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Atrani on the Amalfi Coast, houses stacked above a blue bay with mountains behind

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Rome to the Amalfi Coast by train, via Salerno and the sea

A high-speed train to Salerno, a short walk to the quay, and the coast unrolling from the deck to Amalfi and Positano.

The short answer

Take a Frecciarossa or Italo train from Roma Termini to Salerno: 1 hour 26 minutes to 2 hours 12, with 18 direct Frecciarossa trains on 18 November 2026 and, by Italo's count, 10 Italo trains a day. Read on 27 October 2026 for that date, Frecciarossa fares started at €20.90 and the 3-hour Intercity at €14.90; Italo publishes fares from €14.90. From Salerno's Piazza della Concordia, by the station, Travelmar's boat reaches Amalfi in 35 minutes for €12 and Positano in 70 for €17, all year. Book the train ahead and the boat online or at the quay.

No railway runs along the Amalfi Coast, and that is the pleasure of it. The fast train carries you from Roma Termini to Salerno in as little as 1 hour 26 minutes; the boat leaves from a quay beside the station, and the last stretch is by sea, the way Amalfi's merchants came and went for centuries. On a good connection you go from the Termini concourse to the steps of Amalfi's cathedral in under three hours.

Italy

Rome to Salerno
1 h 26 min to 2 h 12 min
Direct fast trains a day
18 Frecciarossa, 10 Italo
Frecciarossa from
€20.90 for 18 Nov 2026
Salerno to Amalfi by sea
35 min, €12 (2026)
Salerno to Positano by sea
70 min, €17 (2026)
Last boat to Positano
17:10 (from 1 Oct 2026)

Why this is one of the great journeys

The Amalfi Coast was never meant to be reached by land. Its towns sit at the mouths of ravines between cliffs, and for most of their history the sea was the road. Amalfi was the oldest of Italy's four Maritime Republics, trading across the Mediterranean, and its cathedral, founded in 987 and reached by a stair of 62 steps, still has a bronze door cast in Constantinople. UNESCO inscribed the coast as a World Heritage Site in 1997, a cultural landscape of 16 municipalities in the province of Salerno, with terraces of lemons, vines and olives stepped up the cliffs.

The modern journey keeps that shape. The high-speed line does the dull part fast: Rome to Salerno in under two hours on the quickest trains, with no change. Then you walk from the station to the quay at Piazza della Concordia and the boat takes over, past the majolica domes of Vietri sul Mare and the fishing harbour of Cetara to Amalfi, and on along the cliffs to Positano.

There is a neat symmetry in the architecture. The fastest trains call at Napoli Afragola, Zaha Hadid's 500 m curve of a station bridging the tracks, opened in 2017; in Salerno her oyster-shaped Stazione Marittima on the Molo Manfredi, opened in 2016, watches the boats come and go. Between the two you pass the bulk of Vesuvius. The railway brings you to the edge of the coast; the sea delivers you to it, which is how the place is still best seen for the first time.

Along the way

  1. Rome

  2. about an hour out of Rome, on the fastest Frecciarossa and Italo trains

    Napoli Afragola

    The high-speed station Zaha Hadid Architects designed for the Rome, Naples and Salerno line opened in June 2017: a single curved building 500 m long that bridges the tracks up to about 9 m above the rails. The quickest Frecciarossa trains to Salerno call here and skip Napoli Centrale, which is how they make the whole trip in about an hour and a half.

  3. between Naples and Salerno

    Past Vesuvius

    Between Naples and Salerno the line passes the volcano that buried Pompeii in AD 79, a broad grey cone over the plain. About half an hour after Afragola the train is in Salerno.

  4. Piazza della Concordia, by Salerno station

    Salerno, station to sea

    Travelmar's boats leave from the quay at Piazza della Concordia, which its timetable sells as the train-station stop: you walk from the platform to the water. Across the harbour on the Molo Manfredi stands the Stazione Marittima, Zaha Hadid's oyster-shaped terminal of 4,500 m², opened in 2016.

  5. 5 minutes out of Salerno, first stop for some sailings

    Vietri sul Mare

    The first town of the coast is the capital of its ceramics. The dome and bell tower of the Duomo di San Giovanni Battista, a church dating to the 10th century, are covered in yellow, green and pale blue majolica, and stand out from the water as the boat pulls away from Salerno.

  6. about 10 minutes from Salerno

    Cetara

    A fishing village known for its tuna and for colatura di alici, an amber anchovy condiment with protected (DOP) status. Travelmar's 18:00 from Salerno in the October 2026 timetable calls here on its way to Amalfi.

