Best port for a beach day or boat tour?

I will be going on a Mediterranean cruise in September of 2017 with my husband and 10 year old sun. Ports of Call: Salerno, Italy, Civitavecchia (Rome), Italy, Barcelona, Spain, Villefranche (Monte Carlo, Cannes, Nice), France, Livorno (Florence, Pisa), Italy, Cannes (Monte Carlo, Nice), France, Naples (Pompeii), Italy. What port would be the best day to go on a private boat and spend the day on the water or beach day? What do you recommend? Thanks!

I will be going on a Mediterranean cruise in September of 2017 with my husband and 10 year old sun. Ports of Call: Salerno, Italy, Civitavecchia (Rome), Italy, Barcelona, Spain, Villefranche (Monte Carlo, Cannes, Nice), France, Livorno (Florence, Pisa), Italy, Cannes (Monte Carlo, Nice), France, Naples (Pompeii), Italy. What port would be the best day to go on a private boat and spend the day on the water or beach day? What do you recommend? Thanks!

Since you have two ports in the same area which are only a very few miles apart from each other (Villefranche and Cannes), pick one of those. In fact, go sightseeing from the first stop (Villefranche), and then decide whether you want to see more in the area. If you saw enough, go to the beach in the second port, Cannes.

Also, there are many things to see from Naples. If you want to go to Capri, you could take a private boat tour around the island with some time for sightseeing. They are pricey, but google Capri boat tours and see what you find. That will give you both water time and sightseeing.

Of all the places you are visiting, the easiest place to get to a beach would be Villefranche which has a public beach just by the tender stop. Next is Cannes. The public beach is only about 10 minutes walk from the tender stop and is a nice sandy beach. If you required facilities (loungers, shades, bathrooms) there are beach clubs just a little further along.

An alternative, if you don't want to visit Rome, would be to get the train from Civitavecchia for just one stop to Santa Marinella which has a lovely sandy wide beach with facilities.

For a day on the water I would consider researching a boat trip from Salerno to explore the Amalfi Coasst - sorry I don't have any recommendations.

Good point about Salerno. Most private boat excursions are based on the Amalfi coast, although they will pick you up in Naples for Capri. Agree, the Amalfi coast by water from Salerno is the most scenic and you will avoid all the horrid traffic on the road. If you have enough time in port, they will do a full day tour on the water that includes Capri.

Check this out:

http://www.amalfiboatexcursion.com/

Hi, I would recommend a private boat tour on the Amalfi Coast. There are some boat hire services that come to take you directly to the port of Naples or Salerno and take you back, all in one day. I leave you a link to the website where I booked and found myself fine:

https://www.excursionboatsorrento.com/en/

I agree with klem and the others that a boat along the Amalfi coast from Salerno as far as Amalfi or preferably - if time allows - Positano would be great. Other than the Isle of Capri (from Naples or Salerno), the coastlines at the other ports that I know are pretty boring, but on the Amalfi coast the mountains come steeply down to the sea, with villages tumbling down to their harbours.

The view from on high, on the winding coast road, is pretty spectacular too - mebbe during a stop in Amalfi take a ten-minute bus ride up to Ravello for a panoramic coastal view from behind a cold beer.

For the budget-conscious, the local bus from Salerno to Positano along that high coast road, then walk down through Positano to its harbour & take the ferry back to Salerno. Coastal views from both perspectives, but you need to research ferry & bus times.

If you don't take a boat ride from Salerno, consider one on Capri as others like Marazul have suggested. Best to take the high-speed ferry from Naples to either Sorrento or Capri depending where the boat tour starts. Again, make sure you also get the views from on high on Capri.

Ferries leave from close to Naples cruise terminal and the ride to either Sorrento or Capri takes about an hour.

JB :)