Capri on our own

[Whitechapel girl]

Hi all - yr opinions please. We dock in Naples (on 23 sept sailing on Silhouette) and want to do Capri on our own. Found out only 1 other ship in port that day. Any one done this and tips please. We know to get the fast hydrofoil over & back but thinking timings etc. thanks

 

 

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[jromeroslc]

I have the same plans this summer.

 

Here is a web page that I found helpful.

http://www.capri.com/en/i/the-island-in-a-day

[RickT]

Easy to do. You just need to figure out what you want to do when you get over there.

 

We've done a boat tour around the island. Hiked up to Anacapri. Roamed around and generally enjoyed the feel of Capri.

 

As far as timing we air to get the first boat if possible. I think boats leave every 90 minutes. As far as the return we try to catch the 2nd last boat that will get us back to the ship leaving a little room for error.

 

You may want to search the Italy ports section for more info on this. I'm sure you'll find more ideas of what to do in Capri as well as links to the ferry/hyrdrofoil schedule.

[Cruise Junky]

There are numerous companies with boats that do this so it's far more regular than 90 minutes. You'll find a wealth of information on the Italy Board under Europe. It's super easy to do on your own.

[Floflegs]

Very easy yo do on your own. Slowest part was buying tickets for the boat so try to be early. We took funicular to Capri town. Ate pizza and admired the view. Awesome! Walked back down. Longer than we thought but good. I wouldn't try walking up!

[willma]

Book your return tickets as soon as you get off at the office at the dock so that you don't have to queue up when you want to get your boat back.

[Jenna109]

Do give yourself plenty of time to get back as there are long queues later in the afternoon in the busy season. Two women on one of our cruises didn't get a boat back and missed the ship. They had to travel over night by train down the coast to catch us again. To be fair to the captain it was their third time late back!

[Cornishpastyman1]

Hi all - yr opinions please. We dock in Naples (on 23 sept sailing on Silhouette) and want to do Capri on our own. Found out only 1 other ship in port that day. Any one done this and tips please. We know to get the fast hydrofoil over & back but thinking timings etc. thanks

 

 

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Assuming it's a nice day get the earliest hydrofoil you can, ideally one around 8.30 Stupidly I didn't set off until 10 am and bitterly regretted it as there is so much to see and enjoy on Capri. Buy your return ticket at the same time, so all you have to worry about is being back at Marina Grande around 10-15 minutes before departure time. The return trip costs about €40. From the hydrofoil - ship is only about 250 yards. This shows the trip over and a look at Villa San Michele. All the best, Tony

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[Captain Canuck]

there are 2 ferry ports in naples that serve Capri. We took slow ferry over as it was boarding right beside the cruise ship. took fast one back and it docked a few miles away..out of sight of the cruise ship and no cabs around. was an easy walk along very pretty coast but a bit of a concern as we did not know for sure which way to go

 

have posted this before and somebody had all the info on the names of both ports etc so suggest you find.

[euro cruiser]

Don't purchase both outbound and return tickets in the morning unless the operator you are going over with happens to have a return at the time you want. There are several companies on this route and each has its on ticket office at Molo Beverello (Naples). If you wait and purchase your return on Capri you can choose from the full range of return times. HOWEVER, do not wait until the end of your visit to do this. Purchase your return tickets as soon as you arrive on Capri to avoid the lines and last minute rush, and to be sure the sailing you want doesn't sell out.

Edited May 27, 2014 by euro cruiser

[CathyCruises]

We just did this a couple of weeks ago. Booked both ways up front since the times worked. We met the best taix driver (those cute Capri convertible stretch Fiats) who gave us a great tour, took us to a lovely seaside restaurant for lunch and kept us amused with his banter.

 

His name is Daniele Benetello (goes by 'Benny') and his email is info@caprimood.com. We really enjoyed our special day with him.

[Lifeofriley1956]

We were there a couple years back. Took the high speed air boat,be first ones in line.took funicular to town,then took the bus to Ana Capri.once there we took the individual chairlifts up to peak.fantastic 360 deg views from there. Back to Capri then took ferry to Sorrento and walked around awhile and had lunch.took train back to Naples .busy day but well worth it.

[starfruitvj]

Capri is pretty easy to do on your own, my Mom and I did it from Sorrento basically following what Rick Steves suggests in his book.

 

We caught the 9:15 Hydrofoil, buying a 3:15 return ticket at the same time. We then went strait to the ships going to the Blue Grotto, but had our oarsmen drop us off at the stairs afterwards, so instead of taking the boat back to Capri, we caught the bus at the top of the stairs to Ana Capri.

 

We did the chairlift, then explored Ana Capri for a bit, stopped for lunch, then took the bus down to Capri, walked around, had gelato and caught the funicular down to the pier to catch the 3:15 hydrofoil back to Sorrento.

 

It was a beautiful day and there were many people from our cruise who also did Capri on their own.

[Whitechapel girl]

We were there a couple years back. Took the high speed air boat,be first ones in line.took funicular to town,then took the bus to Ana Capri.once there we took the individual chairlifts up to peak.fantastic 360 deg views from there. Back to Capri then took ferry to Sorrento and walked around awhile and had lunch.took train back to Naples .busy day but well worth it.

 

 

 

 

 

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[sayaguru]

We also did it on our own. We walked to the pier and purchased both over and return ticket on the ferry.

Our advice was to go straight to the top. Glad we did as the lines top go up were quite long after that. It gets chilly up the top so take a cardigan. We enjoyed the view then took our time coming down. Stopping at different places, wandering around, having a drink etc. When we got to the bottom we booked the Blue Grotto your, had something to eat and cruised around. The tour wasn't very organised and left later than they said. They seemed to be waiting for the boat to fill up.