  7. 35 minutes from Salerno

    Arriving in Amalfi

    The boat berths a short walk from Piazza Duomo. Look up from the quay for the cathedral, founded in 987 by Duke Mansone I, with its 19th-century façade (the old one fell in a storm in 1861) above 62 steps. Ravello is about 25 minutes up the hill by bus.

  8. 25 minutes on from Amalfi, 70 from Salerno

    On to Positano

    West of Amalfi the cliffs steepen past Conca dei Marini, Furore and Praiano before Positano opens up: a town of coloured houses, church domes and flights of steps rising straight from the beach, where the boat comes in.

  9. Salerno

Which side to sit

On the train any seat will do: the high-speed line is quick rather than scenic, and the coast is not visible from it. The views belong to the boat. Leaving Salerno for Amalfi and Positano the ferry heads west with the coast to the north, so take a seat on the right-hand (starboard) side for Vietri, Cetara, Capo d'Orso and the cliffs; the crew asks passengers to stay seated while under way, so choose the side as you board. Coming back to Salerno, the left side has the shore.

Ways to do it

When to go

Trains, times and tickets from Rome

How long is the train from Rome to Salerno, how often does it run and how much is it?

Trenitalia's search for Wednesday 18 November 2026, read on 27 October, showed 18 direct Frecciarossa trains from Roma Termini to Salerno between 07:30 and 21:25, taking 1 hour 26 minutes (the 17:53) to 2 hours 12, and ten direct Intercity trains of about 3 hours. Italo publishes 10 trains a day on the route in 1 hour 39 minutes, over 277 km. Frecciarossa, Italo and Intercity fares all include a reserved seat.

Prices move with demand. On that search the cheapest Frecciarossa fares were €20.90 (FrecciaDAYS) and from €24.90 (Super Economy), both without changes or refunds, while the flexible Base fare was €53 to €64; Intercity started at €14.90, and Italo publishes fares from €14.90. Book the outward train when you know your dates, and match it to the boat: in the October timetable the last ferry to Positano leaves Salerno at 17:10, so a train arriving by about 16:00 is the safe choice.

Fastest train
1 h 26 min (Frecciarossa 17:53, 18 November 2026)
Direct trains a day
18 Frecciarossa and 10 Intercity (18 November 2026); 10 Italo (Italo's count)
Frecciarossa from
€20.90 non-refundable; €53 flexible Base (read 27 October 2026 for 18 November)
Intercity from
€14.90 (same search); Italo publishes from €14.90
Seat reservation
included on Frecciarossa, Italo and Intercity

Salerno to Amalfi and Positano: boats and the last ferry

Where does the ferry leave from in Salerno, and when is the last boat to Positano and Amalfi?

Travelmar sails all year from Piazza della Concordia, beside Salerno station. In its timetable from 1 October 2026 boats left for Amalfi and Positano at 08:40, 09:40, 10:40, 11:10, 11:40, 13:10, 14:10, 15:30 and 17:10, plus an 18:00 to Amalfi via Vietri, Cetara, Maiori and Minori (60 minutes). Amalfi takes 35 minutes, Positano 70. In the summer timetable from 1 July 2026 there was an 18:10 and, in July and August, a 20:30. Coming back, the last boat from Positano to Salerno left at 18:30 from October and at 23:00 in July and August.

Adult singles for 2026 are €12 to Amalfi and €17 to Positano, with the €1.50 Salerno port levy included, and €10 between Amalfi and Positano; the round Salerno, Positano, Amalfi and back costs €39, the sum of the three singles. A few sailings, Travelmar's early boats and Alilauro's and NLG's, leave instead from the Molo Manfredi, the cruise pier, so check which quay your ticket names. Buy online, or at the ticket office on the quay on the day at least 20 minutes before departure; with an online ticket be at the office 15 minutes before.

Quay
Piazza della Concordia, by Salerno station
Salerno to Amalfi
35 min, €12 (2026)
Salerno to Positano
70 min, €17 (2026)
Last boat to Positano
17:10 from 1 October; 20:30 in July and August 2026
Last boat to Amalfi
18:00 from 1 October; 20:30 in July and August 2026
Last boat back from Positano
18:30 from 1 October; 23:00 in July and August 2026

Luggage, and Salerno or Naples

Which is better for the Amalfi Coast, Salerno or Naples, and what about luggage?

