Amalfi coast on tour bus

[overthesea]

Is the drive on a tour bus very dangerous? Do not want to miss the drive but have a fear of heights and just want to be prepared. Have seen other posts about buses having to back up for traffic, etc. and not sure what to expect.

[chipmaster]

On our private van tour where we were along the most narrow of roads for several hours did NOT see one large cruiseline typical tour bus. I'm not sure if any cruise line offers big bus tours here. We did run into several public buses and did the infamous chicken / backup thing, my kids had a blast watching the tight and narrow and the reverse antics of our car.

 

Are the roads safe, we didn't see any wreckage down at the coast bottom, nor any tire tracks or broken/repaired guard rails, but no question if you had an accident you'd roll a looong way down.

 

A drive of a lifetime, my wife, parents and extended family didn't think the long drive could be fun, afterwards they all admitted very cool, even my boys :D

 

Private is the only way to do it IMHO!

[OhioDogLover]

It can be frightening, if you are not prepared for it. We did it with a small group on a small bus. One of the group was frightenened and literally screamed through much of the ride. However, we observed no accidents, injuries, nothing like that. I am also afraid of heights, so I just did not look. If you haven't done it, I think it is worth it.

ohiodoglover

[texancruzer]

Go with a private tour company and do it in a van !!!!!

 

If you don't have a small group.....go to your roll call and join a "tour share"......very cost effective (ie. cheaper than a ship tour) and much better experience.

[CathyCruises]

Highly recommend NOT doing it in a tour bus--go private in a van and you will see lots more. Lots of recommendations here on tours--we used marcello.

[catl331]

We did it on a ship's tour on a HAL ship from Naples to Amalfi. We sat on the right hand side of the bus and I was too busy with the beauty of the seaside to be afraid. It was fabulous. Our tour guide told us that the bus drivers are especially trained for this tour and have much experience doing this drive. They did not speed on the winding road. We did have to back up once or twice. We did see several other lg. buses. The ride back was via another route up the back of the mountains so the lg buses did not come together going different directions. The driver did clip his mirror off on a rocky wall one time tho. Just stopped the bus and picked it up and kept driving! The advantage of the ship tour bus is that the ship will wait for you to come back. Either way you chose to go this is a "not to be missed" tour. Hint: look out and not down.

[overthesea]

We did it on a ship's tour on a HAL ship from Naples to Amalfi. We sat on the right hand side of the bus and I was too busy with the beauty of the seaside to be afraid. It was fabulous. Our tour guide told us that the bus drivers are especially trained for this tour and have much experience doing this drive. They did not speed on the winding road. We did have to back up once or twice. We did see several other lg. buses. The ride back was via another route up the back of the mountains so the lg buses did not come together going different directions. The driver did clip his mirror off on a rocky wall one time tho. Just stopped the bus and picked it up and kept driving! The advantage of the ship tour bus is that the ship will wait for you to come back. Either way you chose to go this is a "not to be missed" tour. Hint: look out and not down.

 

Thanks for the reply. This is the ONE tour I do not want to miss on the cruise. Noticed that the write up of the tour on the website said that participants would be asked to switch sides half way of the coastal drive and wondering if this happened. I like that idea meaning it would be fair to all concerned.

[Hlitner]

We want to dispell some myths about the Amalfi Drive. Having driven more then 10,000 miles within Italy (including several extended vacations on the Amalfi Coast) we consider the Amalfi Drive to be an excellent 2 lane road with the major issue being traffic. The parts of the road that go near the edge are all protected with very heavy walls and/or guard rails and we have never seen any kind of major accident on this road. As to bus tours, in a word we think all Amalfi bus tours "SUCK." Why do we say this? Because tour buses are not permitted to enter Positano. Sure they give you a view from the top (Amalfi Drive) but for many folks a view of a city is simply not enough. Positano is a wonderful place for walking, shopping, eating, etc and bus tours should be for those who have mobility issues. We continue to recommend (been doing this for years) that cruise passengers give strong consideration to booking a private car/driver who can take you into Positano (cars and vans can enter the city street). The alternate plan for those who are more adventuress (moi) is to take the train to Sorrento and use the regional SITA bus.

