Travel Sorrento Like a Local: the Guide to Everything You Need to Know about Sorrento

Within the metropolitan area of Naples, Sorrento is an accessible train ride away from the beautiful chaos that is Napoli. Famous for its citrus and coastal cliffs, Sorrento is equal parts touristy resort and traditional Italian coastal town.

Sorrento is characteristically filled with little shops selling hand painted ceramics and bottled limoncello. If you plan to buy limoncello anywhere in Southern Italy during your trip, Sorrento is a safe bet. In the area, there are many farms producing lemons and tomatoes completely unlike those in the US. You’ll probably even find lemons as big as your head!

Sorrento is not technically a part of the Amalfi Coast, though many travelers make the understandable mistake of referring to Sorrento that way. Sorrento, like towns on the Amalfi coast, features towns built into stunning sea cliffs, small shops selling leather and other artisan goods, and delicious (but maybe expensive) food. Sorrento is officially on the Sorrentine Peninsula, just before the start of the Amalfi Coast.

Culture of Sorrento

Many are quick to say that Naples is not a beautiful city, though these naysayers neglect to recognize that Sorrento is a part of Naples. Though it’s not in the geographical city center of Naples, Sorrento and Naples are united by a distinct local culture easily characterized by dialect, mannerisms, food tradition, and love of Napoli football.

The tomatoes in your pizza Margherita in Naples probably came from Sorrento. The waiter serving you limoncello in Sorrento attends university in the historic city center you call ugly. The old men outside the shops in Sorrento speak in il dialetto Napoletano (Neopolitan dialect) while they make you handmade leather sandals or delicate ceramic goods.

Also, Sorrento is in the metropolitan area of Naples. If you wrote a letter to someone in Sorrento, you’d have to write in the address line: Naples, Italy.

Okay, rant over. Let’s get you to Sorrento.

Admiring Naples from the other side of the bay, in Sorrento

Transportation

If you're staying in another city in Italy, take the train to Naples (expect 1.5 hours from Rome and 4 from Florence). When you get to Naples, buy a ticket (should be about 3 or 4 euro) for the Circumvesuviana (the local train) to Sorrento. Take the direct train, and get to Sorrento in 45 minutes. Sorrento will be the last stop. There are a few other beach stops along the way, including one with Sorrento in the name, but the town itself is on the last stop.

Be aware while traveling, as this is a train filled with locals and can get pretty packed. It will probably be loud and somewhat crowded. Trains run all day and all night, usually about every 20 minutes.

You can also take a ferry from Naples to Sorrento, and pay a bit more. You can buy a ticket and depart from Moro Beverello in Naples near the Piazza Municipio. This option should take about 40 minutes. Obviously if you tend to get seasick, this might not be the best option for you.

There should be bus tours or car rentals as well, but they will cost much more than the boat or train. I was lucky to first see Sorrento via my boyfriend’s car, which also allowed me to see another beach besides the one that is closest to the town center and therefore more crowded. If it’s in your budget, you can opt for a car to explore the area more in depth.

Where to Stay

Sorrento offers a lovely post to visit the beautiful area around it. On one side, there’s Naples city center and Pompeii, and on the other, the beautiful Amalfi Coast. Though I am admittedly biased that you also experience Naples (see: rant), I completely understand if you choose to call Sorrento your home base during your stay. You’ll have easy access to great day trips of ancient cities, hiking Vesuvio, eating pizza, seeing stunning cliffs—but more on that later.

However, you should keep in mind that because Sorrento is such a famous tourist destination, you’ll also end up paying a lot more for everything from food to accomodation. You also might miss out on some of the local culture by surrounding yourself with the wealthy vacationing tourists and honeymooners.

What to do in Sorrento

1. Eat & Drink

As I’ve mentioned, Sorrento has amazing produce, so why not try a local dish with tomatoes or lemons? Many restaurants are catered to tourists and will cost a bit more (about €20 each, consisting of a drink and a light meal). Local food of the Naples region is especially good due to the Volcanic soil that makes things like olives, citrus, and wine, especially good.

Wander around and grab a gelato or limoncello granita from a shop on a small street while you enjoy the sunshine. If you want to try limoncello like a real Italian, sip it like a cocktail after dinner and DO NOT throw it back like a shot, even though it will be served in a shot glass

PROTIP! Many hotels in Sorrento are out of my budget, but they always have bars that are open to the public with amazing panoramic views of the bay of Naples. Head to a ritsy hotel like Bellvue Sirene, where rooms go for hundreds of euros per night, and check out their bar terrace. Grab a drink around sunset for a few euros and observe how the other side lives.

2. Shop

With the lovely quintessential shops selling leather sandals, limoncello, and ceramic goods, shopping (or at least just browsing) is an inevitable part of wandering the town of Sorrento.

PROTIP! If you plan to head to nearby places such as Capri, Naples, or any town on the Amalfi Coast, you will find very similar things in the all of the shops. Any of these areas would be a great place to buy these things, but in the city center of Naples, souvenirs will be dramatically less expensive. In general, the goods throughout this area are artisanal and domestically made, completely unlike the factory-produced trinkets you’ll find in Rome. In summary: this region is ideal for gifts to bring back home.

3. Swim

Marina Grande and Marina Piccola are easily accessible from the center of town. My fellow young travelers will appreciate such a pretty sea such a short walk from public transportation.

To access these spots, take the steps carved into the cliff from the lookout point near Piazza Tasso in the center of town. Walk to the lookout point, and you’ll easily find the stairs down. Be careful, as the stairs can be somewhat slippery, though not dangerous. If you don’t want to take them back up, there’s an elevator you can pay a few euros for to get you back to the lookout point.

4. Explore the surrounding area with a day trip

If you decide to stay in Sorrento, here are some of the lovely day trips you can take that I hinted at earlier in this post:

-Eat pizza in Naples. Check out my recommendations for the best pizza in Naples.

-Check out some ancient cities. Herculaneum and Pompeii are 30-50 minutes away from Sorrento via the Circumvesuviana train.

-Hike Vesuvius. Bus tours leave from Herculaneum. Wear good walking shoes and enjoy amazing views and an extraterrestrial experience exploring the Volcano’s crater.

-Ferry to the Amalfi Coast. Take a ferry to Positano or Amalfi. If you have to pick one, go to Positano for the quintessential colorful towns characteristic of the Amalfi Coast.

-Ferry to Capri or Procida. These islands are gorgeous playgrounds for the rich and famous. More on Capri with my Capri Travel Guide.

With so much to do and see, Sorrento is an amazing place to visit, worthy of the fame it's earned over the years. When you travel there, keep these insider tips in mind, and the only sour experience you have will come from the giant lemons!

Have you been to Sorrento? Do you have any tips for travelers going there? Let me know in the comments!

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