Twin-centre Naples/Sorrento or just one
 

Hi. We'd like to take our 3 teenagers (15 & 2x 14 yrs) to see Pompeii, Herculaneum & Mt Vesuvius. We're thinking 7 nights for a mix of culture & relaxation. Is it best to stay in Naples for the whole time, or should we plan the relaxation time in Sorrento? Haven't visited either so unsure if Naples too busy/noisy/large for all 7 nights. Any hotel recommendations gratefully received (would like a pool & views). Many thanks.

Both are equally convenient to the things you want to see. Sorrento would also give you easy access to the Amalfi Coast. I don't see any reason to stay in both places. Pick the one that interests you the most, and make a day trip to the other.

With three young teenagers, I'm sure that a resort like Sorrento would be more suitable than a big city. Choose a hotel with a pool and you're sorted. Take the Circumvesuviana train to Pompeii and Herculaneum (Ercolano) and a bus to Vesuvius.

As bvlenci says, from Sorrento you've got easier access to the Amalfi Coast.

I'm going to respectfully disagree with bvl - there's lot of see in Naples, more than you can see in a day trip, and the train journey to/from Sorrento is at least 90 minutes each way, and can get pretty crowded.

with 7 days, I would divide my time between the 2 more or less equally, and perhaps see Pompeii or Herculaneum as you travel from one to the other.

Not sure how many hotels in Naples have pools and with teens I would definitely want one. I think Sorrento is a better choice so kids can do some things on their own that you might be hesitant to let them do in Naples.

I don't see if you have said when you are going - but it's very late to reserve places near/on the AC for this summer. And are you going for two rooms or trying to find a family room for 5 adults (not many of these so difficult to find)?

To see sights in Naples I would just hop a ferry - easy from Sorrento than taking the train back and forth.

I would do 2 or 3 nights in Naples (one full day of sightseeing there, or use a 2nd day to go the short way to Herculaneum for a day) and then the rest in Sorrento. They are VERY different. Naples is a bustling scraggly (but glorious) city, and Sorrento is totally relaxing, calm, pretty, touristy - - the teens will like the easy, social feel of Sorrento.

I didn't mean to imply that one could see a lot of Naples in a day. I said that, with only five days in the area, I wouldn't advise splitting the time between Naples and Sorrento. Visiting Herculaneum, Pompeii, and Vesuvius won't leave a lot of time for anything else, let alone two cities.

7 nights in Naples would depress the hell out of me.

If you really have seven nights you could easily split the time.

Thank you all for your helpful thoughts; will do a couple of nights in Naples & extend time in Sorrento. Best regards.

<<7 nights in Naples would depress the hell out of me.>>

You clearly don't know much about the city if you hold that point of view. The Lungomare is 5km of uninterrupted sea front and one of the most beautiful places in Italy. Mergellina has liberty architecture, litle coloured boat sheds and palm trees. The views from Posillipo stretch to infinity with Vesuvius as the menacing backdrop. See it at night and it's mesmerising. There are 14th century baroque churches every 300 metres in the historic centre. Depressing?

Sorrento is a package tour town. Fine if you enjoy the bus loads of tourists coming in from Thompsons in the UK. There is nothing to do in Sorrento except shop and eat. Sure it may be a springboard for Capri or Pompeii but that's all it is.

OP - the aforementioned Lungomare in Naples is a pedestrian zone for about half of it - so not busy/noisy. In fact you can walk from this zone to the historic centre and encounter very little traffic as much of this area is closed to traffic. I would flip your trip and stay longer in Naples - there are hotels with pools (the Romeo is one of them, there are others).

>>>>>>>You clearly don't know much about the city if you hold that point of view. The Lungomare is 5km of uninterrupted sea front and one of the most beautiful places in Italy

That was a beautiful description - - and gives enchanting promise to staying in Naples longer. And the churches in the center are indeed rare wonders -- cheek by jowl with the vivid everyday living.

I can understand that, and I can also understand how the prospect of a week in Naples is "depressing", because there are also some taxing and draining elements of hustle, human hardness, and dirty mess to Naples. Sorrento may be a tourist town, but it is easygoing, flowery, colorful, and relaxing. Both are heaven and hell - - but in different ways.

<< because there are also some taxing and draining elements of hustle, human hardness, and dirty mess to Naples>>

That's because Naples is a city of one million people. Sorrento is a resort town. It is like comparing NYC with Hyannis Port.

The fact that the two are geographically close is neither here nor there - and quite frankly, comparisons between the two are wearying and unjust.

My frequent visits to Naples don't come across the taxing/draining element and I'd like to know what that is - if it's traffic then hey, I'm thinking every other large European city has this issue. Cross the street in Piazza Venezia in Rome! The areas of Naples that are pedestrian - the aforementioned Lungomare and Via Chiaia, Vomero and Posillipo and Mergellina. I don't end up with a ragged headache after spending time there. In fact have a cocktail on the seafront at Mergellina and all you hear is the tranquil clink of yacht rigging and the slight splash of the water on the sand.