The Italy Guides

Southern Italy Itinerary: 10 Days from Naples to Sicily

· 4 min read Itinerary
Naples and the Bay — start of the southern Italy itinerary

Contents

  1. Getting to Naples
  2. Before you go: key bookings
  3. Days 1–2: Naples
  4. Day 3: Pompeii and Herculaneum
  5. Days 4–5: Amalfi Coast
  6. Day 6: Matera
  7. Days 7–8: Puglia (Alberobello, Lecce, Ostuni)
  8. Days 9–10: Sicily
  9. Practical notes

Southern Italy rewards time and transport flexibility. This 10-day itinerary runs from Naples through the Amalfi Coast, into Basilicata and Puglia, and ends in Sicily. It requires a combination of trains, a car for Amalfi and Puglia, and a short flight or overnight ferry for Sicily. The food, the archaeology, and the landscape are different from the north — this is not a refinement of the Rome-Florence-Venice circuit but an entirely different Italy.

Getting to Naples

High-speed Frecciarossa from Rome (1h 10min) or from Milan (4h 45min). Fly direct to Naples Capodichino (NAP) from most European cities.

Before you go: key bookings

  • Pompeii online (pompeionline.net) — book ahead, particularly for summer
  • Hire car for the Amalfi Coast days and for Puglia (collect in Naples or Salerno)
  • Flights or ferry from Calabria/Naples to Sicily

Days 1–2: Naples

Naples is overwhelming, magnificent, and requires at least two days.

Day 1 — Archaeological Museum and Spaccanapoli: The Museo Archeologico Nazionale in the morning (the world’s finest Roman art collection — the Pompeii finds, the Farnese Hercules, the secret erotic cabinet). Allow 3 hours. Then walk Spaccanapoli — the long, arrow-straight road cutting through the historic centre. The Cappella Sansevero (pre-book) for the Veiled Christ marble sculpture.

Day 2 — Castel Nuovo, Pizzeria, day prep: The Castel Nuovo (14th-century waterfront fortress, the Triumphal Arch is the main feature), the Spaccanapoli church circuit (Gesù Nuovo, Santa Chiara and its tiled cloister, San Domenico Maggiore). Evening: pizza at L’Antica Pizzeria da Michele or Sorbillo — the original Neapolitan margherita, eaten in 10 minutes standing.

Day 3: Pompeii and Herculaneum

Circumvesuviana train from Napoli Piazza Garibaldi (30 minutes). Arrive at Pompeii before 9am. Spend the morning on the Forum, Via dell’Abbondanza, the House of the Vettii, the amphitheatre, and the Villa of the Mysteries. Return to Ercolano for Herculaneum in the afternoon — smaller, better preserved, far fewer visitors. Return to Naples for the night.

Days 4–5: Amalfi Coast

Collect a hire car in Naples or Salerno. Drive the coast road (SS163) or take the ferry from Naples to Positano (1.5 hours, much more pleasant).

Day 4 — Positano and the Sentiero degli Dei: Spend the morning in Positano — the vertical village above the sea. Walk the Path of the Gods (Sentiero degli Dei) along the ridge above the coast — 2 hours, extraordinary views, ends in Nocelle. Hire a car back to Positano or walk down the 1,700 steps. Amalfi town for lunch: the Cathedral, the Arsenale della Repubblica museum.

Day 5 — Ravello and Paestum: Drive up to Ravello (350m, 7km above the sea) — Villa Rufolo, Villa Cimbrone. Then drive south along the coast past Salerno to Paestum — three Greek Doric temples (5th century BC) in remarkably complete condition, standing in a flat plain with the sea visible. The National Museum of Paestum holds the painted Tomb of the Diver (480 BC) — the most complete Greek fresco discovered. Return car at Salerno; take the train to Matera via Potenza or to Taranto.

Day 6: Matera

The cave city of Basilicata. Arrive from Salerno via the bus from Potenza or directly from Naples via bus. Spend the day walking the Sassi, visiting the rock-cut churches, the underground cisterns, and the Casa Grotta. The Gravina ravine view at sunset from the Piazza Vittorio Veneto is essential.

Days 7–8: Puglia (Alberobello, Lecce, Ostuni)

Hire a car at Matera for these two days.

Day 7 — Alberobello and Locorotondo: Drive to Alberobello — the trulli town. The UNESCO-protected rione Monti quarter has the highest concentration of conical stone houses. Then drive to Locorotondo — a whitewashed hill town above the Valle d’Itria, with excellent trattorias.

Day 8 — Lecce: The baroque capital of the south. Santa Croce Basilica, the Piazza del Duomo, the Roman amphitheatre, the underground city, the craft shops. Eat: pasticciotto (the custard pastry), rustico leccese, orecchiette fresh from a market stall. Evening in Lecce; return car and travel to Bari or Brindisi for the Sicily connection.

Days 9–10: Sicily

Getting there: Fly from Brindisi or Bari to Palermo or Catania (45 minutes, from €30 on Ryanair). Alternatively, overnight ferry from Naples to Palermo (11 hours).

Day 9 — Palermo: The Palatine Chapel (essential), the Ballarò market (morning), the Capo market, pani câ meusa (the spleen sandwich), the Arab-Norman churches.

Day 10 — Day trip to Monreale or Agrigento: Monreale Cathedral (30 minutes by bus from Palermo) — the gold mosaic programme. Or travel to Agrigento for the Valley of the Temples. Depart from Palermo airport.

Practical notes

Car hire: Essential for Amalfi (days 4–5) and Puglia (days 7–8). Collect and return at different cities (Naples to Salerno/Matera; Matera to Bari/Brindisi) — one-way rental is standard in Italy but adds €30–60 to the price.

Sicily flight: Book the domestic flight or ferry in advance. Ryanair prices are volatile; booking 2–3 weeks ahead gets the best fares.

Best season: April–June and September–October. July–August works for Sicily beaches but Pompeii and Amalfi are exhausting in peak heat.

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