I’m about to head off to Europe again soon and planning our trip has brought back so many memories from our trip to Italy. We spent time in Tuscany, Montepulciano, Pienza, Florence, Rome, and of course, the Amalfi Coast. Is it even a vacation if you don’t get to spend time on a beach at some point?!
Where do I even begin when it comes to the Amalfi Coast and Pompeii from Rome in a Full Day Tour… This was, by far, one of the most beautiful, memorable, and efficient tours I’ve ever been on. We saw so much in one day. We spent a few hours touring the stunning ruins of Pompeii with a view of Mount Vesuvius in the background, stopped for lunch in the adorable town of Positano (where we actually met up with my sister!), and ended with a stroll through the gorgeous coastal town of Amalfi and a limoncello tasting! This doesn’t include all of the stops for photo ops and the cute pit stops for snacks and coffee. It was an incredible, jam-packed day. I dragged my parents along for the ride too, and by the end of the day, my dad was best friends with both our bus driver and our tour guide (this is not an exaggeration…). I’m pretty sure they even exchanged phone numbers. There is so much to share from our day, but I’ll start with how we ended up on this specific tour in the first place! Oh, and if you’d prefer to watch, rather than read, you can check out my YouTube video about our day on the Amalfi coast here! Or you can read more about my international adventures on my travel blog that I host with my sister, here!
Before we even started booking our trip to Italy, as a photographer, I knew I needed to plan a day trip to the Amalfi Coast. However, I was traveling with my brother, father, and husband who are all huge history buffs and maybe not so into seeing “gorgeous views”. When I saw that there was a tour that included a guided experience at Pompeii and a visit to the Amalfi Coast, it seemed like the best of both worlds. Then I saw that this tour also included a stop in the town of Positano, where my sister and her now-husband were honey-mooning! It seemed like fate. We had all just spent a week in Tuscany for their wedding at the beautiful Borgo Tre Rose Hotel (you can check out the whole wedding week on my YouTube channel here!), and then we all parted ways after a group day in Florence. My sister and her husband headed off on their honeymoon while we went on to Rome to visit the Colosseum and eat lots more pasta. We took an amazing tour of the Colosseum and Roman Forum too, but I’ll save that story for another day. :) I definitely recommend taking a walking tour like this one while you're in Rome, though. There is so much history and so much to see. Plus, it’s nice being in a tour group and not having to worry about waiting in line for entry tickets at all of the various sites. The tour groups are let right in so you can start your tour right away. Trust me, this makes a difference when traveling with stressed out family members! You can read more about the tour we took in Rome here.
Okay, back to our day tour on the coast of Italy! We started the day bright and early at 7:00 am, but it was nice because this specific tour included hotel pick-ups and drop-offs, so we didn’t have to worry about getting lost at 7 in the morning trying to find the meeting point. I’m not going to lie though, we were all exhausted after spending a week celebrating my sister’s wedding in Tuscany (you can watch her whole wedding day here). As soon as we stopped for an espresso at a small convenience store, we all started perking up, and before you knew it, we were chattering all about the wedding to the bus driver, tour guide, and the other guest on the tour. We specifically booked this tour also because it was for a small group. There was only one person on the tour who was not in my family, but she was adorable and we were all one big, happy family by the end of the day. She even joined us in our family photo in Positano! It was also nice that we were in a smaller minivan instead of a huge bus. It felt more intimate and allowed for easier conversation with the tour guide. We learned so much about Italian culture and they were extremely informative about the sites we were visiting.
POMPEII
Our first stop was Pompeii. Our tour guide handled the entry tickets and we were in right away. We were introduced to another tour guide for this portion of the day, just because they worked directly for Pompeii. They took us throughout the ruins, explaining the history behind each of the buildings and locations we walked through. It was crazy to see 2,000 year old structures still standing in such pristine condition after being buried in a volcanic eruption. Even though the history of Pompeii is mind-blowing, I snuck away from the tour group after a while to take a few photos because the sites were truly visually inspiring. After a couple of hours, I was grateful when we had to head back to the van because the sun had started beating down on us. I’m so glad we went to Pompeii in the morning before it got too hot, because there wasn’t a whole lot of shade on the pathways through Pompeii. Plus, I was ready to see the coast!
