Hello fellow Fodorites,
This will be our 2nd trip to Italy together, and out first trip to the southern part of Italy. We are in our 20s and love ancient history and archaeological sites and museums. That said, we would love comments on our itinerary and we would especially appreciate a heads up if we are missing any very important archaeological sites that we might be able to fit in.
Also, the reason we are trekking up to the CT after the Amalfi Coast is b/c we spent part of our honeymoon there and wanted to return on this first anniversary trip.
Many Thanks,
Jill


Sat. 5/14 Travel from Rome to Sorrento
8:00am Land in Rome
2:00pm (ish) Arrive Sorrento and relax, explore town/beach

Sun. 5/15 Pompeii and Herculaneum

Mon. 5/16 Naples
9:00am Circumvesuviana to Naples
10:30am Archaeology Museum
2-6:00pm Gesu Nuovo church and Santa Chirara church, Capella Sanservo church
6:00pm Return to Sorrento

Tues. 5/17 Paestum

Wed. 5/18 Positano
10:00am SITA bus to Positano
11:00am drop off luggage, head to Ravello, Amalfi, Atrani via SITA bus

Thurs. 5/19 Positano
Gennaro e Salvatore boat tour of the Amalfi Coast

Fri. 5/20 Relax in Positano all day long
7:00pm Head to Amalfi by SITA bus, catch SITA bus from Amalfi to Salerno at 9:00pm
10:15pm Arrive in Salerno
11:39pm ICN 768 depart for Monterosso

Sat. 5/21 Monterosso
Arrive 8am, RELAX on beach and shop in town

Sun. 5/22 Hike the CT towns, take the boat or train back

Mon. 5/23 Relax in Monterosso

Tues. 5/24 Rome
6:31am Catch train to La Spezia, 7:06am Catch train to Rome
10:27am Arrive in Rome
1pm Set out for sightseeing
Palatine Hill which we missed last time and Capitol Hill Museum

Wed. 5/25 Depart for Denver
11:30am Flight departs Rome

Well, you sure have done your homework. A bit too much train time for my taste, but fine if you are OK with it. I would drop Paestrum from that itinerary---too hard to access without a car. And, I think pop for a driver to Salerno since that connect is crucial for you. At the CT, boat the entire coast as far as Portovenere before you start to hike. The coast is best seen from the water. Next year you may need to see Sicily if you like ancient sites.

Hi bob,

Thanks for the comments. Two weeks in Greece is on the agenda for 2006, but we are hoping to squeeze in one more week in Europe. Sicily is a wonderful idea, thank you. We would love to see Syracuse and I know there are many other good sites as well.
Thanks for the tip of Portovenere as well. This will be my 3rd trip to the CT and I've always intended to do more than the 5 towns, but somehow an unshakeable wave of laziness hits as soon as I have my first beachside dinner... hoping I can shake it this year ;-)

ttt for the afternoon group

From Amalfi the town there is a great hiking trail - well trodden - that goes the few miles up a lush fruit-tree dappled valley to Ravello. I walked up this trail and then back down to Amalfi thru vineyards, a different route but one with stupendous views of the coast.

PalQ,
That trail sounds like something we would really enjoy. We live in Colorado and are avid hikers. Do you remember about how long it took, and where it leaves Amalfi? Are there signs?

I don't really have anything to add other than it sounds like a great trip. You and your husband sound very similar to my husband and I. We are both in our 20's and love many of the same things you do, especially the archaeology sites. We visited Pompeii last year and it was incredible. We too are planning a trip to southern Italy for possibly next year (our Europe trips are already lined up for this year!) so I look forward to your trip report.

Good luck and enjoy!
Trcy

Jill,

We are in the very beginning stages of planning a trip to Naples and Positano in the summer of 2006.

Today, I happened onto the site of Context Naples, which it appears is related to Context Rome (and Scala Reale). They have several historical type tours you might want to consider.

I can't vouch for them as I just happened onto the site this morning (and our trip will be long after yours), but I thought they looked interesting, especially the tour of Pompeii and Vesuvius. The one drawback is that they are pretty pricey.

Have a great trip!
Sally

One final note. The website for Context Naples is
www.contextnaples.com.

