Where would be the best and easiest place to drop off a rental car in or near Naples before going to the ferry port to catch a ferry to Ischia? We'll be coming from Matera, in mid-late September.

I know it's horrible driving in Naples, but is there a less chaotic place to drop off a rental car? Is the airport a good option?
Is Pozzuoli a better option to drop off than Naples? It looks like there's a ferry at 13:10 from Pozzuoli to Ischia, maybe that's a better option?

Should I buy tickets for the ferry ahead of time?

How bad do you think the traffic might be between Matera to Naples? It says the drive is 3 hours, but I’m not sure how much time to add in for traffic.

*I checked from Salerno but the ferry stops running to Ischia September 15th unfortunately. The one from Sorrento is only at 9:30 AM, there's no way we'd be able to get there from Matera by then.

*****Would any of these be less chaotic? Ideas from chatgpt*****
Recommended Car Rental Drop-Off Locations Near Naples Port
Hertz Napoli Beverello

Address: Stazione Marittima, Molo Beverello, 80133 Napoli
Distance to Port: About a 5-minute walk to the ferry terminal.
Avis Naples Beverello

Address: Via Nuova Marina 5, 80133 Napoli
Distance to Port: Approximately a 10-minute walk to the ferry terminal.
Europcar Napoli Stazione Marittima

Address: Molo Beverello, 80133 Napoli
Distance to Port: Located at the port, making it very convenient

Thank you in advance!

Airport is close

Why not catch the train from Matera?

Thanks Bilbo, I will look into the airport.

What ferry sites are you looking at? There are many. It may require you to transfer somewhere (Amalfi, probably) but many do continue running after 15 September...

FYI chatGPT is not always accurate, so if you pulled your info from there, maybe check other sources.

When are you traveling?

Travel_Nerd, okay so I just checked https://ssl.directferries.com/ferry/...lse&rfidr=4583 and it looks like the only ferry on September 23 from Salerno to Ischia is at 7:50am. Which ferry booking site do you recommend?

I'm actually now thinking maybe we could drive from Matera to Pompeii or Herculaneum, take a 2 hour tour, then stay overnight in Salerno at an agriturismo, and the next morning drop the car at Salerno train station and train to Naples, then taxi to ferry port to go to Ischia. Is this a better plan? I had already booked a (small) non-refundable deposit at the agriturismo in Salerno before changing my plans, so already have a place to stay.

I agree with Bilbo..is there a train Matera to Naples? Get rid of the car there...we drove Naples to Matera last September, got the car at the airport but then drove on to Vietri, Maratea and Tursi before arrival in Matera. So did not drive in Naples city. If you want to drop in Naples I would drop at the airport an taxi to the ferry.

Edit: I missed the non-refundable piece of your stay, so edited my post as a result. This will require you to backtrack quite a bit, causing you to spend quite a bit of time in transit back and forth. Sorrento would have been a better base but advice to change is moot.

Direct Ferries, like Ferry Hopper, is a reseller. They are "ok" for research. I actually use Sorrento Insider for research of transport options and ferries as they list the many options. Direct Ferries I find does not always list every option. Always book with the ferry company drectly, not these reseller sites.

There are two lines from Matera to Napoli. The useless one from Mater's station and the mainline one about a 5 minute taxi ride to the west, Google maps is your friend here.