For my first time in Italy I wanted to visit everywhere! Knowing that wasn’t actually possible within the short time available I wanted to maximize my travel experiences while still allowing enough time to get to know particular destinations.
Pompeii and the Isle of Capri where high on my must visit list but I just wasn’t sure how to fit them in. A day tour from Rome was looking my best option for Pompeii but to add in a trip to Capri I felt I needed to either extend the holiday or miss out. Neither option felt possible. That was when I came across a two day tour offered by CIT called the Limoncello Tour.
When travelling, my husband and I tend to prefer to make our own way but this tour provided us with the opportunity to get where we wanted for a reasonable price and without much worry on our part. One of the other things that drew me to this particular tour was the freedom it seemed to allow with plenty of free time.
We had already organised with our hotel to split our booking so we did not need to pay for the night we were away but they would still be happy to take care of our large suitcases while we just took overnight bags with us. Getting around was so much easier without that suitcase! We left Rome nice and early in the morning and settled in for the drive. One stop later for morning tea and we had arrived at Naples. This was really just a stop to change buses, rather than a sight-seeing stop which was a little disappointing. What we did get to see was the cruise port, some excavations, a church and a lot of scaffolding. Apparently it was the time for renovations in Italy! After this 30min break it was back on the bus to make our way to Pompeii. Now I was excited!
Every time I sat down to plan this trip, when I actually got there and even now writing this, that damn Bastille song is playing in my mind forcing me to just go “eheu eh-o eheu eh-o” continuously like some form of haunting mind spasm…and now it will be forever stuck in your head too. You’re welcome!
So apart from English pop rock taking over my mind the draw of Pompeii was one that evolved for me beginning without much knowledge or understanding and ending with an appreciation of our historical past. This was by far one of the most interesting places I have every visited, and one I was very glad to do as part of a big touristy group, headset and all! I found the knowledge of our guide a very important factor to the overall experience as she could tell us what it was like before, and tell the stories of the people who had lived there.
It was eerie standing amongst the ruins looking out towards Mt Vesuvius thinking about the scale of destruction that an eruption could cause. It was also amazing to stand in a place so old yet so well preserved when so many other places have been lost to history.
After exploring Pompeii in the searing heat a nice cold Peroni was just what we needed before making our way to Sorrento just in time to see the sun set and appreciate what an amazing part of the world we now found ourselves in.
After a little sleep in we were off again, this time heading out on the ferry to Capri. Think picture perfect, chilled out coastal with water so blue that you are sure it can’t be real.
The majority of our time on the tiny island was ours to explore. I have written about Capri in further detail in an earlier post but two things you just cannot miss are the Blue Grotto and the Monte Solaro Chairlift which gives you THE BEST vantage point on the island. My visit to Capri was a very memorable one, it is a place that will stay with me as a highlight of our trip though Italy.
After too much wine over lunch, I took advantage of the long ferry ride back to Naples to catch up on some sleep. And then I slept some more on the bus from Naples to Rome. This tour is a massive 2 days but was so worth it.
I have so much desire to return to Italy, particularly to spend more time along the Amalfi Coast and after this experience I will definitely consider overnight tours for our next trip wherever that may be!
Carolyn ward
I also did this tour from Rome to pompee, Sorrento and Capri. After not being picked up from my hotel and having to catch cab to bus depot in hurry to meet up with bus the rest of tour went ok until the night stop over in Sorrento. I understood we would be Having dinner at same hotel but I had been booked at hotel on my own and dined on my own after being dropped in street and told to walk to my hotel in dark. The whole tour seemed to be terrible shambles of changing buses which sometimes the tour guides didn’t seem to know what was happening. I wasn’t the only one disappointed with the organisatio. I have never travelled on my own and found it very disconcerting, I will never travel with CIT tours again.
Sally
Sorry to hear that Carolyn! I really loved our tour so it’s so interesting to hear that you did not enjoy your experience. Everyone on our tour seemed to be staying in different hotels as well and we ate dinner just on our own, however as I was travelling with my husband we didn’t mind.