My husband and I are US based active retirees in our 70's who now embrace slower travel and longer trips We prefer public transportation/taxis/drivers rather than driving ourselves. We travel with carry on. We prefer hotels which we book directly for best prices and hotel service and amenities over short term rentals. We are not foodies and don’t spend time researching restaurants and booking advance reservations. We always manage to find good, reasonably priced and memorable restaurants at our destinations. We seek out rooftop bars/restaurants for the views. We walk everywhere. I tend to have a good working knowledge of things to do prior to arrival - spontaneity is always a welcome option. We did the backpack/EurRail Pass trip in our 20’s and many budget minded European trips over the years. Now we like to travel in comfort and enjoy nice amenities.

Amalfi Coast
Flew to Rome and took high speed train from Rome Termini to Naples. Met driver at Naples train station to drive us to hotel on AC.
April 5 – 11 (7 nights)
Hotel La Perla, Praiano: 3-Star - Highly Recommended. Central location on the Amalfi Coast. Breakfast terrace has gorgeous coastal views. Our room had a small terrace with coastal view.
Ristorante il Pirata, Praiano – Highly Recommended. Right across the street from hotel and a short walk down the hill. Directly on the water. We ate here most nights. Bar area menu and drinks are an option too. The food was delicious and the staff and Rino the owner were welcoming and fabulous. After a full day of touring around the AC it was the perfect ending after a shower!
Activities of Note:
Path of the Gods +/- 3 hour casual hike. Took bus from Amalfi up to trailhead in Bomerano. Hiked down 1,000+ steps to Positano to finish. Outstanding hike!
Ravello – Formal and pretty gardens and sculptures with high up gorgeous views of AC. Took bus from Amalfi up and hiked down.
Splurge: Tenuta San Francisco family vineyard and lunch on the premises in Tramonti. Hired driver Antonio Nuschese 39 335 524 3689 to take us into the mountains above Ravello to the vineyard. Very memorable and highly recommended!
Amalfi and Positano are obnoxiously crowded even in early April. Buses were usually standing room only.

Sorrento
Taxi from Praiano Hotel to Sorrento Hotel. Highly recommend taxi driver: Antonio. He’s young and hardworking and is available to drive all over AC. 39 338 722 8278.
April 12 and 13 (2 nights)
Splurge: Grand Hotel La Favorita: 5-Star. Highly Recommended. Sumputous breakfast room and terraces with lemon and orange trees, lots of comfortable/private seating and also rooftop pool and bar. Nice views of Naples Bay. Two nights is plenty for Sorrento. We stayed here in order to take ferry to Ischia. Curveball: quick ferry transfer in Capri which we had no knowledge of and was not on ticket. Relieved we were not spending any time in Capri – it looked painfully overcrowded.

Ischia
Taxi from ferry port to hotel.
April 14 – 20 (7 nights)
Hotel MareBlu – 5-Star. Definitely not a 5-Star property. 4-Star at best but the 271 euro nightly rate seemed fair and it was a great location. Our deluxe sea view terrace room was large and was located directly across quiet street from the water with Aragonese Castle views. The breakfast and public rooms were very nice.
Activities of Note:
Splurge: Private boat tour around Ischia with stop for a bite. Pietropicked us up on small dock right next door to our hotel. Pietro:
39 392 216 3549
Private driver around Ischia with multiple viewpoint stops and wonderful sea view terrace lunch high up in the mountains. Pippo: 39 334 341 5747 Pippo is a good resource for other taxi drivers in his friends network.
Quick ferry and short day trip to Isola di Procida. Fun cafes, restaurants and walking around.
Garden La Mortella in Forio. Took taxi to garden and walked down to nice beach after. Had taxi pick us up from beach restaurant back to hotel.
Farm Mediterranean Garden for memorable lunch near the Port but you will need a driver/taxi. Fun and unusual funicular to arrive up at the restaurant. Excellent wine, food and views. 39 335 131 9722

Morning ferry Ischia to Naples - Flight to Sicily
Four hour private afternoon walking tour in Naples with mondoguides.com before early evening flight from Naples Airport to Catania Airport in Sicily via EasyJet.
April 21 (1 night) at Catania Airport
B&B Le Magnolie. Adequate and inexpensive airport stay and convenient bus location from Catania Airport the next morning to first destination in Ortigia.

Ortigia, Sicily
April 22 – 25 (4 nights)
Charme Hotel Henry’s House – 4-Star. Highly recommended. Unique but it all works. Large deluxe sea view room with extra large windows. Quiet location with room overlooking water and pedestrian walkway. Nice breakfast. Staff was very helpful and accommodating.
Activities of Note:
Splurge: Full day private tour of Ragusa Ibla, Modica and Noto with lunch in Modica. Marco was the driver/guide with emphasis on very knowledgeable professional guide. 39 338 417 6279. Highly recommended. Walking all around the Ortigia area was very enjoyable with lots of great scenery, sights to see and plentiful restaurants and cafes.

Taormina, Sicily
April 26– 29 (4 nights)
Hotel Villa Paradiso - 4-Star. Room had great views of coastline and Mount Etna. There was construction on the floors below our room – owner said they were just “hanging doors”. Hotel staff and public areas were unimpressive. Plastic cups in bathroom (think Motel 6). Room in general was fine with a very small terrace. This was the only hotel on our trip that did not include breakfast. – it was an option to purchase. We could have made a better lodging choice.
Bam Bar up the street from hotel is great spot for morning coffee and pastries. Busy but really fun!
Activities of Note:
Walked down to Isola Bella beach and took gondola back up.
Hike up to Chiesa Madonna della Rocca. Continued hike to Castelmola. Recommend La Taverna dell Etna for terrace lunch with fabulous view of Mount Etna in Castelmola. Took bus back down.
Splurge – walked down to Mazzaro Beach and had drinks at 5-Star Mazzaro Sea Palace Hotel on the bar terrace overlooking water. Pricy but worth it for the scenery and excellent service. Took gondola back up.

