go to Sorrento and I didn't disagree which is probably my fault and will never do again:-) I did mention that I wanted to go to Rome, but no one wanted to go Rome because it's going to be hot and crowded which is probably true. The thought of finally getting to Italy was appealing and I didn't know enough about the coast to have any input at the time. I do feel kind of obligated to go because they made the plans for July because of my schedule. They would have preferred to go in May/June. They said if I wasn't going to be happy, not to worry about it. I still do..I want to have a good time and its just the thought of the expense in going and not seeing all I want to see too that's disappointing, but I could go another time. From your wonderful posts though, I'm feeling a little better about the trip. It sounds like I won't be disappointed if I stay in Sorrento and do the day trips. That is if we all agree on where to go:-)Is it pretty easy to make plans when we get to Sorrento in the summer for the day trips? or would it be better to plan the trips from here (NY)? Thanks again for all your advice!

Don't listen to the nay-sayers. There's tons to do in and around Sorrento. You will be in a super saturated environment. Ten days is NOT enough time. Unless you are boring, you will NOT be bored!

I suggest you do your planning before you go; that is, you should know what you are going to do everyday you are there.

Get a simple book. I recommend Rick Steve's ITALY 2005 for starters. Build your plan around his recommendations. This plan should include a theme for each day (Greeks, Romans, Amalfi Coast, Regional foods, Urban living, Geography, Moder engineering marvels, etc.) arranged in some logical order. The daily plan should go into great detail even down to where you plan to eat each night. If you leave something to chance you will waste your time & later regret it.

Once you have your days planned. Get a more sophisticated book, like the Blue Guide to Southern Italy and research each day's historical setting in depth, or a good regional cook book to get a sense of the local culture, etc. As you learn more, adjust the plan.

You are in for a great adventure. Embrace it and your life will change forever...

Smell the roses.

...my $0.02,

-------------
Michael'nA2

NYC_05
As a fellow NY'er-I totally sympathize with the restrictions of a busy schedule.
No, it's not hard to make daytrip plans for Sorrento at all-they are set up to deal with American tourists there. Ha ha, I am a different animal from the previous poster-I've never seen the inside of a Rick Steves guidebook, though a good friend is a Rick Steves guide!
You can make map out things vaguely from NY, then once you're there- fill in the details. In Italy, things can become spontaneous (and fun) in the wink of an eye.

Another thought-It is possible to take the train from Naples or Salerno up to Rome, and even Florence for a brief time, and you could choose one or two things you want to see very badly, then rejoin your friends afterwards. It would make an exciting experience.

This is not difficult at all you figure out the train schedules ahead of time. Think of it sort of like heading to Boston or Washington DC from NYC; there are lots of trains back and forth. And Florence is just about an hour and a half further than Rome.
BTW, for Rome, you might check out the walking tours of "Scala Reale"- a small company who uses redidents of Rome or students of Art and Architecture from the American Academy as their guides-it might be a good way to get a feel for the city in a brief visit. They're excellent, and have a website.

Hi NYC_05, I sure understand how you agreed to go along with your friends idea of staying in Sorrento. And by the way,, Sorrento is beautiful. I just felt bad because it seemed as though the trip you were taking was not the trip you wanted to take. But of course you have a lifetime to return to beautiful Italy and investigate all of the other cities, villages and areas.

I personally agree with bellastar, don't have every moment planned. Italy, and especially southern Italy is a place to not be scheduled every moment. But of course it is good to have some plans made.

Enjoy! And don't forget to give us a trip report. Best wishes.

Hi SeaUrchin
>...maybe our styles of travel are so very different from yours.<

There is always that possibility. :)

((I))

Hi NY,

>Is it pretty easy to make plans when we get to Sorrento in the summer for the day trips? or would it be better to plan the trips from here ..<

I suggest that you have a list of "must sees" and plan for them. Leave a lot of time for "Il Dolce Far Niente".

Enjoy your visit.

((I))

NYC, You and your friends may want to see if you can find an apartment. You might save money, and for 10 days you'll have a lot more space to stretch out.

10 days in Sorrento is a lovely problem to have!

Hi! It looks I'm going to Sorrento! I'm really looking forward to it now thanks to all of your wonderful posts and suggestions! I feel better knowing that there's lots to see and do. I didn't realize that you could rent an apartment for the week. Good to know for next time. We're actually going to be staying at the Imperial Tramonano..Please tell me its wonderful:-) Now its time to figure out what we all want to see when we're there. We basically agree on the day trips that I mentioned before. I'll look into the books that were mentioned too and the suggestions on the posts. The one good thing is that we all do agree that we don't want to be rushing around. So we will stop and smell the roses:-) Ira - What is "Il Dolce Far Niente"?

Il dolce far niente = The sweetness of doing nothing.

NYC, your hotel looks wonderful! Imagine sitting on that deck sipping a drink with your friends and enjoying the view. You'll have a fantastic time.

>What is "Il Dolce Far Niente"? <

Stopping to smell the roses. :)

((I))