Amalfi coast help please

[Redwinetorelax]

My mum has always wanted to go so we are planning a trip for October. We will only have three nights. I don’t know where to start as I’ve never been to Italy. Is there one place we could stay that would mean we could see a lot based from there? We won’t have a car and would consider a tour/day trips instead. Any tips welcomed!

From Naples you can take a train to Salerno. It takes about 40 mins and has great views. From there you can link up with buses along the coast but you can also take a high speed ferry to Positano or Amalfi. Or take a taxi to Minori or Amalfi.

BA are going to fly Gatwick to Salerno direct from May. From there Amalfi is not far.

You can also take bus tours to Pompeii and Herculaneum from Naples or from along the Amalfi coast.

We stayed in a lovely villa in Praiano some years ago. It's a smaller town than Positano (just a bit further along the coast in the direction of Amalfi) so less busy, but still beautiful. One of the highlights was a captained boat trip along the coast to Amalfi, with stops to swim in the coves and caves.

Don’t stay in Salerno. It was levelled in WW2 so the buildings are ugly and there’s no atmosphere at all. Stay in Sorrento, it’s a great base for getting around, you can get reasonably priced boat trips pretty much anywhere and a direct train to Pompeii

I too was going to ask whether Pompeii and Herculaneum were things you'd want to see? We stayed in Naples and got the local, Circumvesuvian train which was very easy and cheap! The station was a 10min walk to the entrance to Pompeii.

Thank you everyone. No mum isn’t particularly interested in history, more pretty views and walking through nice towns etc. Personally I’d love to visit Pompeii but this is going to be her trip really!

Jackiesgirl is right; Sorrento is a beautiful, interesting town for your Mum, and a great base for outings like a coach trip along the Amalfi coast, stopping at places like Positano.

There's great boat excursions nearby, and trains to interesting places.

It's the only place abroad I've been to twice!

Will start looking at hotels in Sorrento. Thank you!

I would also second Sorento - pretty views, including Vesuvius - and boat trip to Capri/blue lagoon. Would be easy to get a trip to Amalfi coast. Don’t stay in Naples -doesn’t sound like it’s the vibe you are after

We stayed in vito equense and then got the boat to Sorrento, Capri ect as part of a tour.
Train to pompeii &Naples .
its a gorgeous pace with fantastic views

Sorrento - it’s the most stunning place on earth

Are either of you travel sick? The buses that go to Amalfi along the coastline from Salerno offer the most spectacular views but it's awfully bendy!

Another vote for Sorrento here. It really is the most convenient and easy place to do day trips from. It's nice and flat for walking around too. You can get the train to Naples and all the little places en route or buses/boats along the Amalfi coast including the islands (Capri, Ischia). Sorrento itself is picturesque and interesting with plenty of nice bars/restaurants and hotels. With only 3 days you really do want to stay somewhere that's easy to get to places and maximise your trip.

We've just got back from a long weekend in Sorrento - as it's March many of the hotels and restaurants were still closed, and the boat trips along the coast seemed to start from April. You might want to double check what will be open in October. Having said that, the town was lively and there were plenty of places to visit and the views were lovely. We flew in to Naples and took the train to Sorrento, stopping at Pompeii on the way (there is a left luggage place in the station on the Circumvesuviana line), and taking a few hours to look around Naples on our way back to the airport for the return trip.

We stayed in Amalfi itself, we arrived in Amalfi by ferry from Salerno. We then did day trips to Ravello/Positano and other villages by bus or ferry, using Amalfi as a base. We did loads of hiking it's beautiful. I haven't been to Sorrento but Google tells me it's 1hr 40 by bus from Sorrento to Amalfi, so I think it depends where you actually want to spend time. Sorrento would closer to Capri if you want to do that.

Adding to what the previous poster said about things being open, we were there 5th-7th April 2023 and restaurants in Amalfi were open, but not all the ferries were running. Some ferries ran that weren't supposed to be be running as it was quite busy being a few days before Easter, so how much is open probably does depend a bit on level of demand and how late in October you plan to travel.

Sorrento is lovely but if your mum wants to visit lots of different little towns along the Amalfi coast then I think it might be easier (but more expensive and less choice of accommodation) to stay that side of the peninsula. From there the boats quickly get from one little town to another along the coast. Worth thinking about where exactly you want to visit and how you want to do it - plus checking the ferries are still running.

Tbh I’m not sold on Sorrento as a place although convenient for the rail to Pompeii and Herculaneum, as it is a large resort busy with tourists all day and night, nor is it on the Amalfi coast.

We booked a lovely short break to Sorrento via Secret Escapes which included a coach trip along the coast and airport to hotel transport. We stayed at the Michelangelo which was a short flat walk to the main square.

The death defying bus from Sorrento to Positino is fun.