Sorrento is the most popular tourist destination of the Sorrentine Peninsula; its name probably derives from "Syrenusion" or "Syreon" (Sirens), the legendary aquatic creatures half-human and half-fish that used to bewitch sailors with their voice. During the Roman period it became a holiday resort for noble men and patricians; in the XVIII century it was included among the stops of the Grand Tour.
The famous Italian poet Torquato Tasso, author of "Gerusalemme Liberata", was born here.
The Cathedral, in Romanesque style, dates back to the XV century; the wooden inlaid choir is a work by craftsmen from Sorrento dating back to the beginning of the twentieth century.
The Museum Correale, this valuable bulwark of Sorrento art and culture, has often been defined "the most beautiful province museum of Italy". The Museum keeps one of the most beautiful collections of Neapolitan painters dating from the seventeenth and eighteenth century, some works of the famous "School of Posillipo" and by some masters of the Flemish and French schools dating from the same period. It contains valuable Capodimonte and Sévres ceramics, Murano glassware, Bohemia crystals and a collection of watches. The archaeological collection is very interesting as well.
To the north-west on the Capo di Sorrento there is a villa, the so-called "Bagni della Regina Giovanna", with baths, and in the bay to the south-west was the villa of Pollius Felix.