From Sorrento: Capri Boat Tour with Blue Grotto Optional — review

A tour boat crossing from Sorrento towards Capri

My verdict: a solid, well-rated Sorrento crossing with a day around Capri attached, and one word in the title that does most of the work. Optional means the Blue Grotto is an extra you decide on and pay for separately, and it means the stop is not guaranteed. Book this because you want the crossing and the island. If you book it for the cave, the word optional is where the disappointment comes from.

4.7★★★★★3,300 reviewsfrom €94

DepartsSorrento

Blue GrottoOptional — extra, and not guaranteed

Blue Grotto entryNot included — €18 payable at the cave

Review base3,300 ratings — settled

What the day isThe crossing and the island, with the cave as a maybe

What optional actually means here

It means two separate things and both matter. First, the grotto is not in the price you are quoted: choosing it costs more, and then the cave itself costs the €18 on top of that. Entry is not included and never is: the €18 at the cave — €12 to the rowers, €6 to the state — is paid on the spot, in cash, on top of whatever the tour cost. Second, optional gives the day a release valve. If the sea has shut the cave, or the rowboat line has run to ninety minutes and the boat has a schedule, the optional part is the part that does not happen. That is not sharp practice. It is the only honest way to sell a stop nobody controls.

So the question to ask yourself before booking is what is left if the cave is subtracted. On this tour the answer is a crossing of the bay and a day at Capri, which is a real day out and the thing 3,300 people have been rating. Both Sorrento departures, compared.

4.7 from 3,300, and what sits above it

This is a settled score on a substantial sample, and the only reason I would hesitate before booking it is that another crossing out of the same town runs at 4.8 across 5,297 ratings for €119. That is a better score on a bigger sample for €25 more per person, and it runs about four hours. For two people the difference is €50 for the day; for a family of five it is €125, which is a different decision. The €119 tour, reviewed.

One check before you upgradeCheck whether the grotto is open before you pay for the optional extra on the day. The decision is made at the cave mouth at 9am and a daily open/closed banner is published by the Motoscafisti operator. Where to find it.

What works

4.7 across 3,300 ratings, which is a settled score on a real sample
A proper day: the crossing from Sorrento plus time around the island
€25 per person cheaper than the highest-rated Sorrento boat
The day survives intact if the cave is shut, because the cave was never the point
Optional means you are not paying for a stop you may not get

Worth knowing

The Blue Grotto is an optional extra, so it is neither included nor guaranteed
Entry is never included: €18 more at the cave, in cash
A 4.8 at 5,297 ratings sits just above it for €25 more per person
Nothing here shortens the 60–90 minute summer rowboat queue
A long crossing at both ends of the day, for under five minutes inside the cave

From€94 per person

Rating4.7 / 5

Reviews3,300

DepartsSorrento

Blue GrottoOptional extra

At the cave€18, cash

Insider tip

If the grotto is genuinely the reason you are crossing from Sorrento, check the live status the morning you sail and decide about the optional extra after that, rather than building the whole day around a stop that is decided at 9am by three skippers looking at the swell.

Which boat, and from where?Every option below still leaves the €18 at the cave to pay on the spot. What changes is where you sail from and how long the day is.

Compare all seven

Who it suits

People based in Sorrento who want a day on Capri at a fair price and who will treat the cave as a bonus. It suits you less well if you want the best-rated crossing available, which costs a little more, or if the grotto is non-negotiable, in which case you are better off on the island with an early start and a bus timetable. The route that needs no tour at all.

Other tours to consider

Best rated

Check dates on the €94 Sorrento boat

Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start, on all seven tours listed here. That covers a change of plan, not the grotto closing on the day.

Frequently asked questions

What does ‘Blue Grotto optional’ mean on this tour?

It means the grotto is not in the €94 you are quoted: you choose it and pay extra on the day, and even then the stop is not guaranteed, because the cave closes on rough seas and the rowboat queue can outrun the boat’s schedule. How the grotto stop works on a tour.

Is entry to the Blue Grotto included?

No, on this tour or any other. The €6 state ticket and the €12 rowboat fare are paid at the cave, in cash, on the day, on top of the tour price and on top of the optional extra. The full breakdown of what goes where.

Should I pay €25 more for the higher-rated Sorrento tour?

It depends on the party size. The €119 tour holds 4.8 across 5,297 ratings and runs about four hours, so for two people it is €50 more for a better-rated day. For five it is €125, which is a real sum. Both Sorrento boats, side by side.