Where in Italy to take family?

[ping78]

My husband and I have been to all the "major" places in Italy from Rome up, including Lake Garda (not Como though). Would like to take our children who will be 13 and 10, wondering whether to go to the southern areas as we've not been before, Amalfi Coast, Pompeii etc, or if we should replicate some of the city spots we've been to. Happy to hire a car and drive. Have read mixed reviews on Naples. Keen to hear about your family holidays to Italy and where you recommend.

Bay of Naples is good for a mix - coast, city, volcano, Pompeii and Herculaneum, you might not want to spend days in Naples but worth a visit. Deffo a better choice than the Amalfi coast which is lovely but annoyingly busy.

Sicily is great. Palermo a really interesting vibrant city, lots of good sites, etna, amazing beaches.

Puglia is nice, quietish, loads of coast - less of the actual sites to visit but Basilica next door has that amazing cave town - just keep an eye on where you go if you want places of interest.

We did a sorrento/ischia mix which was nice with day trip to Pompeii - Naples wasn't very nice

Sicily is lovely

Sardinia is decent
Amalfi coast is good fun
Bologna for food
we drove though lake Como but were not really impressed with it as a family trip

I agree with @Luredbyapomegranate , the Bay of Naples is a lovely mix of experiences and our two loved Pompeii and Herculaneum at 10 & 7. They had gladiator mock fights in the arena!

We based our trip in Rome though, stayed in an apartment and they loved the sights, including the museums. We booked tickets ahead to avoid the lines. They’ve always been mythology buffs and were very into the Percy Jackson series at the time-so it partly depends what suits your children’s interests.

Hi. We have been to Sorento with out daughter when she was 4 for a wedding. Was nice but not for children. Lucky we stayed at the hilton that had a pool and park for children. Otherwise its adult orientated. Lovely place though x

Why not start in Rome for a few days then catch a train down the coast, stopping off at Naples for a day and then Sorrento or Salerno for the end of your holiday. The trains are so cheap and regular and you'll avoid driving/parking problems.

Thanks all @DeadBod that sounds great and the kind of thing I was thinking, we quite like to move around a bit so like the idea of multiple stops.

@DeadBod I’d second not driving, much easier to take the train.

We just had a great time in Naples for a week at October half term just gone. Loads to do: Pompeii, Herculaneum, Vesuvius, food tour in Napes, archeological museum in Naples, generally wandering, boat trip to Ischia (or Capri)…And amazing pizza and gelato of course!

Had also read some iffy reviews of Naples but honestly didn’t feel unsafe, even though it got dark around 6.30pm. It’s definitely not pristine and perfect but we thought it was a fab city.

We stayed in an Airbnb in Naples itself and took the train /metro, and did a lot of walking too. No car.

We’ve done lots of family holidays to Italy (it’s our favourite place to go). Sardinia is absolutely stunning and you can combine city (loved Alghero) with stunning beaches in the same break, but it is £££££. We’ve been to lake Garda twice we loved it so much (near Salo) and Lake Maggiore once (also beautiful). We often combine a city break with somewhere more rural, we did Rome a few years ago and then picked up a hire car and spent a few days in Umbria, then a week in the Marche region.

We’ve also stayed near the Tuscan coast in a Eurocamp type place (La Pianacce) which was great, you could head to Pisa for a day. I loved the Amalfi coast with trips to Pompeii, but it depends what time of year as we went in august and I think Pompeii would be better when it wasn’t quite so hot.

This year we’re going in May, starting in Venice for a few days then getting the train to Ravenna before we get on a cruise, I can’t wait already!

We stayed in Cannigione in Sardinia and did boat trips to the Madalena Islands and took the ferry to Corsica for the day. The beaches are stunning and very nice food. We are doing Ischia and Naples next year. Ischia I have been to before - and I had a post on here a few weeks back asking about Naples. It seems a bit marmite but enough positive comments to persuade me to stay there rather than e.g. Sorrento for a few days. Lake Maggiore is stunning - lots of boat trip opportunities. I preferred it to Como.

Go to Venice it’s beautiful. We went to Milan (it’s ok one day is enough), Lake Como (it was nice but I was not wowed) and Venice which we all loved and I would love to go back and stay longer it was amazing. The art galleries, bridges and there was just a lovely feel to the place. Just be wary of the gondola staff who will try and rip you off. Make sure you take comfy shoes as you have to walk everywhere. I would also recommend the Italo train if you are going by train from Milan to Venice, they have these luxurious private compartments with snacks, leather seats and access to the lounge at the train station.

@ping78
Milan is brilliant for more than one day! People just don’t do their homework on what to see.

No one has mentioned Bologna. You have a great city and trains going to lots of other places. Ravenna, Parma, Modena, (Ferrari museum), Ferrara, and lots of other places including Venice.

Sicily is very cool, Palermo is diverse with lots to see. Check out the temples at Agrigento they are amazing, Taormina is beautiful with a great Roman theatre, you can go up Etna. Highly recommend.