Ask Away: Holiday tips for southern Italy with a baby?

Rome with Baby: Pope Francis blesses a reluctant baby at an audience in Vatican City. Photo / Getty Images

Eleanor Barker answers your travel questions.

Recommendations for a 15-day trip to the south of Italy? Our baby girl will be nearly 1. We want to cover Rome, Naples, the Amalfi Coast and Positano. A bit of a stretch! Can it be done?
-Nikeel

My boss has some tips for travelling internationally with babies, namely, "Don't" and "Seriously, don't. What are you? Bonkers?"

Read Winston's sage advice at http://bit.ly/ohbabytravel for more (actually quite practical) tips. For now, let's ignore his naysaying, shall we? Planning an Italian holiday is much more fun.

Looking at the map, it makes sense to go from Rome to Naples to Positano to the Amalfi Coast. You're looking at three and a half hours of travel in total (hopefully).

It is best to have a solid plan for Rome. The Roma Pass is worth it. Buy your tickets for the Vatican Museum and the Colosseum ahead of time online, and pre-book all restaurants to avoid disappointment (and a grumpy baby). Top picks: L'Asino d'Oro, Roscioli Salumeria con Cucina and Armando al Pantheon.

Cross the Tiber River to Trastevere, a medieval neighbourhood that's "the best place to eat in Rome". Go to the Borghese Gallery and gardens first thing in the morning and, again, buy tickets ahead. Capuchin Crypt is amazing and your baby is probably too young to be scared by skulls. A lot of the great art in Rome is in churches: San Luigi dei Francesi, Santa Maria del Popolo, Santa Maria della Vittoria.

The distance looks intimidating but Naples is easily reached from Rome via high-speed train. Naples' National Archaeological Museum houses many statues, frescoes and mosaics recovered from sites such as Pompeii and Herculaneum. Not to mention that once in Naples, it's only a 38-minute trip on the Circumvesuviana train line to see those sites for yourselves.

From Naples to Positano is a little trickier. Hiring a taxi is the most popular choice for travellers. There is no direct train, and it's worth spending the extra four euros for the tourist line, the Campania Express, which makes the trip from Naples to Sorrento in under an hour. Unlike the Circumvesuviana train, you get guaranteed seats, air conditioning, and luggage storage. And you can buy tickets online. From there you can get to Positano by ferry or bus.

You can get to the Amalfi Coast by ferry and perhaps do some of the many incredible hikes along the coast. You may even want to add one more stop - the breathtaking ruins at Paestum.