Traffic on Amalfi Coast in August

[Boscodog]

I have booked a day tour of Pompeii and Positano and Sorrento in August. The tour company said the traffic is so bad in August that they suggest we do Amalfi Coast first and then go to Pompeii in the afternoon. Of course, the afternoon s the hottest time of the day. Does anyone have any insight as to how bad the traffic will be? I really want to enjoy the day.

Thanks

[cruisemom42]

Believe them. The traffic will be terrible.

 

Not only are there lots of tourists in August, but basically all of Italy goes on holiday then as well.

[fabnfortysomething]

Believe them. The traffic will be terrible.

 

Not only are there lots of tourists in August, but basically all of Italy goes on holiday then as well.

 

yes agree traffic along coast road terrible so do that first followed by Pompeii

It will be hot but take an umbrella not for rain but for sun shade

sun hats and plenty of water and rests and you will be fine

[euro cruiser]

The most efficient routing for the car service is to take the autostrada to Vietri Sul Mare, the eastern end of the coast road and work their way out to Positano, then follow the inland route via Sorrento to Pompei.

[cosytoes]

Pompei to sorrento took our driver two hours but it was a Saturday

[Boscodog]

We will be there on a Sunday. Should we rethink going to Positano and Sorrento and just go to Pompeii and maybe walk around Naples?

[euro cruiser]

Yes, I think that's a good idea. A Sunday in August will mean crawling almost the entire way, including getting onto and off the Sorrentine peninsula.

[b_cruise]

I've gone two times mid July and the drivers are great. They seem to be able to time everything so u don't miss anything and get back to the ship with plenty of time, at least the italytoursharing.com driver did for our lemonchello'd group, lol... Glad someone else was driving🍷

 

On a side note... I guess a couple gals missed the ship in Rome a couple days ago.They were doing it on their own via train and missed the carnival vista.

[Keith1010]

We will be there on a Sunday. Should we rethink going to Positano and Sorrento and just go to Pompeii and maybe walk around Naples?

 

I would do one or the other.

 

It will be hot in Pompeii even in the morning depending on what time you go but clearly not as bad as the afternoon.

 

One thing about Med cruises. Pace yourself.

 

My view is to do less but to do it with quality time rather than rushing around to see as much as you can just to say you saw it.

 

Keith

[cruisemom42]

We will be there on a Sunday. Should we rethink going to Positano and Sorrento and just go to Pompeii and maybe walk around Naples?

 

Yes, or you could just go by ferry to Sorrento. (But why? :D JK -- Sorrento is not my favorite place in this area, by a long mile....) A better idea -- go to Capri for the day.

 

If you do go to Pompeii, it will likely be packed and brutally hot. Go as early as possible to avoid the worst of it.

[Boscodog]

Thanks everyone for your advice. We have cancelled our Pompeii, Sorrento and Positano excursion. The last thing I want to do on vacation is sit in traffic, which I do enough in my everyday life. We are rethinking our plans but definitely want to go to Pompeii, which we will go as early as possible.

[Cruise Junky]

We sat on a city bus for 15 minutes outside Amalfi in April and didn't move an inch and we all bailed outside the town and walked in because of traffic. I can't even imagine August

[Hlitner]

Believe what they say...and follow their advice. We have spent a couple of vacations on the Amalfi Coast (with our own rental car) and can confirm that traffic on the Amalfi Drive can become awful in July-August. And with a lot of tour traffic, you often get "standoffs" between big buses or bus/car....which happens on curves in a few narrow areas. These standoffs are a daily occurrence and handled well by the skilled drivers, but totally stops traffic until they can figure out who backs-up who moves forward, etc. I must admit to enjoying when I drive this road (DW thinks I am nutz), but on a port day you do not want to lose valuable time in a traffic jam.

