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Report 319: Sorrento, Amalfi, and Montalcino

By Pat from Witchita from Kansas, Spring 2000

Trip Description: Overview of trip to Amalfi and Montalcino with nights sprinkled in at Sorrento, Viterbo, Siena and Florence.

Destinations: Countries - Italy; Regions/Cities - Amalfi Coast, Florence, Lazio, Tuscany

Categories: Hotels/B&Bs; Vacation Rentals; Cooking Classes; Sightseeing; Wine Trip; Independent Travel; 2 People

Page 1 of 3: Getting There, Sorrento, Herculaneum, Pompeii

For those of you that like trip reports brief, you can skip this. For those looking for luxury hotels (I averaged about 80 euro a day) and chic places to eat, this is not for you. I don’t try to see and do everything; I just enjoy being in Italy.

Flew Lufthansa, Chicago to Munich to Naples. For those that smoke, Munich has several smoking areas near the gates. For those that drink, Munich has bars about every 100 meters and plenty of customers for beer at nine am. Didn’t see an ATM in Munich but wasn’t there that long. Naples has an ATM at the end of the terminal.

Took the bus from the front of the terminal to Sorrento (piazza Tasso). Rented an apartment for a week at Corso Italia Suites. The apartment (two rooms and a balcony over-looking Corso Italia) was very clean and comfortable for my wife and me. A corner kitchen was adequately stocked with dishware and pots. The apartment was downtown and convenient for someone without a car. I don’t drive on the Amalfi coast (I realize some think it is a fun thing to do and I understand the adrenaline rush every time you almost die, but it’s not for me).

Took the Circumvesuviana (about 45 minutes) to Herculaneum (Ercolano), signs for the ruins were not apparent to me but just follow the road from the train station for about ten minutes and the entrance is obvious. Spent about 3.5 hours touring the ruins and I think I covered it all.

Took the Circumvesuviana (about 30 minutes) to Pompeii (Scavi), signs are all over and you can see the vendors outside the entrance of the ruins from the train station. Spent about 3.5 hours looking at things I missed on a previous visit (I spent over 4 hours that time) and I think I covered most of it.

Osteria Buonconvento is a new place in Sorrento (they didn’t have menus yet) that I thought had good food and great entertainment. The gregarious waiter explained what was available (in English) and when I asked about the fresh pasta he took me back to the kitchen to show me how they made it. They have a musician that plays guitar and sings (but not that well); however, the owner has a beautiful voice and can easily be coaxed into song. The meal was about 60 euro for two.

A cheaper alternative was the Giardiniello about 35 euro for two. Prices are for an antipasti, first plate, second plate, water and house wine.

Trip Report Pages

Getting There, Sorrento, Herculaneum, Pompeii

Amalfi, Salerno, Paestum

Viterbo, Siena, Montalcino, Florence

Resources

Resources are on the last page of the trip report.

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