Sounds like a great trip. We have similar interests too and visited this area during an anniversary trip years ago. We spent an entire day at Pompeii and then combined Herculaneum with our trip to Naples, although we were only interested in the Archaeology Museum in Naples, sounds like you have other sites to see in town.

We had a car so Paestum was not difficult. If you love ancient history / archaeology try not to drop it. It is unique for this part of Italy and we found it very interesting.

Love the CT and we're fans of Monterosso as well. Sounds like you have some downtime built into the trip, that makes it nice. Have a great trip!

Thanks for all the replies. I'm looking at the Context Naples site now - some of these look great. Thanks for sharing!!

Hi Jill:

As you know, I was in the region in January and will eventually post a trip report. A couple of comments:

Paestum may be difficult to get to from Sorrento, but, for me, who cannot get enough of ancient ruins, it was quite wonderful, as was the museum. You can easily tour both in about 3-5 hours. I remember GAC (that wonderful person who provides invaluable advice on Italian transportation) said it was possible to get a bus from Salerno. I’d suggest you search on GAC and Paestum for some travel options OR post a message for assistance directly from GAC. What I particularly loved, was the CONTRAST between the Greek city of Paestum and the later Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum.

You will be exhausted on Sunday, after touring both Pompeii and Herculaneum, but you know that already J Pace yourself and wear sensible shoes! Again, I would recommend the audio guides. In Pompeii, I took the four hour tour, added other bits as took my fancy, and completed it in just over three hours. I think that was just about right for me.

The archaeological museum in Naples is extraordinary, and I will definitely return. I highly recommend doing the walking tour of old Naples. You can hire an audio-guide at the tourist office, on the periphery of the old area. It takes in some of the best sites and is very informative. It would fit in well with your schedule and itinerary. http://www.inaples.it/eng/home.asp

Regards Ger

The Amalfi-Ravello trail takes only an hour or so - i don't remember any markings but don't remember any trouble finding it - it goes up the valley laden with fruit trees and you see Ravello perched above. As i recall i may have gone around the cliff on amalfi's east side to get it. It's really a paved farm lane until you come to steps.

Sounds like a great trip. I especially agree with Bob the Navigator's comment about seeing the coast from the water. It's amazing by car and even more beautiful by water.

Jill, we also did the hike between Amalfi and Ravello, about an hour, as PalQ says. However, we were lazy bums and did it the easy way! We started in Ravello and walked <b>down</b> the trail. It's a great little walk that's incredibly scenic.

On Monday, any particular reason for leaving Naples so early? We stayed until the sun had set. We took the funicular up to the top of the city and watched the sun go down from this wonderful little cafe near the Castle. It was wonderful! Afterwards we took the train back to Sorrento.

In Sorrento, walk down the path to the old Roman ruins along the water, on the west side of the town. Not only is it a nice walk but it's a great spot for a picnic. It's very easy to find and there's a swimming hole, too, if the water's warm enough.

You will like the boat tour a lot!

Wow, thanks for the useful info PalQ and Diedre.
There wasn't any particular reason we were planning to leave Naples so early, though I have heard that the immediate vicinity of the train station can be unsettling after dark. I really like your idea about the funicular though, thanks for sharing.

I see some &quot;itinerary tweaking&quot; in my future to include the Amalfi-Ravello hike and the Sorrento roman ruins (DH will love that!).

Thanks again!

Regarding your boat tour of the Amalfi Coast, I've come across the name a few times and was wondering if you have any information, i.e, cost, length of trip, etc. I'm planning a trip this summer and would like to do a coastal tour but I'm curious whether this is something we should book now or look into once we get there.

Well I did a little more research and answered my own question (for the most part). Here's a link to their cite in case anyone else is interested. If anyone know's their current prices, I'd really appreciate it. Thanks!

http://www.gennaroesalvatore.it

Hi devedi,

We were quoted 75&euro; per person for the Amalfi Coast boat tour with Gennaro &amp; Salvatore (including lunch, drinks, snacks). I believe it leaves at 10:30am and arrives back between 5pm and 6pm. I have corresponded with Valerie, a Brit who married one of the men, and she has been wonderful to work with. The email address is on their webpage and the response is very prompt - within a day.

Jill, if you email me I will give you the particulars about going to the Roman ruins of the fort in Sorrento.