Day trip from Rome to Pompei - rent a car or drive

For sure it will not be relaxing.
Termini area to start is a nightmare of traffic and chaos.
Maybe your husband would cope but i doubt the passengers.
I have taken the train from Rome and it is enjoyable and relaxing. Pompeii is a full
Day in itself. I cannot imagine driving rd trip.

I'm sure you'll receive lots of the same advice but I would advise you not to drive in Rome.

I have no compunction in driving throughout Europe and the US but there's one place I will not drive and that's Rome. It's maniacal there, too many drivers making up their own rules, too many ZTL zones, too many tourists not looking where they're going and so on and so on.

Take the train straight to Pompeii. Don't waste time trying to find "quaint" towns along the way, Pompeii demands as much time as you can devote to it and is far more spectacular than any nondescript town you might encounter.

I'm also unsure why you would seek to find somewhere to have dinner outside of Rome. Your options are far greater and better in Rome than outside.

Personally I would take the train as I see little advantage to driving. I would never drop a car after hours simply because it opens the door to potential problems. Leaving Termini is not a big problem since it is a straight line to the outer ring road and from there fairly direct to Pompeii. Traffic will thick leaving Rome in the morning. Unless you know specific "quaint" towns you want to see, there is little to see from an expressway type of road. You cannot go directly via train to Pompeii since it requires a change in Naples. Depending on your time, you might concerning hitting the National Museum in Naples that houses all of the recovered items from Pompeii. It is certainly worth a few hours.

We have always traveled by car for the flexibility your husband is looking for. The problem is Rome with its legendary traffic problems. Looking at Google maps and knowing their optimistic timing, you are looking at spending at least six hours in transit and some of them will be very stressful. My approach cities like Rome or Paris is to stay outside and take public transportation into town. I would try to find a way to pick up and drop off outside of town and take a commuter train in and out of the heart of Rome.

Two random additional thoughts: 1) If you do decide to drive you must have and International Driving Permit. 2) When you get to Ponpeii look DOWN ... you will be walking on paving stones that are a couple thousand years old and the are heavily worn to the point that they have joints that can easily swallow a foot and break an ankle. I watched it happen.

The drive is at least 3 hours, assuming no traffic snarls and assuming the driver knows his way out of Rome. Add about 1/2 hour for the car paper work. I will add also 1/2 hour for a bathroom/fuel pit stop. So it’s a 4 hour adventure, each way.

From the same departing point (Termini), it’s 70 min to Naples. Very relaxing travel. Add 10 min for platform waiting before the train depart. Once in Naples, add one hr for the Circumvesuviana train, including some possible wait time at Naples. The CV stops in front of the archeological site.
So it’s 2h20 min each way by train. No stress driving or worrying about finding your way.

The choice is yours.

Read Roberto's post over a 2nd and 3rd time. The recommendation should be clear. He knows what he's talking about.

Much more relaxing day for everyone on the train!

Sorry, OP, but add me to the votes for the train. Looking at your husbands plan, it's obvious he hasn't been to Rome (or Italy?) before. Driving in Rome? Nerve wracking to say the least. Stopping in "quaint towns"on the way? You'll be on an autostrada (like a US interstate, with tolls). What does quaint look like when youre going past it at 130 kph? Only 3 hours on site? It takes pretty much all day to see Pompeii. If you only want to spend 3 hours, go to Herculaneum, which is more compact. Stop to eat on the way back? When Rome is overflowing with great restaurants? And dropping off a car after hours? In Italy? Not even if the manager was my brother in law. That's just begging for trouble.

If you decide on the train and your plans are firm, consider buying tickets to/from Napoli Centrale (Naples) ahead of time with a supereconomy or Economy fare.
If you don’t know for sure, then buy at full BASE fare when you go.
Super/Economy fares don’t permit refunds or later changes.
Timetables and prices here:
www.trenitalia.com
www.italotreno.it
(Two train companies to choose from)

The "flexibility" will not have much value because there's no time to see anything but Pompeii on a day trip from Rome. The mini-sightseeing idea definitely doesn't fit into a day trip, unless you want to miss Pompeii altogether or get there too late to make it worthwhile. If you do want to see the sights around Pompeii, then I would recommend basing yourself there overnight (even for a few nights) and not doing this as a day trip.

