Amalfi Coast Tours — Frequently Asked Questions
Everything travellers ask before they book a day on the Amalfi Coast, answered from the operators' own listings and from the official sources for the coast itself. Where a figure changes with the season or the year, the answer says so.
Booking and tours
How much do Amalfi Coast tours cost?
Amalfi Coast tour prices start at $109 for a full day on the coast itself, and at $71 for a two-hour cooking class in Sorrento. Shared boat days run roughly $110 to $182 a person and shared road days $110 to $130. Private cars are quoted per person from about $331, while private boats are quoted for the whole boat, from $769 for a party of up to six.
Do I need to book in advance?
Yes, and especially between June and September. The small-group boats cap at five to twelve passengers and the popular departures go days ahead in high season. Booking also fixes your meeting point and time, which matters more here than in most places because the coast road can swallow an hour without warning.
Can I cancel if my plans change?
Every tour listed here refunds in full when you cancel at least 24 hours before the start time. Inside that window the money is not returned. Boat trips carry a second protection on top: if the captain calls the day off for weather, you are offered another date or a full refund.
Are these tours guided, or just transport?
Both exist, and it is worth checking which you are booking. Some road days carry a licensed guide from start to finish; others give you a driver who talks between towns and then leaves you to walk around alone. On the boats the skipper does the guiding, and on one shared road day a guide only joins once the party reaches nine travellers.
What happens if the sea is too rough for the boat?
The captain decides on the morning, and no boat leaves in unsafe conditions. Where a trip is called off for weather you are offered a different date or your money back. Once a captain has judged conditions safe the day goes ahead as booked, so read the weather note on the trip you are choosing.
What is the smallest group size available?
Five. One private gozzo out of Sorrento takes five passengers and nothing larger, and several shared boats cap at six. On the road, the smallest shared minivan seats eight.
Can I book for one person?
Yes on any of the shared tours, which are priced per person. Private boats quoted for the whole boat cost the same whether one of you turns up or six, so they only make sense for a group. One shared road day needs six travellers before it runs at all, which is the exception rather than the rule.
Do Amalfi Coast tours run in winter?
The road tours do. Most of the boats do not: the operators' own seasons begin in March or mid-April and end between mid-October and early November. From November to March you reach the coast by car, minivan or SITA bus, and the towns are quiet in a way they never are in July.
Is a minimum number of travellers needed?
On one shared road day, yes — six people, and the operator may cancel after confirmation if that is not met, offering an alternative date or a full refund. Everything else runs on whatever numbers it has. Booking a few days out rather than the night before is the simplest way round it.
Can I be picked up from my hotel?
On many of them. Private cars collect from your own address or the cruise terminal, several shared boats and road tours collect from Sorrento hotels, and the rest use a named meeting point such as Piazza Tasso or Positano's Spiaggia Grande. Each listing states which of those applies to it.
Getting there and around
How do I get to the Amalfi Coast from Naples?
By road or by water. The Circumvesuviana train runs from Naples to Sorrento in about 70 minutes and you change there for a bus, a boat or a tour; a direct coach or a private transfer takes you over the pass and onto the coast road instead. In season, ferries link Salerno, Amalfi and Positano.
Is there a train to the Amalfi Coast?
No. Not one of the thirteen towns has a railway station, which is the single fact that shapes every journey here. The nearest rail heads are Sorrento, on the Circumvesuviana line from Naples, and Salerno, which sits on the national network including high-speed services. From either you continue by bus, boat, taxi or tour.
Should I drive the coast road myself?
Most visitors are happier not driving it. The SS163 runs about fifty kilometres with more than a thousand bends, parking in Positano and Amalfi is scarce and expensive, and an alternate-plate scheme closes the road to half of all number plates on the busiest days. If you would rather look at the view than the wing mirror, a driven day settles it.
How long does it take to drive from Sorrento to Amalfi?
Allow an hour and a quarter in quiet conditions and two hours or more in August. The distance is short, around forty kilometres, but the road is single carriageway, hairpinned and shared with coaches that reverse to pass each other. Build every schedule on this coast around that number rather than the distance.
What is the alternate-plate rule on the coast road?
On the busiest dates the SS163 between Vietri sul Mare and Positano is restricted between 10:00 and 18:00: on even-numbered days only even-numbered plates may use it, and on odd days only odd. Motorbikes, residents, blue-badge vehicles, taxis and buses are exempt. The dates are set each year by ANAS ordinance, so check them before you plan a self-drive day, or take a driven one and the question disappears.
Do the ferries run all year?
No. The passenger boats between Salerno, Amalfi, Positano and Sorrento are seasonal, running roughly from April to October, and while they last they are the fastest link between towns. Out of season the coast road is the only way along the coast.
How do the SITA buses work?
SITA Sud runs the scheduled buses along the SS163 and they are the cheapest way between the towns. Buy your ticket before you board rather than from the driver, and expect to stand in July and August. The route is spectacular and slow in equal measure.
Where do the boat tours leave from?
