Positano: A Guide To Get There

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Ah, Italy, you have so much to offer. How do you choose just one town, village, city, coast to see? This is a difficult question that many ask themselves before traveling to Italy. Whether you have limited time or an abundance, you’ll never get to see and do everything you want. For example, one of my mothers friends has been to Italy twelve times… yes TWELVE.. and she still says it’s not enough. I dreamt about just going once, and now that I have, I’m dreaming about going again, but all in due time.

For now I’m here to talk about one of Italy’s coastal gems; Positano. An absolute paradise, and the most delicious, scenic, beautiful place you ever might visit. When defining utopia, I’m pretty sure Positano is in the definition.. it’s that breathtaking.

But as with almost anything, something so rewarding isn’t an always the easiest to accomplish. As the saying goes “if it were easy, everyone would be doing it” Right? Right!

Getting To Positano

There are multiple options to choose from when traveling to Positano. You can take a ferry, bus, train/bus combo, or private transfer/taxi option from either Naples or Rome. These are all viable options that everyone takes depending on your budget and how you prefer to travel.

Ferry/Ferry , Ferry/Bus Option

There are no direct ferries to Positano at this time. If you’re arriving into Naples, there are ferries leaving from Naples Beverello Port to Sorrento about 5 times daily depending on the time of year. You may book tickets in advance or book the day of. However, the ferry only takes you to Sorrento. From Sorrento you’ll still need to make your way to the bus stop which takes you onto Positano. Second option would be to connect with another ferry that takes you onto Positano.

  • Ferry/Ferry Option: $44 USD about 3 hours travel time
  • Ferry/Bus Option: $19 USD about 3-4 hours travel time

Train/Bus

There are no direct trains to Positano. There is a popular public trained called the circumvesuviana which has routes from Napoli Train Terminal to Sorrento, it takes about 50 minutes total travel. There are several trains per hour that leave to Sorrento, booking in advance is not needed. Once to the station in Sorrento you’ll need to take a taxi or bus to continue to get to Postiano. Both buses and taxis are outside the train terminal in Sorrento.

  • Train/Bus Option: $9 USD about 2 hours travel time and the most affordable

If you do decide to take a taxi from Sorrento to Postiano it will cost you around $90 USD.

Private Transfer

Depending where you’re coming from either Rome, or Naples. There are private transfers or taxis that will take you directly to Positano. No stops, and the most comfortable way to travel to Positano. You can use various online tools to book a transfer or contact the hotel you’ll be staying at in Positano to have them arrange it for you.

  • From Rome:$300-450 USD about 3-4 hours
  • From Naples: $115-150 USD about 1- 1 1/2 hours

Personal Experience

Going to Positano we opted for the Train/Bus option because we stayed in a little beach town close to Sorrento before heading to Positano the next day. The circumvesuviana train was an interesting experience with it’s own charm. It can be crowded, therefore you may not get a seat for the first few stops. Furthermore, there is no aircon, but the windows do stay down. When the train moves you do feel the breeze, but it can get hot. The next morning when we caught the bus to Positano we did wait in a line to get on the bus, and once on the bus we didn’t have a seat, so we had to stand. The bus ride is 30-45 minutes, so for nearly 4 Euros it wasn’t that bad. (Total $9 USD train and bus combined).

On the way back to Naples we paid 130 Euros to have a car pick us up from the hotel and drop us at the train station in Naples. Obviously this was the carefree, easy way to travel. Not to mention a way to travel in style!  Yes, I may have liked this option more, but the price difference is so staggering between the other options that the struggles with the train/bus option wasn’t that bad! I can’t speak for the ferry option, but it is available for those sea lovers.

Caio!