Rome and the Amalfi Coast in 10 Days: The Ultimate Itinerary

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Planning your first trip to Italy and can’t decide between the history of Rome and the views of the coast? You don’t have to choose. This 10-day Rome and Amalfi Coast itinerary is the exact route we took in October: two nights in Rome, four nights based in Sorrento with day trips to Capri and Pompeii, two nights in Naples, and a final night back in Rome for the Vatican.

Below you’ll find how we planned each day, where we ate, how we got around, and what we would absolutely do again. Whether this is your first time in Italy or your fifth, this route gives you the big sites, the coastal views and plenty of pasta without a rental car.

Best Time to Visit Rome and the Amalfi Coast

There’s no bad time to visit Italy, but timing makes a big difference in crowds and prices. Summer, from June through August, is peak season, and that’s when both Rome and the Amalfi Coast are at their busiest. If you can, aim for May, September or October, when the weather is still warm and getting around is much easier.

We went in October, right before many seasonal spots on the coast closed for the year, and it still felt like summer. We got warm, sunny days and ocean swims without the peak-season crowds, and we’d pick October again in a heartbeat.

Where to Stay on the Amalfi Coast: Why We Chose Sorrento

We highly recommend making Sorrento your home base. It’s easy to explore on foot, it’s well connected by ferry, train and bus, and it has so many of the cliffside views and lemon-lined streets you’d find in pricier towns like Positano, without the Positano price tag.

Our 10-Day Rome and Amalfi Coast Itinerary

Rome is Italy’s capital and its beating heart. As the former center of the Roman Empire, it packs an incredible amount of history, art and architecture into a very walkable city, so it pays to plan your days around the sites that matter most to you.

Rome highlights:

• Trevi Fountain
• Pantheon
• Colosseum
• Catacombs
• Roman Forum
• The Vatican and the Sistine Chapel
• St. Peter’s Basilica
• Piazza Navona
• Spanish Steps

Day 1: Arrive in Rome

We hope you packed your walking shoes!

You’ll most likely land at Fiumicino Airport (FCO). From there, take the train to Roma Termini in the city center. You can buy tickets ahead of time on Omio or at the station. The nonstop ride takes about 30 minutes, and trains run every 15 to 30 minutes depending on the season.

If you’re adjusting to a new time zone, try to stay on local time right away. That’s why we recommend spending your first day sightseeing on foot. Here are a few incredible landmarks to see as you get your bearings.

Spanish Steps: This iconic staircase in the heart of Rome climbs 135 steps from Piazza di Spagna up to the Trinità dei Monti church.

Trevi Fountain: Toss a coin over your shoulder into Rome’s most famous fountain, since legend says it guarantees you’ll return to Rome. Go early in the morning if you want photos without the crowds.

The Pantheon: This is one of the best-preserved monuments of ancient Rome, and it’s an absolute can’t-miss.

Piazza Navona: One of the most beautiful squares in Rome, it’s home to the Fountain of the Four Rivers and the Fountain of Neptune.

Dinner tonight is pasta and wine! Great restaurants are everywhere in Rome, and pasta is at the heart of Roman cooking. Look for the classic Roman dishes: cacio e pepe, spaghetti carbonara and amatriciana. Fettuccine Alfredo is famous abroad, but it isn’t considered traditional and you’ll rarely see it on menus here. Pair your pasta with an Italian red wine. Cin cin!

Day 2: The Colosseum, Palatine Hill and the Roman Forum

Rise and shine! Today you’ll step back into an era of grandeur and glory at the Colosseum. Construction began around 72 AD, and the amphitheater hosted gladiator games, dramas, reenactments and even public executions.

As you walk through the arches and corridors, take in the ancient stone walls and imagine the roar of the crowd echoing through the stands. The craftsmanship is a true testament to ancient engineering, and no trip to Rome is complete without it.

Right next to the Colosseum is Palatine Hill, which is considered the birthplace of Rome and is believed to have been inhabited since around 1000 BC. It offers panoramic views over the Roman Forum, Circus Maximus and the Colosseum, and archaeologists are still uncovering new layers of history here today.

End the day at the Roman Forum, the center of religious, political and social life in ancient Rome. It paints a vivid picture of how people lived during the Roman Empire, and you could easily spend hours here.

For dinner, try a local trattoria. These family-run restaurants serve classic Italian dishes in a casual, cozy atmosphere. If you have free time, book a wine class or tasting. There are plenty to choose from, and Italian wine is our favorite. Cin cin!

