Can anyone help? We are planning a week in the Cilento area. Is it possible to take a train from Rome Ciampino airport to Agropoli.
We are travelling in June next year and it's far easier for us to fly into Rome rather than Naples, but don't really want to drive all the way from Rome.
We then plan to hire a car in Agropoli?
Any thoughts or advise would be welcome.

You should check the Trenitalia website, but I think you will need to take a bus into Termini station in the center of Rome and then a train south. If you are renting a car, you might find it easier to take a 2-hour fast train to Salerno from Rome Termini and rent the car in Salerno. Agropoli is not much of a drive from there.

My advise is that if you are arriving from a transatlantic flight with several connections, that you plan on not renting the car until you've had a night's rest, so take a room in Rome, Salerno or Agripoli before picking up your car the next morning. I especially advise that if your travel connections work out so that you would be arriving in Salerno when the rental office is closed and then have to wait until 4pm for it to re-open. You might be too punchy to drive.

But if you are already on this side of the Atlantic, no problem.

Thanks for that. We are in Uk and can arrive in Rome (from Bristol) about 1pm. The fast train to Salerno sounds a good option.
The other option, which I was trying to avoid (because it's awkward for us to get from Devon to Stansted or Gatwick) is to fly to Naples and drive from there?

Here's a plausible itinerary by public transportation, based on CURRENT schedules (need to verify prior to departure):

1. Terravision airport bus (4 Euros, 50 minute travel time) from Rome Ciampino Airport (CIA) to Roma Termini train station:

http://www.terravision.eu/pdf/ciampino_timetable.pdf

2. Trenitalia Intercity (IC) train from Roma Termini at 15:39 arrives Salerno 18:30: 23.50 Euros in second class:

www.ferroviedellostato.it

3. Trenitalia Regionale train from Salerno at 18:41 arrives Agropoli 19:21: 3 Euros:

www.ferroviedellostato.it

ALTERNATIVE ROUTING VIA NAPLES (faster but more expensive):

2a. Trenitalia AV train from Roma Termini at 15:00 arrives Napoli Centrale 16:10: 44 Euros in second class;

3a. Trenitalia Regionale train from Napoli Centrale at 17:04, arrives Agropoli 18:26: 6.20 Euros.

Remember to re-check schedules closer to your departure date.

Well after this advise, think we will fly straight to Naples, I didn't realise I would have to go back into Rome or that the airport was quite a way out.
One last thing, driving from Naples down to Cilento coast, some say it's not for the fainthearted, will it take about 2 hours?

Figure about two hours for 118 kilometers from NAP to Agropoli. But it's also very easy to do by public transport:

1. ALIBUS airport bus from NAP to Piazza Garibaldi (Napoli Centrale train station): 3 Euros. 20-minute ride with half-hour frequency.

2. Trenitalia Regionale train from Napoli Centrale to Agropoli: 6.20 Euros. Travel time roughly 90 minutes, with roughly hourly frequency in the afternoon.

HI!

I am also hoping to visit the Cilento next year. I am curious about your hotel and how you chose it..or are you renting an apartment? There is a car rental agency in the area, in case you decide to take the train and rent a car after you arrive:

http://www.antares91.com/

Hi ekscrunchy.

We are staying for 3 nights at Le favate, a agritourism B&B near vilia, then 4 nights at La Corallina on the harbour at San Marco
go to http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/ar...lidays-cilento and you will see why