For Amalfi, Ravello, Atrani, Minori and Maiori, Salerno is the clear hub: the boat leaves beside the station, runs all year and lands in Amalfi 35 minutes later, with Ravello 25 minutes up the hill by bus. For Positano, Salerno still works (70 minutes by boat) and is the only all-year sea route; Naples suits Positano from April to early November, when NLG sails most often from Molo Beverello, or by the Circumvesuviana to Sorrento and the bus over the hills. Naples means crossing the city from Napoli Centrale to the port, which Salerno spares you.

On the train, Italo allows cases up to 75 x 53 x 30 cm in Smart class. On Travelmar's boats one bag of 45 x 35 x 20 cm travels free and each extra piece costs €3; NLG charges €5 a piece. On SITA buses one bag up to 50 x 30 x 25 cm is free, and larger bags go in the hold, space permitting, for €1.50 each. With big cases the boat is far easier than the bus.

Best hub for Amalfi and Ravello
Salerno, all year
Best hub for Positano
Salerno all year; Naples April to early November
Travelmar luggage
one bag 45 x 35 x 20 cm free; extra €3
SITA bus luggage
50 x 30 x 25 cm free; larger €1.50

Worth knowing before you go

Where to stay at either end

It starts at Roma Termini, so the coast is an easy next stop after any of our Rome hotels: on the 07:30 Frecciarossa and the 09:40 boat you are in Amalfi at about 10:15.

The journey in pictures

A red Frecciarossa 1000 high-speed train, the fastest service from Rome towards Salerno
Amalfi seen across the water below the mountains, where the journey ends
Yachts moored in the port of Salerno beneath green hills
Amalfi and its cliffs seen from the sea
White villages on the cliffs of the Amalfi Coast seen from the water
The waterfront and hillside houses of Amalfi seen from a boat

Questions people ask

Good questions about Rome to the Amalfi Coast

How do I get from Rome to the Amalfi Coast by train?

Take a Frecciarossa or Italo train from Roma Termini to Salerno, 1 hour 26 minutes to 2 hours 12, then walk to Piazza della Concordia beside the station for Travelmar's boat to Amalfi (35 minutes, €12) or Positano (70 minutes, €17). No train runs along the coast itself. Read on 27 October 2026 for 18 November, Frecciarossa fares started at €20.90 and Intercity at €14.90.

How do I get from Rome to Positano?

All year: train to Salerno, then Travelmar's boat to Positano in 70 minutes for €17; from 1 October 2026 the last one left at 17:10, in July and August at 20:30. From 1 April to 15 November 2026 you could also go via Naples on NLG's boat from Molo Beverello, €32 (most sailings to 3 November, then one a day), or by the Circumvesuviana to Sorrento and the SITA bus over to Positano.

How long is the train from Rome to Salerno?

The fastest Frecciarossa takes 1 hour 26 minutes and Italo publishes 1 hour 39; trains calling at Napoli Centrale take about 2 hours, and Intercity trains about 3. On 18 November 2026 there were 18 direct Frecciarossa trains and 10 Intercity, and Italo counts 10 Italo trains a day.

Is it better to go to the Amalfi Coast from Salerno or Naples?

Salerno for Amalfi, Ravello, Minori and Maiori, and for Positano out of season: the boat leaves beside the station and runs all year. Naples is an option for Positano from April to mid November, with NLG's boats from Molo Beverello (most of them until 3 November in 2026), but you must cross the city from the station to the port first.

What time is the last ferry from Salerno to Positano and Amalfi?

In Travelmar's timetable from 1 October 2026 the last boat to Positano left Salerno at 17:10 and the last to Amalfi at 18:00. In the summer 2026 timetable there was also an 18:10 and, in July and August only, a 20:30 to both. Back from Positano, the last boat left at 18:30 from October and 23:00 in July and August.

Can I take big suitcases on the ferry to Amalfi?

Yes. On Travelmar one bag of 45 x 35 x 20 cm is free and each extra bag costs €3; NLG charges €5 a piece. The boat is easier with luggage than the SITA bus, where only a bag of 50 x 30 x 25 cm travels free and larger cases go in the hold for €1.50 if there is space.

Is there a direct train from Rome to Amalfi or Positano?

No. The railway ends at Salerno, and the coast is reached by boat or by road. The quickest way is the train to Salerno and Travelmar's boat from the quay beside the station: on 18 November 2026 the 07:30 Frecciarossa reached Salerno at 09:05, in time for the 09:40 boat, in Amalfi at about 10:15.

Rome to the Amalfi Coast

A high-speed train to Salerno, a short walk to the quay, and the coast unrolling from the deck to Amalfi and Positano.

Rome → Salerno

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