Positano AND Paestum from Salerno?

[cheffip]

I know they are in opposite directions but is it feasible to do Amalfi/Positano or Amalfi/Ravello from Salerno in the morning and then go to Paestum to see the Greek temples in the afternoon using public transportation? We'll be there from 7am - 7pm in October.

PS is the train or bus a better choice to Paestum from Salerno?

[goody1]

I hope someone comes on with some good adice. We are also in Salerno in Oct (14th) and had intended taking the train to Paestum. If the option was there to do Amalfi and Paestum without too much rush would certainly interest us.

[Hlitner]

My initial thought (without carefullly researching the public transit options) is that you would be pushing things because of the opposite direction problem. Taking the train from Salerno to Paestum is a fine option, but then getting back to Positano (and later back to Sorrento) is going to be anything but easy since there are no trains. If you could find a Salrno - Positano - Salerno jetboat/hydrofoil that fit your schedule (not sure it exists) you might pull it off. The other option (using the SITA bus) would probably just take too long when coupled with the other trip to Paestum. Over the years we go tired of always being frustated with the time limitations in this part of Italy on a port day and it is what finally drove us to spend two vacations right on the coast in Praiano.

 

Hank

[cheffip]

My initial thought (without carefullly researching the public transit options) is that you would be pushing things because of the opposite direction problem. Taking the train from Salerno to Paestum is a fine option, but then getting back to Positano (and later back to Sorrento) is going to be anything but easy since there are no trains. If you could find a Salrno - Positano - Salerno jetboat/hydrofoil that fit your schedule (not sure it exists) you might pull it off. The other option (using the SITA bus) would probably just take too long when coupled with the other trip to Paestum. Over the years we go tired of always being frustated with the time limitations in this part of Italy on a port day and it is what finally drove us to spend two vacations right on the coast in Praiano.

 

Hank

 

Thanks Hank.

I think there is one company still doing a Salerno-Amalfi-Positano boat route in October so that could be an option as you mentioned.

Can I put you on the spot for one more thing? If I just go one-way from Salerno...would you recommend Positano or Ravello? I visited Positano during a one-week vacation in Sorrento many years ago but never made it to Ravello (or Paestum for that matter.)

[aquilegia]

If I just go one-way from Salerno...would you recommend Positano or Ravello? I visited Positano during a one-week vacation in Sorrento many years ago but never made it to Ravello (or Paestum for that matter.)

 

Ravello is much closer to Salerno than Positano is, so would leave you more free time for other things.

[euro cruiser]

Like Hank, I haven't taken the time to research the transit options because my gut reaction is that this simply won't work.

 

If seeing both in the same day is important to you, I think you need to either rent a car and drive yourself, or pay for a car and driver.

[goody1]

Thanks for the replies. My wife and I spent a short time in Amalfi a few years ago as well as Ravello on a day excursion from Sorrento. We'll stick to our original plan and get the train to Paestum.

[Hlitner]

Ravello vs Positano! What a choice..and of course you win no matter what you decide. As has been mentioned, Ravello is closer to Salerno although if you use public transit things may not be faster. Here is the problem. The bus to Ravello is a local bus that simply goes back and forth between the square in Amalfi up to Ravello. This bus only runs about once every 45 min and does not seem to have its schedule coordinated with anything else. So, you would first need to take the bus (or boat) to Amalfi and then wait around for the next bus. I should also add that Ravello is actually one of the easiest places to access if you have a rental car because the town has plenty of parking (rare in this part of Italy). Since you have already been to Positano you probably would lean towards Ravello which is a fine decision. We do find Ravello a more "laid-back" town that has a residential feel as opposed to the almost circus atmosphere found in parts of Positano. We have a vested interest in Ravello because my DW stumbled on a tiny Lemoncello factory that had the best Lemoncello on earth. The problem is we do not remember where (in Ravello) it is and there are many small Lemoncello factories in the town. So we have to keep going back until we try every Lemoncello place (tough job).

 

Hank

[euro cruiser]

We have a vested interest in Ravello because my DW stumbled on a tiny Lemoncello factory that had the best Lemoncello on earth. The problem is we do not remember where (in Ravello) it is and there are many small Lemoncello factories in the town. So we have to keep going back until we try every Lemoncello place (tough job).

But someone has to do it ... :D

 

When you find it again, please share!

[cheffip]

Thanks everyone for the replies...hard choices but sounds like they would all be good ones in this case. I might base it on the weather when I get there!

Another question: Does the Amalfi Drive more or less end at Salerno? Just wondering how dramatic the scenery would be going from Salerno to Paestum?

-Phil

[euro cruiser]

Yes, it does end at Vietri Sul Mare, just west of Salerno.

 

I don't remember the drive between Salerno and Paestum being particularly interesting ... we drove all the way up the coast from Calabria a few years ago and, as I recall, most of the trip from Paestum to Salerno was inland enough that you couldn't see the water. For the last fifteen minutes or so we drove through seaside towns where you occasionally got a glimpse of the water beyond the hotels and/or houses.

 

In other words, pleasant but nothing spectacular - it's all at sea level, not the dramatic cliffs of the Amalfi Coast road.

[Hlitner]

We do not recall the drive being anything special once you get a couple of miles on the Salerno side of Amalfi.

 

Hank