 

Hank

[sunlover757]

We did a full day tour of the Amalfi Coast with Carmine Foggia of See Amalfi Coast tours in early August. Carmine picked us up from the port of Naples at 8 a.m. and took us on a beautiful drive through the mountains to reach Ravello. There was very little traffic on that route and the scenery was gorgeous. After having free time in Ravello, we visited Amalfi and Positano and had a fantastic lunch at a farm-to-table restaurant high above Positano. The tour was one of the highlights of our cruise and Carmine's wonderful personality, in-depth knowledge and passion about the area made the trip. It was like touring with family. Thanks to his route, we were able to experience so much in one day and he added a number of special personal touches. I highly recommend Carmine and See Amalfi Coast tours.

[Hlitner]

We did a full day tour of the Amalfi Coast with Carmine Foggia of See Amalfi Coast tours in early August. Carmine picked us up from the port of Naples at 8 a.m. and took us on a beautiful drive through the mountains to reach Ravello. There was very little traffic on that route and the scenery was gorgeous. After having free time in Ravello, we visited Amalfi and Positano and had a fantastic lunch at a farm-to-table restaurant high above Positano. The tour was one of the highlights of our cruise and Carmine's wonderful personality, in-depth knowledge and passion about the area made the trip. It was like touring with family. Thanks to his route, we were able to experience so much in one day and he added a number of special personal touches. I highly recommend Carmine and See Amalfi Coast tours.

 

We are quite familiar with that route and your guide was smart to go the opposite direction as most tours (and tourists). But sometimes even the best plans do not work. The last time we drove that road from Ravello towards Naples (the opposite direction or your journey) we got about 10 miles outside of Ravello only to discover that the road had just been closed because of a nasty rock slide. Fortunately, we had no time issues...but it was frustrating.

 

Hank

[John Bull]

Even if I didn't know in this instance that they're right, I'd always rely on advice from the local professionals.

 

In the morning there'll be less traffic (though still a lot) on the Amalfi coast.

But more importantly, Pompeii is much closer to your ship and your driver can gauge reasonably accurately when you'd have to leave Pompeii.

Traffic along the Amalfi coast lighter than expected? You get longer in Pompeii.

That Amalfi traffic a nightmare? You'd have to trim your time in Pompeii, but only by as much as is necessary to get back to the ship on time.

 

But if you went to the Amalfi coast after Pompeii he'd have to allow a huge stack of wiggle-time to get back to the ship on time & possibly cut your time in Pompeii unnecessarily short.

 

BTW I've stayed in Ravello.

Cruiselover's right - the mountain road across the spine of the peninsula is quite twisty and convoluted but traffic-free and scenic. I'll bet your driver is planning to use that road in one direction or the other.

 

Yes, hotter in the afternoon.

But that's a comparatively minor matter.

 

JB :)

Edited August 26, 2016 by John Bull

[nybumpkin]

A possible alternate tour, if offered: our ship had an excursion that took us by bus to Salerno, then boat to and from Amalfi. We then went by bus from Salerno to Pompeii where we had a catered lunch followed by a tour of the city. The boat ride was very pleasant, the lunch was good, and we had time to see both Amalfi and Pompeii.

[Karennella]

Even in May the traffic was horrific. We were stationary for at least fifteen minutes outside Amalfi and were later told it was because of a funeral procession. There were various places where the road was one way.

[gary222]

I have booked a day tour of Pompeii and Positano and Sorrento in August. The tour company said the traffic is so bad in August that they suggest we do Amalfi Coast first and then go to Pompeii in the afternoon. Of course, the afternoon s the hottest time of the day. Does anyone have any insight as to how bad the traffic will be? I really want to enjoy the day.

Thanks

 

To really enjoy the day dont go to the Amalfi coast and if you must go to Sorrento don't use the roads to get there.

[gary222]

Thanks everyone for your advice. We have cancelled our Pompeii, Sorrento and Positano excursion. The last thing I want to do on vacation is sit in traffic, which I do enough in my everyday life. We are rethinking our plans but definitely want to go to Pompeii, which we will go as early as possible.

 

Good decision!

Alternate plans could be to explore Naples after you've come back from Pompeii.

 

Or you could go to the magnificent Palace at Caserta.