Day 3: Travel From Rome to Sorrento

Say goodbye to Rome for now, because today you’re heading to the Amalfi Coast! We took a FlixBus straight from Rome to Sorrento, and we would do it again. It’s honestly wild to watch a full-size bus wind its way down those tight, twisty coastal roads, and the views on the way in are worth the ride on their own.

Sorrento sits on cliffs overlooking the Tyrrhenian Sea, with views across the Bay of Naples to Mount Vesuvius. Its charming historic center is full of narrow streets and little corridors that are made for wandering.

What to eat: Sorrento is known for seafood pasta, fresh mozzarella and limoncello, and shellfish is the star of the local menu. Limoncello is a lemon liqueur made from lemon peels, alcohol, water and sugar, and it’s usually served after dinner.

Restaurants we loved in Sorrento:

• Porta Marina Seafood serves some of the freshest seafood you’ll ever taste.
• Ristorante Da Filippo had incredible food and service, and they’ll even arrange a car to pick you up and drop you off.
• Benvenuti in Casa is family owned and run, and everything we ate there was homemade and mouthwatering.
• Ristorante ‘O Parrucchiano La Favorita is the birthplace of cannelloni, so make reservations well in advance.

Day 4: Capri and the Blue Grotto

Ferries and boats are one of the most beautiful ways to see the coast. Today, book a boat tour to the Blue Grotto and have lunch on the island of Capri.

The Blue Grotto is a sea cave near Capri where sunlight filters in through an opening below the waterline, making the water glow an electric blue. You’ll climb into a small rowboat with up to four people plus your guide, lie back flat as the guide pulls you through the tiny entrance by a chain, and then glide around inside. If you’re lucky, your guide might even sing you a local Italian song. It’s truly a once-in-a-lifetime moment.

Once you dock, take the bus or a taxi up to Capri town. Spend the afternoon wandering the picturesque streets and popping in and out of the boutiques and cafés along Via Camerelle. On a clear day, ride the chairlift to the top of Monte Solaro for the best aerial view of the island. A round-trip ticket was about 12 euros per adult when we went.

If shopping isn’t your thing, relax on one of Capri’s beaches instead, like Marina Piccola or Faro Beach. In the evening, head back to Sorrento for dinner.

Day 5: Sorrento

Start your morning with a coffee at a café and soak in the views. Then visit charming Piazza Tasso and tour a lemon grove. Sorrento is famous for its lemons, and a guided tour of a traditional lemon garden is the best way to learn about the oval Sorrento lemon, which grows only on this peninsula.

In the afternoon, shop, eat and drink your way through town. For gifts you can’t find anywhere else, stop by Tesori di Sorrento, a colorful shop that sells limoncello and pottery painted with bright lemons.

Sorrento moves at a much slower pace than Rome, so lean into it. Grab a bottle of wine at a café, or reserve a spot at a beach club like Leonelli’s or Bagni Salvatore and go for a swim.

Day 6: Positano and Amalfi by Ferry, or a Slow Sorrento Day

Use Day 6 to see more of the coast. Ferries from Sorrento’s harbor run to Positano and Amalfi, typically from spring through October, and the ride gives you that famous view of pastel villages stacked on the cliffs. You can also make the trip on the SITA bus along the Amalfi Coast road if the ferries aren’t running.

If your legs need a break after Capri, this is also the perfect day to claim a lounger at a beach club, linger over a long lunch and let Sorrento set the pace. That’s the beauty of having four nights in one place.

Day 7: Pompeii and Mount Vesuvius

Today you’ll see two of the biggest attractions in southern Italy. Pompeii was buried by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD, and a guided tour of its remarkably preserved streets, villas and temples shows you what daily life looked like in the Roman Empire.

We booked a guided tour of Pompeii that also included horseback riding at a vineyard on Mount Vesuvius and a winery tour, called Pompeii Ruins, Horses and Wine.

How to get there: There are several train and bus options from Sorrento to Pompeii. We like to mix up our transportation, so we took a private car from Sorrento to Pompeii. After the tour, we caught the train to Naples from the station right across the street from the Pompeii entrance.

Luggage storage: Since we were moving from Sorrento to Naples that day, we needed somewhere to leave our bags. The station lockers weren’t big enough for our roller carry-ons, so we used Bounce Luggage Storage. If you’ve never used it, we highly recommend it for travel days like this one, because it makes finding and booking a spot for your bags quick and easy.

Dinner tonight is pizza in Naples! Naples is widely considered the birthplace of pizza, and it’s famous for Neapolitan pizza, made simply with tomatoes and mozzarella on a soft, blistered crust.