 

Beautiful.

[juls1964]

We just did this a couple of weeks ago. Booked both ways up front since the times worked. We met the best taix driver (those cute Capri convertible stretch Fiats) who gave us a great tour, took us to a lovely seaside restaurant for lunch and kept us amused with his banter.

 

His name is Daniele Benetello (goes by 'Benny') and his email is info@caprimood.com. We really enjoyed our special day with him.

 

 

Hi CathyCruises

 

We are going on the epic very soon and want to do capri on our own, is it easy to do when you disembark or is there a long walk to the ferry, we would just like a few hours on Capri the back to the ship, did you book benny and was he reasonable, sorry for all the question but would like to get lost lol

 

Thanks

Juls

:)

[CathyCruises]

The ferry terminal is very close to the place where we docked, about a five-minute walk off to the left. I understand that the ships sometimes dock in a further away location but we docked in the same spot for three trips consecutively. We did not rebook Benny, we found him when we got off the ferry and had no idea where we were going or what to do. It was a ton of fun tootling around the beautiful island in his cute convertible. He and his wife have kind of a tourist business apparently, so you could contact him and ask him what options are out there.

 

It was a very memorable day

 

 

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[We-R-Off]

We would like to go to Sorrento & Capri on our own.

Should we go to Sorrento first & hydrofoil to Capri? On arrival at Capri I presume we should book our return hydrofoil.

 

What is the easiest way to get to Sorrento?

 

Is there enough time for both?

 

Is it best to do Capri or Sorrento first?

Edited June 23, 2014 by ilanas

[euro cruiser]

We would like to go to Sorrento & Capri on our own.

Should we go to Sorrento first & hydrofoil to Capri? On arrival at Capri I presume we should book our return hydrofoil.

 

What is the easiest way to get to Sorrento?

 

Is there enough time for both?

 

Is it best to do Capri or Sorrento first?

I wouldn't do this because I don't find a good enough reason to go to Sorrento, but that's me. Capri is further away so if you do try this it's probably better to go to Capri first, then Sorrento. The problem with this idea is that some shops in Sorrento close in the afternoon, and there really isn't much else to do in Sorrento other than shop.

 

If you go to Sorrento first then yes, do purchase your return to Naples as soon as you set foot on Capri. Actually, you should do this even if you spend the entire day on Capri.

 

One problem with going to Sorrento first is that the first boat doesn't leave Naples until 9 AM, arriving at about 9:45. You could take the Circumvesuviana train to Sorrento but that only gets you there about a half hour earlier, it takes twice as long, and it's decidedly less comfortable (in my opinion, anyway).

Edited June 23, 2014 by euro cruiser

[Hlitner]

Have to lend some support to Euro Cruiser's comments. Although we might disagree on some (not too many) cruise/travel related issued, when it comes to Sorrento we are in full agreement. To be really blunt, having spend significant time vacationing in the area we have never discovered the charm (if any) of Sorrento. There is a small area (not far from the Tourist Office) that has some decent cafes that offer decent views. But beyond that, Sorrento is simply the main city in the Amalfi Coast area (Salerno would be another main city at the other end of the coast) which is where the locals go to shop for their "back to school" stuff.

 

So my suggestion is just keep your options open and make your own decision as your day progresses. Get off your ship as soon as possible and quickly walk over to the nearby ferry terminal (Molo Beverello). Check the schedule boards and buy yourself tickets on the next jetboat/hydrofoil to Capri. Once on Capri, you could decide to wait and decide if you still want to go to Sorrento (you could always go back down to the Marina and buy a ticket on a jetboat/hydrofoil to Sorrento). The only reason we do not normally recommend this approach is that we normally recommend buying your return ticket to Naples as soon as you get on Capri.

 

Hank

[We-R-Off]

Thanks so much for your feedback.

 

When we toured the Amalfi coast & didn't really stop in Sorrento, I thought I'd missed something special. From your description it is no more significant than many of the other charming little towns along the coast.

 

We visited the charming towns at Cinque Terra, so I think that coupled with our visit to Amalfi, we will use our energies to visit & enjoy Capri.

[Clang60]

Our cruise ship comes into Naples and we don't disembark until 1:00 p.m. We will then be taken to our hotel to check-in. Would we still have time to go to Capri? We do not have to be back to Naples at a certain time.

 

 

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[Hlitner]

Our cruise ship comes into Naples and we don't disembark until 1:00 p.m. We will then be taken to our hotel to check-in. Would we still have time to go to Capri? We do not have to be back to Naples at a certain time.

 

 

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You can do it, but the question is whether you want to go that late in the day. Keep in mind that it takes about 50 min via hydrofoil to get to Marina Grande and another few minutes to get yourself up to Capri Town. You would have plenty of time to walk around the town and explore the shops and you could even go over to Oia and wait for the sunset. The last ferry back to Naples departs Capri at 11:00 pm although the schedules can change so its good to check on the day you go.

 

Hank

[Clang60]

Thanks Hank! We might try to do that. We would like to see Pompeii also, but are afraid that will not be an option since we are getting there later in the day.

[Vineyard View]

We haveo visited Capri on our own twice - one time when staying on the Amalfi Coast, and the other time when on a cruise. Both times were AWESOME. Easy to just catch a boat - there are a number of different companies and types of - but once there, no need for a tour guide. We walked all over, found great restaurants, little shops, beautiful walks, fabulous people watching.....go for it on your own - there is nothing not to love about Capri.