Amalfi coast private driver/tour recommendations

[rookiemere]

We're flying to Naples in October and the plan is to spend 5 nights there and then get high speed train to Rome for a couple of nights.

We will be staying in Sorrento but want to visit all the usual attractions. We have decided not to hire a car, but I've also read scary stories about the train from the airport plus at the end we'll need to get to Naples train station which I've also read scary things about.

There is an absolute plethora of private hire cars and I just wondered if anyone had any recommendations- particularly of ones that aren't too pricey.
Also for sightseeing is it genuinely easy enough to do it by public transport or should we book on to a tour or again use a private hire car? We want to see the usual things - Vesuvius, Herculeum, Pompei.
DS is 11 so any tours or trips that he would enjoy would be great, plus we usually hire a car so DH probably not the most patient about using public transport.

We used buses, and had no problems at all I really wouldn't drive. Not just because the driving out there is crazy, but because the coast road is so beautiful, it would be a shame for the driver not to appreciate it. Don't get too worried about Naples. Yes, it is a bit wild westish, and my bag was snatched, but it is fascinating - a hell of a lot more interesting than Sorrento.

Thanks lucydoz definitely not driving

We just got back from Naples recently and it was excellent - far better than I expected to be honest. The metro and the station were really easy to use and we had no problems at all. Taxis all charge a fixed price to get to the station from the city which is more than can be said for Rome! We didn't make it to Pompeii but our landlady said there are pickpockets on the train so keep your wits about you. Herculaneum is not completely open at the moment apparently. There were lots of companies offering trips to all the places you mentioned - I don't have any recommendations but I'm sure the tourist office could help.

Pompeii and Herculaneum (and Naples if you feel brave) are accessible by train. When we went 20 + years ago you could get a boat round to Amalfi which was preferable to the precipitous bus ride, although you wouldn't then get up to Ravello. We're taking dc this summer so also on look out for tips. There are lots of tour organiser firms in Sorrento.

I've done this a couple of times. Definitely possible, safe and straight forward to do on public transport.

The circumvesuviana railway is a private railway which runs regularly from Sorrento to Naples. We bought a pass which got us into Pompeii, Herculaneum, the Archaeology Museum in Naples, and covered the railway too. Might only cover trains from Naples to the sights.

Buses run from Sorrento to Amalfi, Salerno and other places round the coast. I found the trip a bit hair raising, but that's Italian drivers being more used to the roads than me!

The trip into Naples from the airport was straight forward too. The usual rules apply for any city - keep belongings close, purses/wallets tucked securely away, enjoy yourselves!

do go to Salerno and visit the temples at Paestum nearby. They were my highlight of the holiday.