If you’re a Julia Roberts fan, stop by L’Antica Pizzeria da Michele, which you may recognize from Eat, Pray, Love. It’s a popular stop, so be prepared to wait in line.

Day 8: Naples

Spend today exploring the historic center of Naples, a UNESCO World Heritage Site with roots dating back to around 470 BC. Admire the Royal Palace and the Church of San Francesco di Paola, then stroll through the bustling street of Spaccanapoli, which is packed with shops, cafés and historic sites.

In the afternoon, visit Castel Nuovo, also called Maschio Angioino, a medieval castle facing Piazza Municipio and city hall. Its size and waterfront setting make it one of the city’s most recognizable landmarks.

In the evening, walk along the seafront to Castel dell’Ovo and watch the sun set over the Bay of Naples. Tomorrow, you’ll take the train back to Rome!

Day 9: Vatican City

Vatican City tickets sell out well in advance, so book this day as early as you can. Once you arrive, take your time inside St. Peter’s Basilica, where you’ll find Michelangelo’s masterpiece, the Pietà. Then walk through the Vatican Museums and their centuries of art and artifacts, ending at the Sistine Chapel, whose famous ceiling frescoes were painted by Michelangelo and draw millions of visitors every year.

Options for tonight:

1. Hire a professional photographer. We love that it lets us put our phones away and actually be present, it’s often more affordable than people expect, and the photos are always better than anything we’d get with a selfie stick.
2. Head back to Piazza Navona to watch the street performers and admire the Baroque fountains, then grab dinner or an Aperol Spritz nearby and soak up the sights and sounds of Rome.

Day 10: Farewell, Rome

Enjoy your final day in Rome before catching a late flight home. Leave your bags at your hotel or at a Bounce Luggage Storage location so you can squeeze in one last adventure.

We recommend touring the Roman Catacombs, which show you a hidden, spookier side of a city better known for its grand landmarks. If you’re into ancient history, it’s a fascinating look at how Romans handled death and burial.

Optional alternative: Visit Castel Sant’Angelo instead. The exterior is stunning, and the inside gives you a real sense of how Rome has changed over 2,000 years.

When it’s time to go, head to the airport by train, taxi or ride-share, and spend the ride reflecting on an amazing trip. Safe travels!

How to Get From Rome to the Amalfi Coast

You have three main ways to get from Rome to the coast, and the right one depends on your budget and how much time you want to spend in transit.

Bus: This is the most affordable option, and it’s what we chose. We took a FlixBus directly from Rome to Sorrento, which saved us money for experiences later in the trip, and we’d happily do it again.

Train: This is the fastest option. Take a high-speed train from Roma Termini to Napoli Centrale, which takes a little over an hour, and then switch to the Circumvesuviana regional train, which takes about an hour to reach Sorrento.

Rental car: A car gives you the most freedom, but it’s the most expensive choice, and the narrow coastal roads and limited parking make it stressful for a lot of visitors.

Getting Around in Rome

There’s something exciting about knowing you’re traveling down streets filled with thousands of years of history. Here are the main ways to get around the city.

Walking: Rome is incredibly walkable, especially between the Roman Forum, Colosseum, Pantheon and Trevi Fountain, so bring comfortable shoes.

Metro and buses: Rome has three metro lines and an extensive bus network, and you can buy tickets at stations or newsstands. Keep an eye on your belongings, because crowded trains are a favorite spot for pickpockets.

Taxis: You’ll find official metered taxis near most major attractions, and hotels can call one for you.

Ride-share: Apps like Uber and FreeNow work in Rome.

Bicycles: Bike rentals are available around the city and at some hotels, and you should stick to the bike lanes when you ride.

Car rentals: A car is best saved for day trips outside the city. We skip rental cars whenever public transportation is an option.

Trains: Rome’s main train stations are Termini, the central hub, along with Tiburtina and Ostiense. Booking high-speed trains in advance saves you time and money.

Stay Safe: Tips for Traveling Italy With Confidence

Pickpocketing is a concern in any crowded tourist area. In Rome, be especially careful around the Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, Vatican City and the Colosseum. A crossbody bag with zippers or buttons helps a lot, and it’s smart to keep valuables out of sight.

You should also watch out for the bracelet scam, which is very common in busy tourist areas. A friendly stranger will approach and try to tie a “free” friendship bracelet around your wrist, and once it’s on, they’ll demand payment and can get aggressive if you refuse. Politely decline and keep walking if anyone tries it.

Rome and Amalfi Coast Trip FAQs

Here are the questions we get asked most often about planning this trip.

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