Positano's Spiaggia Grande, Amalfi's Darsena pier, Sorrento's Marina Grande and Marina Piccola, Praiano's Marina di Praia and Salerno's tourist port are all used. Two private operators will meet you at more or less any harbour between Positano and Salerno. Each listing names its own pier and the landmark to wait beside.
Is Sorrento on the Amalfi Coast?
No, and it catches people out every season. Sorrento sits on the northern side of the Sorrentine Peninsula facing the Bay of Naples, while the Amalfi Coast is the southern side facing the Gulf of Salerno. It is the most convenient base for reaching the coast, which is why so many tours start there, but you cross the ridge to get onto the coast itself.
Can I reach the coast from Rome in a day?
Yes, and one tour here does exactly that with the train tickets included, though it makes for a long day. Naples is a little over an hour from Rome by high-speed train and the coast is another ninety minutes beyond that. If the coast is the point of the trip rather than a stop on it, two nights repays the effort.
Planning the day
What is the best time of year to come?
May, June, September and early October. The sea is warm enough to swim in, the boats are running, and the road has not yet reached its August crawl. July and August are the hottest and busiest, and most boat seasons close between mid-October and early November.
How many days do I need here?
Three nights lets you do it properly: one day by boat, one by road, and one spent slowly in a single town. One day is enough for the classic run through Positano, Amalfi and Ravello, and it is what most visitors actually have. Less than a day means choosing one town rather than three.
Which town should I base myself in?
Positano for looks and boat departures, Amalfi for ferries and a central position, Sorrento for transport links and the widest choice of tours, Salerno for value and train connections. Ravello is quieter and sits high above the other two, which is lovely to stay in and slow to leave. The distances between them are set out on our map page.
Can I see Positano, Amalfi and Ravello in one day?
Yes, and it is the standard day out here. Reckon on an hour to ninety minutes in Positano, a couple of hours in Amalfi and about an hour in Ravello, plus the driving in between. Doing it yourself means parking three times; on a guided day the vehicle waits and you simply walk off it.
How long do you actually get in each town?
Between one and two hours, depending which day you book. The captured itineraries run from an hour in Positano to two full hours in Ravello, and the boat days trade time ashore for time swimming. It is the number worth comparing before you compare the prices.
What should I wear and bring?
Shoes you can climb steps in, because every town here is built on them. On the boats bring a swimsuit, sunscreen, a towel where the operator does not supply one, and a layer for the ride home. Small notes are worth carrying: several boats collect a mooring or landing fee on board in cash.
Are these tours suitable for children?
Many are. Infant seats can be requested on some of the road days, some boats carry floats for younger swimmers, and several of the cooking classes take children from two years old. The staircases in Positano and Ravello are the real constraint rather than the tours themselves.
Is the coast wheelchair accessible?
Partly, and it depends entirely on the day you book. Some tours are described by their operators as wheelchair accessible, and one private minivan states that the vehicle itself is. The towns are built on staircases, so a driven day in a step-free vehicle is the practical answer, and each listing states what it offers.
Do I need to be able to swim on a boat tour?
No. The swim stops are optional and every boat carries life jackets, with some supplying floats and pool noodles as well. If you would rather stay aboard, the swim stops are also when the deck is at its quietest.
What about seasickness?
The water inside the Gulf of Salerno is usually calm through the summer and the boats stay close to shore. If you are prone to it, take something before you board rather than after, and choose a morning departure, because the afternoon breeze gets up along this coast. On the road the hairpins catch people out more often than the sea does.
The coast itself
Why is the Amalfi Coast a UNESCO World Heritage Site?
It was inscribed in December 1997 under three cultural criteria, as an outstanding example of a Mediterranean landscape shaped by both its topography and its history. The listed area covers 11,231 hectares. What is protected is not one building but the whole relationship between the cliffs, the terraces, the towns and the sea.
What is there to see besides the views?
The cathedral of Sant'Andrea in Amalfi, which dates from the 11th century and holds relics brought from Constantinople in 1206. Ravello's two garden villas, Villa Rufolo and Villa Cimbrone. The Grotta dello Smeraldo at Conca dei Marini, the paper museum in Amalfi, and the Path of the Gods on the ridge above Praiano.
Do I have to pay to enter anything?
The coast itself is free: there is no gate, no admission and no opening hour. What costs money is the specific sights — the Grotta dello Smeraldo, the two Ravello villas, the cloister in Amalfi, and the archaeological parks at Pompeii and Herculaneum. Almost every tour excludes those, and you pay at the gate.
Is the Emerald Grotto worth it?
It divides people. The cave really is lit an odd green from below and the visit takes about twenty minutes, but the queue can run half an hour in high season and the entrance is never inside the fare. Some crews decide it collectively with everyone aboard, so agree with your group before you set off.
Still deciding how to spend the day?
Most of the questions above come back to the same pair: road or water, and shared or your own vehicle. Both are worth reading through before you book: boat or road sets out what each buys, and what the fares cover explains why two days that look alike are $200 apart.
If you would rather just see the options, Amalfi Coast Italy Tours lists every trip with its price, length and inclusions in one place.
Ready to pick a day on the coast?
Compare what each trip includes, then book the one that fits.
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