We occasionally travel with a family member who wants to be "in control" at all times and insists on renting cars. We, on the other hand, prefer the ease of public transportation coupled with the occasional taxi or private tour. I finally convinced said family member that I knew what I was talking about on one of our joint trips when he really wanted to ditch the (mistake) car.

This situation is one of those mistakes waiting to happen. It will be exhausting to drive and you have no time to stop in quaint towns along the way. I have seen drives to Naples take 3 hours (we lived in Rome) or more when there was an accident.

Just avoid it and take the train. You might even want to take a nice Trenitalia train to Pompei town (from Naples) instead of the train to the Scavi. From Pompei town you can take a taxi to the ruins. Very nice for everyone and less worry than with the Circumvesuviana.

Vote for train travel. I do not suggest a day trip from Rome for Pompeii. Half of the daylight time will be spent on travel time, it may lead to extreme fatigue. Options to consider: 1) Night stay in Napoli (go light-clean undies and toothbrush/paste) 2) Private tour for Pompeii with pick-up at Napoli train station 3) National Museum in Napoli is really, really worth it.

IMHO, the one day car rental is not a cogent strategy. However, many years ago we went on a day trip from Roma to Pompeii using a no-frills tour company called enjoyrome.com and it was worth every dime. Generally, we plan and independently travel to where we've planned. Since Pompeii was going to be a long travel day we decided to purchase tickets on Enjoyrome. We left Roma about 7am and returned around 6 or 7pm. Back then they only provided transportation, but now they may offer guided tours to Pompeii, as well.

Buon viaggio,

The March date would be what would concern me. Daylight hours are shorter so meandering, exploring on the way back might not be a good idea and the train service is so great.

Train

And by reference, what everybody above has said.

Another vote for Enjoy Rome as transportation to Pompeii-you don't have to deal with the pickpockets on the Circumvesuviana.

I'm surprised that nobody mentioned the traffic around Naples. I've experienced that fun (but I had all day) on my way south, and on the way back north.

Unlike most I don't mind Southern Italian traffic as I get into the mindset and can change to driving by my male anatomy rather than my brain, but only if I have sufficient time. A week out of season is what I'm talking about. And always stay on the Bay of Naples or the Amalfi Coast.

But for a day trip?!!

36 minutes 4th stop from Napoli Garibaldi under the main Naples station on the Circumvesuviana, every half hour. Easy one stop direct train from Roma Termini. To the door.

Why, oh why, would you put yourself through all the torture of the drive and expose yourself to the many other costs - some very high - of driving?

And this is from somebody who drives to Italy every year from England (except a couple when sickness intervened).

Might as well add to the pile here; take the trains!

Pickpockets on the Circumvesuviana? Sure, but there are pickpockets around every tourist magnet and on darn near every form of public transport and/or at their stations. Take the safety precautions with your valuables that you should anywhere AT ALL on your trip and you'll be fine.

Oh lord - our very first trip to Europe was to Rome, and we took a shuttle van from the airport to our B&B. Somehow my husband ended up in the passengers seat up front - he thought the traffic was kind of funny at first, but he got more and more worried because the driving was unlike anything we've experienced in North America...like the others, I wouldn't recommend driving in or around Rome.

I wouldn’t drive. Take the high speed train to Naples and then the local train to Pompei. The local train drops you it the front door.

I have driven in Rome, in Naples, and in Pisa. I have also driven in London, in Paris (in a motor home, no less), and have braved the Autoroutes of France and the Autostradas of Italy.

I can say without fear of contradiction that all of these experiences were nerve shattering and horrifically scary. Further, NONE of these driving experiences has been remotely "more relaxing" than committing my body and luggage to trains, any train, each train, every train.

Gang up on him and outvote him.

Take a look at this link, https://adventureswithsarah.net/travel-tutorial-day-trip-rome-to-pompeii/. It was written by Sarah Murdoch, one of Rick's guides who has her own website. It definitely is the way to go. The train is the only way to go.

Ed

Rent a car or drive? Well, if you rent a car you have to drive unless you also hire a driver. If you meant car or train then without absolutely any doubt - train! Others already explained why. Driving around Rome and especially Naples would very likely not be without an accident. We took a taxi in Naples and ended up in an accident. Not our driver's fault.

