Day Outing - Capri or Ischia?

Wait, I thought you were going to Rome, Florence, Venice? Now suddenly Naples is in the mix? Naples alone is a big, fascinating city (that some find dirty, hard to like, chaotic, and slightly scary/sinister—but I adore the place) with an outstanding museum of archaeology housing the most important stuff from Pompeii....and I’d go to Herculaneum or Pompeii over Ischia or Capri, personally.

Don’t you have just three days in Rome?

Believe me, you will have plenty to photograph in Rome for three days, even if you never go inside a museum. The Forum is outdoors, a great landscape of ruins....with the Colosseum next door. You could spend a week in Rome just going from piazza to piazza taking pics of fountains.

You can rent a motor boat in Bacoli cheaply and go town hopping on Ischia for the day. We did that last summer and had a blast. I do not know what sites are on the island outside of Forio. I think Capri is cooler with the ruins of Tiberius' palace at one end (Villa Jovis), the ski lift up to the top of the island near Anicapri, and the Blue Grotto at the other end. We were able to do all 3 because we spent the night there. If this is your only trip to Italy, I'd say do Capri.

Wait a minute. I would not make that decision based upon the distance between those cities. I have driven from Florence to the CT. I have travelled twice between Rome and Naples. It is no more difficult to get from Florence to the CT (beginning at La Spezia train station) than it is to get from Rome to Naples. I consider the CT a much more desirable destination than Naples. Now, if you are going on to the Amalfi Coast that is a different story, but as between spending time in Naples vs. the CT I would pick the CT by a wide margin.

Besides, I just checked the distances: Rome to Naples 141 mi. 3.25 hours drive. Florence to La Spezia 91 mi. 1.5 hr. drive.

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you don’t want to spend any time in Napoli other than the train station or ferry.

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That's the plan, visit Pompeii and Capri or visit Cinque Terre

And you’ve got to get from your hotel to train station in Rome, plus the same in Naples....this is not an easy day trip in the middle of an already packed schedule. An easy day trip from Rome is Ostia Antica ( extensive ruins of the ancient Roman port at the mouth of the Tiber), or the Etruscan necropolis at Tarquinia. Both are as interesting and photogenic as Pompeii.

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Naples/Pompeii/Capri for an outing.

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I did exactly this trip a few years back. Skip Naples and stay on the Amalfi. Naples is a bit of a shite hole... but it does have a sort of dirty macabre charm. If you're sold on Naples, the highlights for me were the catacombs and Museo Cappella Sansevero. The Veiled Christ is one of the most beautiful and intricate works of art I've ever had the pleasure of seeing.

That said, the rest of your itinerary for the area is dope. Ischia is closer to Naples than is Capri. It's really pretty and quiet with little public beaches where you can rent an umbrella and beach chair for the day for only a few euro.

Pompeii is fascinating. The commute to get there (janky arse local train) is a bit miserable. But it's well worth the trek.

A point of advice, bring a big bottle of water, lots of sun screen, and comfortable shoes. It is sweltering there in the summertime, and you're going to be walking A LOT.

Enjoy the trip.

Not that I care a lot about what you do on your trip, but I can lend this advice from personal experience -- seeing Pompeii adequately and Capri adequately in 1 day is highly unlikely. Good luck with your plans and trip.