 

Hank

[mrmac]

We want to dispell some myths about the Amalfi Drive. Having driven more then 10,000 miles within Italy (including several extended vacations on the Amalfi Coast) we consider the Amalfi Drive to be an excellent 2 lane road with the major issue being traffic. The parts of the road that go near the edge are all protected with very heavy walls and/or guard rails and we have never seen any kind of major accident on this road. As to bus tours, in a word we think all Amalfi bus tours "SUCK." Why do we say this? Because tour buses are not permitted to enter Positano. Sure they give you a view from the top (Amalfi Drive) but for many folks a view of a city is simply not enough. Positano is a wonderful place for walking, shopping, eating, etc and bus tours should be for those who have mobility issues. We continue to recommend (been doing this for years) that cruise passengers give strong consideration to booking a private car/driver who can take you into Positano (cars and vans can enter the city street). The alternate plan for those who are more adventuress (moi) is to take the train to Sorrento and use the regional SITA bus.

 

Hank

 

Thanks Hank. If we take the SITA bus from Sorrento should we just go to Positano or try to also go to Amalfi? Will we see enough of the great drive by Positano or is it more impressive beyond and to Amalfi? Thanks again.

[labeachcomber]

Thanks for the reply. This is the ONE tour I do not want to miss on the cruise. Noticed that the write up of the tour on the website said that participants would be asked to switch sides half way of the coastal drive and wondering if this happened. I like that idea meaning it would be fair to all concerned.

 

Sounds like you want to sit on the right side of the bus then? I'd be curious to see if they actually do make passengers switch sides so it is fair.

[Hlitner]

Thanks Hank. If we take the SITA bus from Sorrento should we just go to Positano or try to also go to Amalfi? Will we see enough of the great drive by Positano or is it more impressive beyond and to Amalfi? Thanks again.

 

Good question! There are some good views beyond Positano although many would argue that the section between Sorrento and Positano offers the most impressive views. Personally we enjoy both sections. To be honest, we think the town of Amalfi is a bit overrated. However, Ravello (which lies on a hill high over Amalfi) is a true gem! In a perfect world you would have enough time to take the SITA bus to Positano, then on to Amalfi where you can get the local bus from Amalfi up to Ravello. However, the world of cruising is far from perfect and only allows folks to get a glimpse of any region. The problem with using the SITA bus to go beyond Positano is one of time. On the other hand, many of the cruise bus tours will get you to Amalfi (and perhaps even to Ravello) but only achieve this objective by passing right by Positano without a visit.

 

So, what's the best answer? If you do want to see more then it does make sense to hire a car/driver although this does not come cheap. If you decide to use the SITA bus my advice would be to stop at Positano and then make your decision. Some would probably want to simply spend more time in Positano and perhaps also spend some time in Sorrento. Others would run through part of Positano and then jump on another SITA bus to Amalfi where they do some more running. My experience tells me that many independent travelers get too caught-up in itineraries and forget that the joy of being on your own is your flexibility. Over the years we have found that very few travel days go as we planned since we constantly change our plans and do what feels right at the time. The trick is to know all of your options and let circumstances dictate the final decisions. Also keep in mind that when you go past Positano you are continuing to get further from the cruise port....and you do need to get back!

 

At this point some followers of my posts might wonder why we do not recommend renting a car (much cheaper then a car/driver). Having driven this area many times we think that Naples is one of the few ports where a rental car is not a good option. Trying to park near Positano and Amalfi can be a frustrating experience. In fact, when we stay on the coast in Praiano (about 5 miles on the Amalfi side of Positano) we leave our car parked at our hotel in Praiano and take the local bus to Positano.

 

Hank