What are your top tips for visiting Sorrento?

[Frangipane]

Dh and I are spending a week in Sorrento. Dh is leaving the planning to me which is fine by me but I could do with some insider knowledge.

So far, I am thinking of a trip to Capri. Can this be done in one day or would it need longer? Top things to see/do on Capri?

Definitely going to visit Pompeii and Herculanium. Do each on separate days or together?

Thinking about visiting Amalfi. Is there a coast path or some way of seeing this at its best? We visited the Cinque Terra a few years ago and it was sadly a bit of a disappointment owing to half of the paths being closed and the sheer number of people there. I am hoping Amalfi might make up for this.

Also thinking of visiting Naples but you hear so many takes of the awfulness of Naples. It can't be that bad, can it? What are the best things to do in Naples and how many days would it take?

Also thinking about a trip up Vesuvius but don't know how feasible that would be.

Everything would be via public transport. I know there is a useful train line, but any tips for using it would be appreciated.

Anything else in the area that is worth doing?

TIA

Tales, not takes

Find this restaurant and eat there - it really is a must. It’s not obvious as it’s down a little street and behind a high wall with a wooden door leading into it -you’ll have to look for it. We’ll be talking about it forever

I Giardini di Tasso

Ooo thanks. I just looked it up on trip advisor and someone commented that the proprietor is closing the restaurant in January 2019 though...

Have dinner at a restaurant named Moonlight.

Nothing fancy but best food I ever had in Italy and not expensive.

I've been to Sorrento several times.

Yes, you can do Capri in a day. Get the hydrofoil (quicker but more expensive) or ferry. Should only take an hour or so. You'll disembark at the dock so either walk, get the lift thingy or a bus up to Capri town (the posh bit). Prices are high. You can then either walk or get the bus to Anacapri which is cheaper. The famous chair lift is up there. There is a boat ride into the blue grotto you can go on too.

You'll need a day each for Pompeii & Herculaneum. The railway goes to both. Pompeii station is right outside the site. Take plenty of water (though there are fountains) & a packed lunch as there is only one cafe on the site & it gets rammed. Choose to either see the main sites with a tour guide or explore on your own but be prepared for lots of walking on uneven ground & little shelter.
Herculaneum, the rail station is at the top of the hill. Don't get conned into a taxi. Walk out the station & walk straight down the hill, the site is at the bottom.
It's a much smaller site than Pompeii but take water & food as there isn't much on site.
Both are amazing imho but I love all of that stuff.

For Amalfi either take the ferry along the coast or the bus (Sita is the company). Both give you amazing views. Amalfi is a lovely town but is also a transport hub so from there you can catch the bus/ ferry to Ravello (amazing views), Minori (has a Roman villa) or further down to Paestum (Greek ruins).
There is a path from Minori up to Ravello but I understand it's pretty hardcore with soooo many steps. Never attempted it myself.

I've been to Naples once - went on the train. We went to the museum & had a wander round the shops but wasn't overly keen. Just too busy, crowded & cramped. But if there is something you want to see there go for it. We did it in a day.

I've never been to Vesuvius - would love to. There are lots of companies offering excursions or you should be able to get the train to the nearest station & go from there.

Sorrento is lovely - yes it's crowded & touristy but the people are so nice especially if you make an effort to speak Italian. Shop locally if you can - there are some fab fishmongers, bakeries & greengrocers around. & the gelato 🍨 is 😋

Have an amazing time.

Just wanted to add, if you can, pop over to Ischia. Had the best pizza ever there 17 years ago, although couldn't tell you the name of the place! The island is lovely, and very different to Capri. Enjoy, it's a wonderful part of the world

I LOVE Naples. Yes it's busy and grubby, but it is fascinating, friendly and has amazing food. The museum is an absolute must - I would do it after Pompeii so you can put the finds in context.

Oh Positano is also very nice. It's the white town slooping down the cliffs. You can reach it by boat or bus from Sorrento.

We went a few years ago- got a train round to Vesuvius, and picked up a bus that took us to the volcano, then after we’d climbed to the crater it picked us up again and round to Herculaneum. One day was enough to see both properly as long as you head over in reasonable time in the morning.

Thanks for the tips so far. Yes, my primary reason for going to the area is to see Pompeii and Herculaneum, so that sounds like 2 days of our week sorted (3 if we go to the museum in Naples). We don't mind hard-core walking either!

Anything else a must see in Naples? And sorry to sound stupid, but would the museum have explanations in English? I know a bit of Italian, but not enough to cover historical explanations!

I really liked walking around Villa Poppaea, it's a really well preserved Roman villa on its own site, but reachable on the Circumvesuviana line. You can buy a ticket that covers a few different sites including Pompeii, Herculaneum and Villa Poppaea. But with the Villa it was practically empty and was like having the place to yourself

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Villa_Poppaea

There's a regular train from Naples to Sorrento that takes about an hour. It gets crowded but it's OK & it's cheap. There's also a faster train that costs a bit more & has more luggage space. Buy tickets in advance online if you want to use this - the guards on the train let people with pre-booked tickets on first & they get all the seats still annoyed about that

There are buses outside the stations at Pompeii & Herculaneum that will take you up Vesuvius to a car park, then you can hike the rest of the way. We didn't do it because the weather wasn't great when we were there, but it's easy to arrange. Good walking shoes are necessary, apparently, and it can be cold up there.

