How do I get around Sorrento?

Sorrento sits on a tufa cliff about 50 meters above the water, and that vertical drop defines how you move through town. Piazza Tasso is the center of gravity. Corso Italia runs east-west from there through the old grid, and you can walk from the Duomo to the Museo Correale in about 12 minutes. The streets off Via San Cesareo are narrow, paved in worn volcanic stone that gets slick after rain, and closed to cars during the day. Marina Grande, the old fishing port, sits at sea level on the north-facing cliff to the west. Marina Piccola, the ferry and hydrofoil port, is also on the north side, directly below Piazza Tasso, with a similar drop down to the docks. Both marinas face the Bay of Naples. A public elevator at the harbor costs about €1 and saves 10 minutes of climbing when you're carrying bags off a boat.

The Circumvesuviana is your lifeline for anything beyond the peninsula. The station sits at the eastern edge of town, a 5-minute walk from Piazza Tasso, and the line runs to Pompei Scavi (about 30 minutes, roughly €2.80) and on to Napoli Garibaldi (about 70 minutes, roughly €4.40). The trains are not air-conditioned. They're packed from June through September, and pickpockets work the Naples-bound carriages, so keep bags in front of you. Board at Sorrento where you're guaranteed a seat. For the Amalfi Coast, SITA Sud buses depart from the stop outside the train station. The ride to Positano takes about 50 minutes and costs around €2.40. The road is a single lane cut into the cliff with hairpin turns above a 200-meter drop to the sea. Sit on the right heading toward Positano for the water below, but motion sickness is common and the bus fills by 10 AM in summer. The 7:30 AM departure is worth the early alarm.

Ferries and hydrofoils leave from Marina Piccola. A fast hydrofoil to Capri costs roughly €20 one way with Caremar or NLG, and the boat clears the harbor into open water where spray hits your face and Vesuvius fills the northern horizon. Naples is about 35 minutes by hydrofoil, roughly €13. Amalfi is reachable by sea from April through October, about 75 minutes for around €10. The sea route is more comfortable than the cliff road by bus. That said, seasonal schedules and weather cancellations make it less dependable. Service stops when seas rise above 1.5 meters. Check Caremar or NLG schedules the morning of travel. Tickets sell from the booth at the dock, rarely online.

Sorrento taxi fares are set by a posted municipal tariff you'll find inside every cab and at the stand on Piazza Tasso. The rate to Positano runs about €50 to €60 one way. Napoli Capodichino airport costs roughly €100. These are legitimate prices, not inflated, but they add up across a 4-day trip. There is no Uber, no Bolt, no ridehail app on the peninsula. Scooter and Vespa rentals line Corso Italia starting at about €35 per day, but the Amalfi Coast road on two wheels is a different calculation. The SS163 has roughly 1,000 turns between Sorrento and Amalfi, and you share each blind curve with SITA buses and full-size tour coaches. If you're not an experienced rider, the bus or the ferry is the safer option. Most travel insurance policies exclude motorbike incidents on roads like the SS163.