Renting a Vespa on the Amalfi Coast, or booking a guide
A day's scooter rental costs a fraction of a guided Vespa tour. In return you take on the parking, the closed town centers and a map read between hairpins. This page compares two rentals with the guided convoy that sits between them.
What renting saves
A guided Vespa tour here starts at ~$364 per person for a full day. A rental starts at ~$63 per scooter, and two people can share one, so the gap per head is wide.
The saving buys freedom, not ease. You pick the stops and the pace, but nobody tells you where to park or where it is safe to pull over for a photo.
Two rentals we found
Testa Rent in Sorrento
Testa Rent, at Corso Italia 204 in Sorrento, rents scooters by the day from ~$63 per scooter. It rates 4.9 from 84 reviews on Viator.
The price includes insurance and a phone holder for GPS. Damage to the scooter is not covered and parking is not included, while fuel and any fines are yours to pay.
Sorrento lies west of the coast road proper, so you ride a fair way before reaching Positano. Plan the return early, since the road back is the same one you took out.
An Amalfi rental with an itinerary
An Amalfi rental office with an itinerary asks ~$134 for a group of up to two and rates 4.9 from 33 reviews on GetYourGuide. Its base sits in the middle of the coast, so Positano and Ravello are both within reach.
The price covers free parking at the base in Amalfi, two helmets and basic insurance. Unlimited mileage and road assistance come with it, along with a digital map of itineraries from a local.
The office opens from 9:00 am to 7:00 pm. Plan to be back before closing, and ask what happens if traffic holds you up on the way.
What the rental price leaves out
- Damage to the scooter at Testa Rent, which its insurance does not cover
- Fuel and any fines at Testa Rent
- Parking in the towns, apart from the Amalfi base
- Entry tickets, such as about €10 for the Emerald Grotto
- A guide who knows the stops and the safe places to pull in
Read the insurance line twice. Basic cover is not the same as full cover, so ask what you would pay after a scrape against a wall before you sign.
Parking and closed town centers
Positano and Amalfi are built into cliffs, and space beside the road is scarce in summer. A scooter left in the wrong spot can collect a fine within minutes.
Many Italian towns have ZTL zones, limited-traffic areas where vehicles without a permit are fined, often by camera. The Amalfi rental warns that the historic centers are closed to scooters, so park outside and walk in.
Fines from a rental can follow you home through the company long after the trip. On a guided tour, the guide knows where to leave the scooters, and Amalfi Moto Rent includes parking in the price.
A map on the hairpins
The Amalfi Drive winds through tight bends where buses swing wide. Places to pull over are few, and a glance at a phone mount takes your eyes off the road at the worst moment.
Set the route before you start and stop somewhere safe to check it. Our guide to safety on the coast road covers the traffic, and where the route stops lists the places a guide would choose, in road order.
Licences matter as much here as on a tour. The rental expects a licence that covers the scooter you take, and drivers who hold a licence issued outside the EU often need an International Driving Permit. Ask the rental which licences it accepts.
The middle way, a guided convoy
Amalfi Moto Rent's tour at ~$364 keeps the part people enjoy about renting. You drive your own brand-new automatic Vespa, but a guide rides in front and picks the stops.
Parking and fuel are in the price, and the GetYourGuide listing adds full insurance cover. A walking tour in Ravello and Positano comes with it, and the tour rates 5.0 from 100+ reviews on Viator and 5.0 from 30 on GetYourGuide.
Your own Vespa, with a guide ahead
Amalfi Moto Rent's convoy from Amalfi, with parking and fuel included and the Emerald Grotto on the way. Lunch is extra.
The drawback matches a rental. You do the riding on a busy road, so the skill has to be yours. If you would rather not ride at all, our guide to driving or riding pillion compares the tours with a driver.
Which one to pick
Rent if you ride scooters often, hold a licence that covers it and like planning your own day. The Amalfi office, with its base parking and map, is the easier of the two rentals.
Testa Rent suits riders already staying in Sorrento who want an early start before the coaches. The Amalfi office suits a couple based in the middle of the coast, who can reach Positano one way and Ravello the other without riding the whole road twice.
Book a guided tour if this is your first time on the coast road, or if parking and fines worry you. Our price comparison sets every tour side by side, and where the tours start helps if you are staying away from Amalfi.