"poldy" wrote in message
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Plan to go to the Catania region for about 6 days, first timer.

Was thinking that Sorrento seemed to be the most central, not just for
day trips to places like Positano and Ravello, but also back up to
Pompeii, maybe even Naples.

This is in the first week of April.

Sorrento seems to offer better lodging values than Positano. Obviously
not as scenic but better located (I will be arriving from Rome to Naples
by train and going back at the end to fly out of FCO).

Yup - it's the ideal location for those. Gets a bit crowded though - even in
April.

The other idea was to spend a couple of nights on Capri.

Capri.com lists a lot of choices. Lot of small B&Bs which have maybe 3
rooms and gets raves for personal service.

We were going to go to Capri but decided to give it a miss as it was described
by several people we met as a bit of a tourist trap, masses of shops selling
overpriced tat and not much else apart from nice views. As well as being
expensive to get to (IIRC the ferry from Sorrento to Capri was something like
twice the price of Sorrento to Amalfi - despite being half the distance!)

Versus hotels, which still get good reviews but not the same level of
personal attention. Main good thing about the latter is that they seem
more likely to offer transfer or porterage services from Marina Grande,
whereas with the B&Bs, you would probably have to take a taxi up if
you're bringing luggage for a 2-week trip (no I don't pack light).

Any experiences in the lodging choices in the area? Not just on Capri
but also on the mainland?

We stayed at hotel Il Nido up in the hills a few km outside Sorrento. They had a
regular shuttle service to/from the town centre and the train/bus station,
morning and evening till late, and they pick up from the station on arrival.
IIRC it was about 100 euros a night for a family room (4 people). Good
restaurant too and no more expensive than restaurants in town.

--
Andy