We stopped for a few panoramic views before heading into the town of Positano. We were lucky to have a clear day and plenty of sunshine. I took so many photos, it was incredibly difficult deciding which ones to use for this post!
POSITANO
Once we got to Positano, It was a bit of a walk from the top of the hill to get down to the beach. This is just because there are no direct roads to the bottom of the hill so our driver had to park in a lot at the top of the town. If someone in your group has trouble walking, this part of the day might not be ideal for them, because you have to trek back up the hill when it’s time to leave. But there were so many adorable shops selling souvenirs, gelato, clothing, and snacks along the way that you can enjoy if you don’t want to walk all the way to the bottom. It was hard not to get distracted because we only had about two hours before we needed to head on to the next stop. We found my sister and her husband, and all enjoyed a deliciously light lunch at Ristorante La Pergola. We had plenty of time leftover to snap a bunch of photos together on the beach, capturing the picturesque cliffs and pastel-colored houses in the background. Ugh, it was so stunning. I was so sad when we had to leave! I told myself that my next trip to Italy will have to include a few quiet days on the coast.
AMALFI
Our next stop was the town of Amalfi. The sun was starting to set so the town looked particularly beautiful in the golden lighting. I couldn’t believe our day was already ending, but we had about an hour to wander the town, pop into a few shops, take a shot of limoncello together, and enjoy watching the boats go by from the marina. You definitely need to catch a glimpse of the Cathedral of Sant’Andrea while you’re there and wander some of the side alleys for photo ops. It’s a super small town though, mainly focused around the main square, the Piazza del Duomo, so an hour is plenty of time to see everything.
After Amalfi, we hopped back in the van for our trip back to Rome! But of course, we stopped along the coast for some stunning sunset views before heading home.
The only downside to the day was that there was quite a bit of driving involved, but I wouldn’t change a thing because we got to see so much. I can’t imagine trying to do all of that in a day on our own. I love taking day trips with a tour guide because they push you along and make sure you see everything you need to see. If it were just me trying to push my family along, we would have never left the ruins of Pompeii! I have so many lovely memories from the day and I can still taste the freshness of the limoncello in Amalfi. It was an experience that everyone deserves and should enjoy. This tour is great for all ages, though I’d say it might be a bit much for someone who has trouble standing or walking for long periods of time. My parents are in their late 50s/early 60s and they were totally fine. Plus, it was probably good for them to get a little exercise. ;)
Would I take this tour again?
Absolutely!!! While there were a few moments of slight carsickness due to the twisty, winding roads along the coast, it was broken up by quite a few stops for photo ops and views. As someone who gets carsick pretty often, this tour wasn’t as bad as the Road to Hana or the winding roads in the highlands of Scotland. Those pit stops make all the difference in the world just getting out of the car for a few minutes. I would definitely recommend taking a Bonine in the morning before hopping in the van, just to be safe. I prefer Bonine over Dramamine because it makes me less drowsy and irritable. Just a tip!
I hope that this review has given you some insight into this tour! It was a long, full day but it was totally worth it. Even now, my family reminisces over the memories from this tour almost every time we get together. These are the moments in life that I live for.
If you’re interested in taking the same tour, you can find it here! Or you can check out some of the other tours I recommend in Italy here.
RECOMMENDED HOTELS IN ROME
Budget: Hotel Le Clarisse al Pantheon
Affordable Luxury: Pantheon Iconic Hotel
Airfare & Hotel deals with Expedia
Feel free to leave any questions/comments/thoughts below!
Have a magical day!
<3 Myles Katherine
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