I am taking an 8 day tour of the Amalfi coast from April 21 to the 29th staying at the Panorama Hotel in Maiori. I wonder if swimming is possible that time of the year and what are sensible things to wear. I am not young.

Take a look at worldclimate.com and weatherbase.com for historical average temps and rainfall. Weather will be cool to cold (low 40 to mid-60s F) and could be rainy, it is still early Spring there, a cold fog is also a good possibility, esp in the morning. Spring flowers should be out which will be pretty. Dress in layers as you can add or take off depending on temps. No bare shoulders or short shorts in churches, but in April you won’t want either. The water will be quite cool, you may be the only person in the water. You may get a warm or even hot spell, it will be a matter of luck.

There are lots of hills, stairs and cobblestone streets. Wearlow-heeled study shoes (or buy some there, great shoe shopping).

Thanks for your reply. It was the only one. Guess I'll have to rehink my wardrobe and leave some sandals home.

We just got back from Tuscany and the weather was more mild than we expected...wonderful for walking and touristing. I fretted alot about what to pack after reading all the posts about how well people dress in Italy. We did not find this at all...most people looked exactly like tourists anywhere here in the US. Go for comfort! Layers are great, like the cute tank top/cardigan sets that are so popular now. We also heard that tennis shoes or sneakers are not worn much, but it seemed almost everyone was wearing them. The best decision I made was to take my running/walking shoes, which I wore almost every day. Have a great time!

I think an absolute must would be comfortable shoes for lots of walking. Take another pair for evening but you are bound to do lots of walking and if you are wearing new shoes or shoes that rub you'll be miserable. For clothes, it depends a bit on what you like to wear and your general size/style but I would suggest casual trousers, a skirt and some tops to match. Take a warm top as well. I doubt you would be swimming in April.
Try to take colours that mix and match and a nice scarf or pashmina can dress up a plain outfit for evening and doesn't take up much room.
Kay

Here is my generic suggestions list that I think would apply to your situation (not knowing if you are male or female):
4 plain knit tops or tshirts
2 short sleeve shirts
2 long sleeve shirts
3 pants (1 dressy, 2 casual)
1 skirt (optional)
1 jacket or cardigan sweater
5-7 socks and underwear
packable hat
sneakers
walking shoes
sandals
bathing suit (just in case)
PJs and/or robe
waterproof jacket w/hood (if rain is likely)

For what it weighs, take the suit. There are indoor pools, and natural termes everywhere, and ya never know...Start with shoes and pack from the bottom up...I think my best trip was with an empty suitcase-well one change of everything, and some extra $$. The second day, I went to a dept. store and bought local clothing-modestly priced-for everything else I needed. I looked like every other Spaniard on the street...

I have one advise and one suggestion:

Advice: Bring two pairs of comfortable shoes for walking/sightseeing. Alternate the shoes every day so your feet don't get "molded" onto the imprints of the inside soles. That's when the pressure points pressing on the bottom of your feet cause lower back pain. By switching shoes, the parts of the feet that was abused get a rest.

Suggestion: Bring a classic, stylish sweater. It's great over t-shirt during the day and a nice blouse during the evening.

Enjoy your vacation!

When I went to France last year, I packed only 3 pairs of pants(2 black,1 gray), a skirt(black) and shirts for everyday. I brought and wore my all weather coat everyday. I only needed black shoes(borne slip on), one pair of casual and one dress (heels) and one black purse.
That trip was the first week of April and it was still cool. I am still trying to figure what I will bring for the trip to Italy we will be taking the first week of June. I don't know if I could get by wearing the same pair of pants for more than one day if they are a light color. And for those of you who only bring 3-4 shirts, do you hand wash them at night or have them laundered at the hotel? It's not that I am a pig or sweat all that much but it seems that it would be taking a chance to plan on wearing something more than once. I guess I could bring the black pants with bright colored tops. I have comfortable slip on black sandals, but they may not do as well as the borne shoes. From what I understand, if I add bright colored scarfs, I'll fit right in! I think that I will bring short to wear in Capri. In the spring and summer, my husband only wears khakis or jeans if not shorts. So the light colors could be a problem for him also.