The archeological museum in Naples is €15 per person entrance fee, which we thought was very expensive. That's all we did in Naples, while waiting for our train to Rome. We used the metro to get there, it was cheap & felt safe.

We wandered around Pompeii ourselves with an audio guide - you'll need your passport if you want to hire one. We spent a day there & could've spent longer. The site entrance is immediately opposite the station.

Herculaneum is amazing too, much smaller site but many buildings are more complete. It's only a 10 minute walk from Ercolano station.

I thought Amalfi was touristy, overcrowded & overrated. Positano was nicer. We went slightly off season & the traffic was murder. I don't know about a coastal path, but the coast is best seen from the sea, imo.

You could do Herculaneum and Vesuvius on the same day. There is a bus right outside Herculaneum train station that takes you most of the way up then it's maybe a half hour walk to the top.
Herculaneum takes a few hours to go round but not the whole day like Pompeii.
We didn't get a guide in Pompeii but did in Herculaneum and it made the visit much more interesting.
We stayed in Naples and it was fine. Not dangerous or anything but not very picturesque either. There is a big antiquities museum if that's your thing. That's pretty much the only thing I would go to Naples for unless it's just to walk around and say you've been there.

Yes, the museum has good descriptions in both Italian & English. Definitely go after Pompeii. The exhibits are stunning, we were just at the entrance fee!

Yes the museum also has descriptions in English.
Do you have DC under 18? Be aware that there is an adults only part in the museum!

If you enjoy art, visit Museo di Capodimonte.
Great chance to see for example one of Caravaggio’s works ( though there are 2 other paintings from him in other locations in Napoli).

Haha, yes, the original murals from the brothel in Pompeii

There was a very long queue to get into that particular building, it's very popular.

It's worth paying for a nice hotel that faces out to sea - the centre of Sorrento is surprisingly tacky, but you can avoid that. There are nice restaurants at the marina - unfortunately we only discovered them on our last night.

Capri was lovely, we found a day there long enough to explore.

If you are going to Pompeii using the circular train, don't whatever you do, get off at the wrong stop, and if you are tempted to do that then make sure you all get off and the train doesn't start pulling away from the station with your 11 yr old DS on the platform and you and DH in the moving train. Oh if you get to the right station ( after a 30 min walk in the blazing sun ) then bring some spare clothes for your DS just in case he's sick after the bumpy bus trip down again . Or just go as a couple which would be much better .

I wasn't in a fit state to enjoy Pompeii after that - it was much bigger than expected and DH and DS were recuperating at the cafe so I felt a bit rushed. Herculaneum is meant to be smaller and easier to navigate so maybe start with that and do Pompeii later in the week if you fancy it.

If you're flying into Naples, it may be worth organising a taxi in advance as there are apparently a lot of pick pockets on the airport buses and trains, We had a lovely chap take us to our Sorrento apartment and it was 70 euros which I didn't think was too pricey.

Oh this would have been a useful guide for getting to places www.visitpompeiivesuvius.com/en/getting-here#section-getting-here-01

Thank you again. It will just be me and dh on this trip so no need to worry about under 18s getting into restricted parts of museums, or exiting trains at the wrong station (your post brought a smile to my face though rookiemere). That link is most useful too. We are staying in a hotel up in the hills behind Sorrento with a free bus shuttle down into the town, and also they should be arranging a taxi for us from the airport. What are the boats/sea like (going in July)? I am not a good sailor but it sounds as though we might be on the water quite a bit.

Oh yes sea .
Didn't see the Emerald Grotto off Capri as it involved getting out from the fairly rickety boat we were on and getting into a smaller one. I may have had a panic attack . DH and DS enjoyed it though even though it cost additional from the trip.

It was actually a good - if eventful- holiday.

Unless there is a storm the sea is fine. The ferry is huge so copes well.
I'd recommend doing the bus at least once to or from Amalfi as it's an experience! We're talking a coach navigating hairpin bends on the cliff edge for about an hour with the barrier wall being about 4ft high. Sit at the front or on the right hand side to fully appreciate the drop.

I got married in Sorrento!
Def can do Capri in a day
Herculaneum is better than Pompeii
A trip up Vesuvius is worth it for the views

The bus from Sorrento goes along the amazing Amalfi drive and is not the most comfy but is cheap and amazing views.

I love Sorrento, one of my favourite holidays. We did Capri in a day, although check your change if you get the funicular up to the town from the port. The man deliberately short changed me by 1 euro (as I walked away, noticed it was short, then turned back, he slid a euro across to me while he served the next person).

We didn't get round the coast to Amalfi, so really we need to go back!

Placemarking - we are going soon.