Sorrento, Italy

View of Mt Vesuvius from Sorrento

This post is a little overdue as we actually took a trip to Sorrento Italy back in October! Now that I’ve got the hang of this blogging lark, I am now playing catch up!

On this adventure we are on, each child has a ‘to-do’ on their list. My eldest wanted to go to Italy, so we did! Now I have been to Sorrento in the past. For a business trip, so I was somewhat familiar with it and after chatting with a friend who was explaining her family trip there – warmth, history, culture, food – we felt if could be a good balanced trip for all.

So we embarked on the trip over half term break in October. In fact went a day early so to avoid soul destroying travel prices so managed to save £500 by taking the twins out of school for one day (sshhh!).

We flew direct from Luton to Naples. Easy and straightforward. After research, we knew there was a bus to pick up outside of the airport that will take you to Sorrento. Again, easy. The journey lasts around an hour and of course affording lovely views of the coastline along the way.

Our hotel we booked on line was Settimo Cielo. Nothing fancy but adequate. If the weather had been warmer, it would have been great with a nice little pool overlooking Mount Vesuvius. Alas, the air had a chill in it despite it reaching 20° most days.

The hotel is a short walk from Sorrento center itself. About 5-10 minutes. I thought this would be no problem and for the most part it was fine BUT in hindsight, I probably would book ‘in town’ for a future trip. Mostly because we were on our feet all day every day. To walk into town again for dinner (and back) was proving to get a little ‘old’ by the end of the trip. Nevertheless, we were comfortable enough in the hotel and never grew tired of the view from our room.

DSCN0681

Sorrento is steeped in history and there is a lot to see and do. We spent probably 2.5 days touring around Sorrento itself. We tend to like going off the beaten path when we can and we explored around lots of the side streets often.

Exploring an art exhibit

Statues in Sorrento

Sorrento center

Exploring side streets

Fountains in Sorrento

Statues in Sorrento

There is a little ‘train’ (motorized vehicle pulling cars) that tours around the town. Not expensive and we a bit of fun. We hopped on that to get a quick view of what we might want to go back and take a look at.

Exploring the waterfront

Views from the waterfront

Dining options were plentiful and all fairly similar. Our favorite spot was in the middle of the central square – Bar Fauno. Naturally, our favorite was one of the more expensive spots but the place felt like a little treat each time we visited. They offer probably the best hot chocolate we have ever tasted and initial visits they will bring samplers out to you for no charge. We went often enough that we became ‘regulars’ and known by the staff…not sure if this is a good or bad thing 🙂 For other meals out, we would wander the backstreets and would find somewhere that would take out fancy. Nothing too remarkable to name here. My husband is Gluten intolerant which made for interesting lack of choices in a gluten heavy culture. However, we did find a couple of places offering gluten free pizza so it can be found…especially in the restaurants more central in the town.

At Bar Fauno

One dining experience we missed out on was at a farm in the hills above Sorrento. In the town square there is a charming organic food store…beautiful inside ad out. They own a farm in the hills and offer tours, meals and cooking lessons. Availability to go is limited and we just missed out on timing to get there (they will pick you up form your hotel). I recommend that if you like to ‘get out of town’, seek them out and see what they have to offer.

Seek this store out…they offer cooking classes and meals at their farm in the hills over looking Sorrento

Sorrento is naturally full of history and beautiful monuments and buildings to tour around. From the coastline to the town, views are splendid. Other places not to miss in the town include the Orange and Lemon groves and cafes in the old port.