Circumvesuviana Tickets

We will need tickets on this train and my research says that for example Rome to Naples to Herculaneum (and back, which is what we are using it for) you will arrive at Naples Centrale, go downstairs to the Garibaldi station which is used exclusively by Circumvesuviana. Either buy the ticket at their ticket windows or I've been told you can use the ticket gates that allow you to touch in with a contactless bank card. It would help with better specifics if you told us your to and from destinations.

They have a staffed ticket booth and they speak English. Some newsstands and tobbacanists also sell them. Don't toss the ticket once you are on the train, sometimes they check at the destination gate. On our trip we bought the 3-day Artecard which includes the Circumvesuviana trains and admission to two sites. If you're only there for 3 days it may work for you. See https://www.campaniartecard.it/pass/?lang=en for details. We didn't buy it online, we bought it at the TI at Naples Centrale station after arriving on the train from Rome.

Very important: if you purchase a paper ticket from a booth, be sure to validate it at one of the time-stamp machines just before you board the train! As John advised, keep it until you exit the station.

Can I purchase tickets for multiple trips?

We were based in Sorrento a couple of weeks ago and would usually buy round trip tickets. What you'll get is 2 tickets, one for each direction. We found this easier than buying as we needed as there can be lines to buy tickets at Pompeii Scavi to get back to your destination at the end of day.

When you buy your ticket at the window, be sure you know the cost and check your change...bit of a reputation there for skimming or short-changing. I would only hand over the bare minimum needed, once you protest, their ability to speak English evaporates.

There have been reports of difficulties buying an ArteCard at the train station--hard to find the location, time-consuming line. I tried, and failed, to buy the card at two different alleged locations of tourist offices, and the specific card I wanted wasn't for sale at the covered museums. In the end, I downloaded the ArteCard app and bought my card there. My smart code automatically showed up in the app. It was not possible to do a screen capture, so it was necessary to open the app at each covered site.

I had a problem for several hours one day when the app couldn't connect to the ArteCard website, so it was a very, very good thing that I had written down my card number at the time of purchase. With that number I had no problem getting into museums. I did not buy an ArteCard that included transportation benefits, so I don't know how well just having my card number would have worked on the Metro in Naples or the Circumvesuviana. Both the Metro and the Circumvesuviana are very cheap, so there's not a huge amount of value in those components of the various ArteCards. Of course, if one buys a card with a transporation benefit, it is disappointing if one cannot take advantage of the free rides.

EXCEPT at the Naples central station, you can expect to buy the single-journey tickets (also for the SITA busses, say to Positano) at the nearest newsstand to the train station. Those guys tend not to speak English, but they sell hundreds of tickets to American tourists every day. You will do just fine. Speak carefully if you have a special need, like stopping for Vesuvius or a broken journey. There's a tiny chance you might save a Euro if you're only going part of the way somewhere.

Even for bare-bones commuter travel, these tickets are inexpensive. Unless you get caught not having your ticket validated in the machine before you board.

Stations like Herculaneum are completely unstaffed and silent. So it's nice to buy two tickets when you (for example) start your daytrip. I'd point out that New Jersey Transit tickets in NYC are just like this too: Undated, One-Way, Identical in Either Direction. This is not like buying a sleeping car on the Orient Express!

The difference is that on NJ Transit, you might get a seat, and the train is air conditioned.

If you buy transit tickets at a newstand, expect to pay in cash rather than with a credit card.

Thank you all . . . exactly what I was hoping for.

Has anyone bought the ArteCard online and used/validated on site? How did that work? I'm thinking the 3-day Compania would be perfect for our needs. So I'd get something by email that I would validate at turnstiles? or?

I have no experience with an ArteCard bought before leaving home; I don't know whether you get a document to print out that shows your smartcode or are directed to use the app while you're traveling. Perhaps that's made clear before you reach the point of no return during the purchase process.

I think there's a good chance you'll need to go to the ticket counter at your first museum to get the validity of the card started. Italy tends to be a bit more hands-on with things like that.

I'm totally clueless about how the transportation part works if the first think you do with the card is hop on the Metro in Naples or the Circumvesuviana. I know I'm not the only one who has used the card, so I'm pretty sure someone with more useful experience will be able to respond soon.

It might help if you go back and edit your initial post to add "and ArteCard Usage" to the Subject.

Thank you. You've been great.