Palermo, Sicily
April 30 – May 3 (4 nights)
Boutique Hotel Delle Vittorie. 3-Star It’s actually a 6 room B&B property. Quiet and spacious room and bath. Recommend but note that there is no staff in the evening and you let yourself in at the main entrance. Nice small breakfast room which is only public space. Very well located in heart of Palermo historic district.
Le Terrazze del Sole - Rooftop restaurant with fabulous views of historic Palermo. Reservations necessary for dinner. 5th Floor - 291Via Vittorio Emanuele. Had two visits – one for drinks and one for dinner. Highly recommended.
Activities of Note:
Palermo is a beautiful city with historic and beautiful architecture, gardens, Palermo Cathedral, Opera House Teatro Massimo, marina area etc. and very easy to walk everywhere.
Private tour with professional guide Francesca Lombardo ([email protected]) to Monreale Cathedral and Segesta’s ancient Greek temple. Her retired husband was our driver. We enjoyed a delicious lunch with Francesca and her husband at the rural and scenic Agritourismo Tenute Margano near Segesta. Highly recommended.

Trapini, Sicily
May 4 – May 7 (4 nights)
Residence La Gancia. 4-Star in an excellent location. We had a quiet sea view junior suite. The staff was wonderful. Rooftop breakfast room also has an outdoor terrace along the water. Highly recommended.
Enoteca Versi di Rosso. 63 Corso Vittorio Emanuele. Fun early evening light dinner, wine and live jazz music. Cozy table inside and in front near very good musicians. Highly recommended.
Activities of Note:
Trapani itself has lots to enjoy and explore while walking all around.
Short day trip via gondola to small hilltop medieval village of Erice. Scenic views.
Ferry and short day trip to Egadi Island of Favignana. Lots of restaurants and cafes. Walked around to explore. Biking is also a popular option.
Private 3+ hour tour with professional guide/driver Michelangelo to Salt Flats and Mozia Island. i[email protected]tHighly recommended.

May 8 – taxi to Palermo Airport.

Lots of great and useful information, 1889mdmd. Thanks for taking the time to compile it. Many folks ask for drivers, so that is really useful.

GREAT, concise reporting!

Love the comments about the plastic cups in the multi-starred hotels! As you know, the starts mean next to nothing in Italy, especially in the coastal resort areas!!

Your trip would be perfect for me! La Mortella Gardens have rarely been mentioned here..soo glad you were able to visit. I love the length of time you stayed in each place....time to soak it all in.
I've also begun to use private drivers in the South....it's always been a joy speaking to these people, having a long time for conversation...

We've been on a number of trips to the South and Sicily/Aeolians in recent years and yet, are planning yet another--return to Puglia--this fall.
I will offer an unsolicited tip: Look at Adriatic Italy: Le Marche (town of Senigllia, a must), Abruzzo, Molise, and on south to the Gargano...far less touristed and just beautiful scenery, food, people, and rife with "sights"

We did a trip to Puglia in September, 2019 combining it with Lake Como and Lake Maggiore. Flew from Milan to Bari where we did rent a car. We went all over and really enjoyed Puglia, especially Matera in the Basilicata region. When we drove to Lecce for a day trip it was IMPOSSIBLE to find anywhere to park. We ended up returning to our beautiful lodging at Tenuta Centoporte in Giurdignano near Otranto. That's when we realized that hiring drivers and guides made much more sense for us - no STRESS - and so much more to see and learn in comfort. Worth every penny. We went to Portugal for a month last year (no Algarve) and hired mostly Ubers which are plentiful in Portugal. Also took trains and hired an occasional driver/guide. I apologize to my fellow Fodorites for being so lazy and not submitting Trip Reports for these two trips especially since I read all of yours! This last trip to southern Italy is my first Trip Report.... Now trying to figure out our spring trip.

We were in Puglia in 2022 and rented a car in Bari, ended up driving more than 1200 kilometers, which is about standard for us on vacations in Italy, but didn’t have any issues parking inside or outside of Lecce. We entered with our vehicle because we stayed in the center in a grand old villa, which is where we parked, but upon exiting we realized that the outside was nice too so we parked, paid a meter through the EasyPark app, and took a nice stroll.

Thanks for the trip report. I am especially interested in the Sicily portion. How did you get between each of the towns you mentioned?

We took the bus from Catania Airport to Siracusa train/bus station which is about a 20 +/- minute walk to our hotel in Ortigia. We got off on the wrong track walking to our hotel and ended up asking our hotel to send a taxi (one of the many reasons why we love hotels!). We took the train from Siracusa train/bus station to town below Taormina: Taormina-Giardini station, which is located in the town of Giardini Naxos, approximately 3 kilometers away from the center of Taormina which is uphill. Took taxi to our hotel in Taormina. Took train from Taormina to Palermo. Taxi to hotel in Palermo. Walked to train/bus station in Palermo and took bus to Trapani. Driver from Trapani to Palermo Airport. You can book buses and trains online. We travel with carry on luggage and a small backpack which makes it much easier with public transportation.

Thank you! I think we will try a mix of car and train travel.

Thanks for sharing this great itinerary! I did a trip to Rome and Naples 2 summers ago. Did you see the island of Capri? It's really beautiful. I wish we got to go to the Almafi Coast, but we didn't get a chance.

Looks like you had a wonderful trip, visiting some of our favourite destinations. Thanks for sharing the useful detailed information.