Sabbatical Budget for 3 Weeks in Italy

Italy holds such an important place in my travel history. It was the first trip I took as a full-fledged adult out of college. It was the first international trip I started alone (even though I later met up with a group tour). It was the first place I experienced culture shock. Not many people realize that “Italy” is barely more than 150 years old. Even today, many Italians identify more regionally (e.g. Venetian, Florentine, Sicilian) than nationally. With that kind of history, where ancient regions unite, the result is a rich tapestry of wide variation. I knew on my sabbatical, I had to return to explore the southern parts of the country. At the time of that first trip in my early 20s, I thought $800 for a 9-day tour was a rock bottom price. Check out my budget for 3 weeks in Italy on my own.

Note: These numbers are from 2016. I have made notes about known differences in travel costs for summer 2025.

 

Transportation: $143.45

Bus from Turin to Florence $9.95
Bus from Florence to Rome $9.95
24 hour metro pass in Rome $7.83
Bus from Rome to Naples $9.95
Circumvesuviana from Naples to Sorrento $3.99
Circumvesuviana round-trip Portici-Naples $3.33
3 metro tickets in Naples $3.33
Circumvesuviana round-trip Portici-Pompeii $3.99
Trenitalia from Portici to Salerno $3.44
Ferry from Salerno to Amalfi $8.87
Ferry from Amalfi to Positano $8.87
Ferry from Positano to Salerno $13.30
Trenitalia round-trip from Salerno to Sorrento via Portici $12.94
Overnight bus from Salerno to Milan $21.78
2 metro tickets in Milan $3.39
Bus from Milan to Venice $10.05
Vaporetto in Venice $8.49

Note: While $10 bus rides on Flixbus aren’t quite as frequent to find in 2025, they ARE still out there! Overnight buses are closer to $50, however. Metro and Circumvesuviana costs are comparable to what I paid in 2016. The vaporetto in Venice is only a euro or two more than it used to be. Ferries along the Amalfi Coast may be more expensive depending on the day and time.

Accommodations: $494.23

1 night in a 6-bed dorm at Bamboo Eco Hostel in Turin $26.86
1 night in a 16-bed dorm at Hostel Santa Monaca in Florence $26.90
1 night in a 4-bed dorm at Lodi Hostel in Rome $30.21
5 nights in a 5-bed dorm at Fabric Hostel in Portici $82.30
9 nights in a private room at an Airbnb in Salerno $290
1 night in a 4-bed dorm at Smartholiday in Venice $37.96

Note: Hostel dorms in summer 2025 are typically $35-45 a night, though you may get lucky with a lower price somewhere. Airbnb prices in Salerno are at least double what I paid though. For a budget stay on the Amalfi Coast in 2025, you have to look at hostel dorms. An 8-bed female dorm in Sorrento is comparable to my $30 per night budget from 2016.

Dining: $122.93

1 day’s worth groceries at Lidl in Turin $2.21
1 week’s worth groceries at supermarket in Portici $11.42
2 weeks’ worth groceries at Sigma in Salerno $36.63
1 breakfast at Florence train station $3.08
1 breakfast at Fabric Hostel in Portici $3.33
1 lunch at snack bar in Rome $8.87
1 lunch at Pizzeria Starita in Naples $12.19
1 lunch at Autogrill in Pompeii $5.21
1 lunch at Autogrill in Milan $4.98
1 snack at Autogrill in Pompeii $2.55
1 snack at granita stand in Amalfi $2.77
1 dinner at Gesto in Florence $10.63
1 dinner at Da Robertino in Rome $15.10
1 dinner at L’Angolo della Pizza in Venice $3.96

Note: I suspect grocery prices are a good bit higher in 2025, but for restaurant meals, it looks like Pizzeria Starita’s costs are comparable to my budget here.

Entertainment: $15.52

Admission to Pompeii $14.41
1 beer at Fabric Hostel in Portici $1.11

Note: In summer 2025, tickets to the ruins at Pompeii are 18 euro.

Miscellaneous: $65.01

restock toothpaste and tampons at Lidl in Turin $2.77
restock contact solution at pharmacy in Florence $5.48
laundry service at Fabric Hostel in Portici $5.54
10 postcards $9.90
wrong train ticket $8.38
Trenitalia validation fine $5.58
gifts/souvenirs in Sorrento $10.61
cancellation fee at Milan hostel $16.75

Note: You can see my contingency budget came in handy in Italy! Read more about my travel mistakes and how you can avoid them, saving even more money.

Total: $841.14

Average Spent Per Day: $44.27

That’s right. I spent roughly the same amount on 19 days of independent travel as I did on 9 days with a tour operator! I loved my group tour through Italy, but I’m definitely glad I’m traveling solo now.

How I Saved

• Staying off the beaten track
  For my two longer stays in Naples and on the Amalfi Coast, I found accommodations in less central areas. Instead of staying in the middle of gritty Naples, I stayed in one of its suburbs, Portici. The Circumvesuviana train was so inexpensive and convenient, staying outside the city barely affected my budget. Portici is actually about halfway between Naples and Pompeii, so this was a better base for my plans anyway. For the Amalfi Coast, instead of staying in one of the fashionable towns like Sorrento or Amalfi itself, I found an Airbnb in Salerno on the far eastern edge of the coast. I absolutely loved it there — it felt clean, safe, and very authentically Italian. It was a great place to take a break from lightning paced travel and relax.
• Suffering through larger dorms than usual
  Because I had already been to Florence and Rome before, I elected to only use these major cities as stopovers, breaking up my journey overland to the south. In retrospect, I wish I had booked two or three nights in each, but anyway… Because it was just a one-night stay, in Florence, I opted for a much larger hostel dorm than I usually pick. It was one of the worst hostels I’d ever stayed in (at that point at least!), but I didn’t want to blow more than 30 euro on one night.
• Relying on groceries
  Obviously cooking for yourself is a great way to save money, but in Italy this really paid off for me. Even indulging in more snacks and nicer ingredients at the supermarket in Salerno, I spent less than $2 per meal. When I did buy a meal, it was often from the Italian fast food chain Autogrill. The quality varies a bit from place to place, but sandwiches were never more than 5 euro even in pricey cities like Milan or really touristy spots like Pompeii, and it was better than American fast food in my eyes.
• Finding walks entertaining
  The only activity I really spent money on was entry to the ruins of Pompeii. Everywhere else I went from Naples to Amalfi and Positano to Sorrento, I just enjoyed the nice weather and a long walk. 
• Listening to my body
  I didn’t exactly get sick in Italy, but travel can take a serious toll on one’s menstrual cycle. Between a week or so of very fast-paced travel, getting my uterus in the right time zone, and some personal family stress, I felt very lethargic and unmotivated for part of my time in Salerno. I pushed through it to go to Sorrento and came away feeling disappointed. Instead of continuing to push through the fog to go to Capri as planned, I let myself take some time off from sightseeing. I can always go back to Capri someday. A couple days of rest was what my body and mind needed, and as an added bonus, it saved money.