It would be nice to know if the OP is still here.

In addition to previous advice, with which I emphatically agree, I would add that your restaurants are likely to be 20 minutes or more "off" the highway you are using to return to Rome. So dinner is even more than the two to three-hour project it usually is in Italy. The note about March sunset is important. The fact that it is physically possible to visit Pompeii from Rome does not mean that it is a good idea. I think you would have more time at the ancient site if you used trains. The Frecciarossa is very fast to Naples, and the Circumvesuviana is right in the same station complex. The Circumvesuviana station for Pompeii is less than 50 yards from the ticket office. (Can't know if you are metric because you did not post your home country in your new-poster profile.)

Thank you everyone, for all your insightful remarks.
We have decided to use the trains vs renting a car. Hope to get to Pompeii as early as possible to take advantage of all the daylight hours and have dinner in the vicinity before heading back to Rome.
Again, so thankful for all your advice.
:-)

Everyone is applauding your decision.

" I love it when a plan comes together"

I'd throw out one more idea. I've been in love with the idea of seeing Pompeii since junior high. About five years ago, we finally went to Italy for two weeks...AND, it just didn't make sense to do so much traveling to get there, as we weren't otherwise traveling to the south (and none of the three other people felt my commitment to seeing Pompeii). However, I'd read about Ostia Antica (about 30-45 minutes on train from Rome, then a brief walk/taxi from station). It's a leftover ancient city that, rather than being buried by ash, was silted in by the changing river. It's a real town, and you can pretty much wander at will around it (except on the mosaic floors). There's also an on-site museum of the better pieces found there. Now, do I still want to see Pompeii? Yes! But, as the saying goes, assume you're going to come back. I'd say it was a much more relaxing day for us, and it was much more extensive ruins then I'd thought, and on our visit in October, we almost had the place to ourselves). I ended up being quite satisfied, as did the others in our group. (No excitement of casts of dead bodies, though, and not nearly the place in history as Pompeii.) We just decided it could wait until we did a southern Italy trip. (And we LOVED Italy, so we'll go back.)

I have not taken the train from Rome to Pompeii though we initially intended to do so. We were staying in a villa in northern Lazio and had a rental car to visit hill towns in Umbria and Tuscany. For the Pompeii trip we hired a driver. There were 7 of us (extended family) and he had a vehicle that held all of us. We were able to relax and enjoy the entire trip. The drive along the coast was beyond incredible but would have been horribly stressful on our own...not to mention manuevering around Naples! We did an overnight in Positano and then on to Pompeii. He handled everything. It was the best decision we made while in italy and worth every penny. I did lots of driving on the autostrada and the roads going to hill towns with no problem but I would never, never make that drive to Pompeii on my own. You've made the right decision.

I've driven tens of thousands of miles in Europe, several thousands of that in Italy, without problems of any kind. Having said that, Rome might be the exception to the rule. I hired a driver to get me from FCO to the Termini to catch train to Florence, & the drive was closer to a fast lap at LeMans. The density of the traffic & the somewhat casual attitude to road rules kept me rigid in my seat for the entire 40 min. trip. Once outside of Rome, the trip should be an easy hour or so & probably very interesting, but the first & last 45 min. of your day trip (getting out of & back into Rome) might well be more "interesting" than you'd like.

Not sure anyone mentioned this but Walks of Italy with their all day excursion from Rome to Pompeii, then on down the beautiful Amalfi coast to Positano is another great option. Very small group in a comfy van leaves from Rome around 7:30 am and returns around 8pm. It's a long day but saves the awful hassle of a car plus time for changing trains in Napoli and their guides are really marvelous. Potty and snack break along the way, the day flies by and the return trip at night is very restful. Didn't feel worn out at all. Check it out and reserve early.

The train. The train. The train. You made an excellent decision.

We took the train from Rome to Naples.
Fun watching the speedo while enjoying a drink in the bar car. 300 km/hr seemed to be the max.

I suggest taking a full day bus excursion out of Rome from the main train station. I did that with two teenagers a few years ago and think that's the least stressful. It's a long drive and traffic is horrendous. You'd never want to be in a car anywhere near Naples. The excursion came with lunch and a very knowledgable guide. I'd been to Pompeii before with another academic type guide and the experience was comparable.