★★★★★
Marco built the day around what we said we wanted and drove it safely. We got the scenery, some history, and food and wine we would never have found on our own. It was exactly the day we had asked for.
Eliza B. · Couple · May 2026
Full Day Private Amalfi Coast Tour from Sorrento/Naples/Salerno
Length7 to 8 hours
DepartsFrom Sorrento, Naples or Salerno
OperatorCompass Tour
Time ashoreAbout 2 hours 30 minutes ashore
GroupPrivate — only your party
Maximum group8
Minimum booking1 travellers
CancellationFree up to 24 hours before
Six things a private vehicle buys you
Collection from your own door
Hotel, apartment or cruise terminal in Sorrento, Naples or Salerno, rather than a fixed square at a fixed time.
A wheelchair-accessible van
Stated in the listing, and the only vehicle on this list that says so.
Eight seats, and only your party
Nobody else is aboard, which on a nine-hour day changes the whole feel of it.
An itinerary that bends
The stops below are the driver's plan, not a contract; swap any of them on the morning.
A driver-guide, not just a driver
Commentary along the road, and the local knowledge that decides where to stop for lunch.
Infant seats on request
Ask when you book. Children from three are carried at the adult fare band, infants from one.
Your own vehicle, and a day you set
The argument for a private car here is not luxury. It is control. The SS163 is one lane each way with over a thousand bends, and on a shared day the vehicle's schedule sets everything: where it stops, how long for, when it leaves. Here you set it.
Collection is from your hotel, apartment or cruise terminal in Sorrento, Naples or Salerno. The vehicle is an air-conditioned minivan carrying up to eight, and both the transport and the tour are wheelchair accessible. On this coast that is rare enough to decide the booking. Bottled water is aboard.
The driver's usual plan takes in Positano's Marina Grande, the Grotta dello Smeraldo at Conca dei Marini, the cathedral square at Amalfi and both of Ravello's villa gardens, passing the Fiordo di Furore and the Presepe nella Roccia on the way. Every one of those is a suggestion rather than a fixture. There are no restrictions on the route, and the day is yours to shape.
In practice your driver will hold longer somewhere you like and skip somewhere you do not. They will stop for a photograph that was on nobody's list. Several will book you a table for dinner back in Sorrento at the end of it. Admission to the grotto and to both villas is paid at each gate, and lunch is wherever you decide to stop.
The stops the driver has in mind
- Hotel pickup in Sorrento, Naples or Salerno
- Positano: 30 minutes at Marina Grande
- Grotta dello Smeraldo, 30 minutes
- Amalfi: the Duomo di Sant'Andrea
- Ravello: Villa Rufolo and Villa Cimbrone
- Drop-off back at your hotel
- Pickup — From your hotel, apartment or cruise terminal in Sorrento, Naples or Salerno, at a time you agree.
- Positano, 30 minutes — Down to Marina Grande and the beach, with the town stacked above it.
- Grotta dello Smeraldo, 30 minutes — The sea cave at Conca dei Marini. Admission is paid at the entrance and is not in the fare.
- Amalfi, 30 minutes — The Duomo di Sant'Andrea and the piazza below its steps.
- Ravello — Up the valley to Villa Rufolo and Villa Cimbrone, each charging its own admission at the gate.
- Back to your door — Down the coast road and home, with the timing set by you rather than by a timetable.
Who this suits, and who should share a boat
This suits you if there are three or more of you, because the per-person fare falls as the vehicle fills and eight seats is the cap. It suits families with an infant seat to think about, travellers who need a step-free vehicle, and anybody arriving on a ship, since the listing asks for the ship's name and its docking, disembarkation and re-boarding times at the moment of booking.
It also suits people who already know what they want from a day here. Been before, and after Scala, Atrani and a long lunch rather than the standard three? This is the only format that will do it.
It is not the trip for you if you are travelling alone or as a couple on a budget. A shared minibus does most of the same route for a third of the price. And if what you really want is to swim, the best water here has no road to it — take the small-group boat day and see it from the sea instead.
What the fare covers, and what you pay at the gate
In the fare
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
- Private tour
- Transport by air-conditioned minivan
- Driver/guide
- Bottled water
Not in the fare
- Food and drinks, unless specified
- Lunch
- Professional Guide
- Gratuities
Where the driver collects you
Wherever you are staying, within Sorrento, Naples or Salerno. Give the address when you book and agree a time; the driver comes to you rather than the other way round.
If you are arriving by ship, the listing is explicit about what it needs at the moment of booking: the vessel's name, its docking time, your disembarkation time and your re-boarding time. Supply all four and the day is built around them. Naples' Stazione Marittima and Salerno's cruise berth are both served.
Know before you go
- Confirmation arrives at the time of booking. Send the pickup address with it, and the ship's timings if you are on a cruise.
- Both the vehicle and the tour are wheelchair accessible. Say what you need when you book so the right van is sent.
- A maximum of eight people travel per booking. For a larger party, book two vehicles rather than trying to squeeze one.
- The stated duration is approximate and depends on traffic. Seven to eight hours is the plan; in August allow for the road to take longer.
- Admission to the Grotta dello Smeraldo and to both Ravello villas sits outside the fare. Carry cash or a card for each gate, and decide in the van which of them you want.
- There are no fixed restrictions on where the day goes. Say at pickup what you want more of and less of; that is what you are paying for.
What travellers said about the private day
★★★★★
Claudio gave a running commentary along the route and stopped at places that were not on the itinerary at all. He also set up dinner for us back in Sorrento afterwards. After a private tour elsewhere that went badly, this was a relief.
Victor T. · Couple · October 2025
★★★★★
We were travelling with a nine-month-old and Marco reshaped the day around that without being asked twice. The van was spotless and the driving stayed calm on roads that are not. It is the reason we would book a private car again.
Jason B. · Family · September 2025
Questions about the private day
Is this priced per person or per vehicle?
Per person, on a sliding scale that falls as the party grows. Eight travellers per booking is the cap. That makes it good value for a family or two couples, and expensive for one person.
Can I change where we go?
Yes, and that is the point of it. There are no restrictions on where the day goes, so the stops above are your driver's usual plan rather than a fixed route. Say what you want at pickup.
Does it work from a cruise ship?
Yes, and this is the format built for it. Booking asks for your ship's name, its docking time, your disembarkation time and your re-boarding time, and the day is planned around all four. The shared minibus days are not sold to cruise passengers at all.
Is the Emerald Grotto included?
No. The stop is in the plan but the entrance is bought at the cave, and it is run by a separate body rather than by the tour operator. Expect a queue in high season and carry cash.
What if I would rather be on the water?
Then take a boat. The small-group snorkelling day covers the same coastline from the sea, with two swim stops and everything aboard, for about a third of this fare.
Is lunch included?
No, and your driver will suggest somewhere rather than book you into a fixed place. That usually means somewhere you would never have found on your own, and often a table arranged back in Sorrento for the evening as well.
Other ways onto the coast
If this is not quite your day, these two cover the same coastline differently, and the full list of private Amalfi Coast tours sits on the homepage.
- Day Tour to Positano, Amalfi & Ravello from Sorrento
- Amalfi Coast & Positano: Boat Tour with Snorkeling & Drinks
Everything listed, with prices and lengths side by side, is on Amalfi Coast Italy Tours.
Ready for a day that runs at your pace?
Free cancellation up to 24 hours ahead, and the itinerary is yours to change.
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