Day trip to Pompeii before Rick’s “Best of Rome” tour

A fellow passenger on my Pompeii, Herculaneum tour did exactly that. She did a day trip from Rome and it actually worked quite smoothly due to the high speed trains between Rome and Naples.

She took a 7:45 am train from Rome to Naples, arriving around 9 am. The meeting point for the tour was directly across the street from Naples Central Train Station in front of Starhotels terminus so she merely crossed the street and was there in plenty of time for the 9:20 meet up. Many tour groups leave from this location.

Our tour was called ,”From Naples: Pompeii and Herculaneum with Archaeologist Guide” and it was operated by Askos Tours. I signed up for it through Get your Guide. It was a full day and an excellent experience. At the end, we were dropped off at the entrance of the Naples Central Train Station. They list the tour as 7 hours long. I believe she took a train back to Rome between 5:30 and 6 pm. It is roughly just a bit more than an hour trip.

All of us realized we could have spent more time at either location because they were so interesting. However, if you have just one day, it was well done and I learned a great deal from the guide.

If Pompeii is on your “I really want to go there” list, I would say to go for it!

Hi, Giangilberto from Milan, there are a couple of potential issues here.
The first and most crucial depends on the time of year the Rick Steves tour takes place, this makes a significant difference.
The Pompeii archaeological site has different operating hours for the winter and summer seasons, so you need to verify this before making any plans, the schedules are available on the official website.

https://pompeiisites.org/en/visiting-info/timetables-and-tickets/

As of now, the official website lists two periods: the winter season (October 15 to March 15) with reduced hours first entry at 9:00 AM and last entry at 3:30 PM and the other season running from March 16 to October 14.
These dates apply to the current year (2026) and likely won't change for 2027, but I would still recommend checking the official site before finalizing your plans.
Another point to consider is this, if you are arriving from Rome with an organized tour on the first Sunday of the month, admission is free (entry is via turnstiles without a named ticket), but it is also the busiest day, with a cap of 20,000 visitors.
Last but not least, visiting both Pompeii and Ercolano in a single day from Rome means seeing two sites within a few hours, following a two hour train ride. If Pompeii is a must-see that you wouldn't want to miss for the world, it is worth asking yourself if it might be better to visit only Pompeii and spend all your time there, rather than trying to include Ercolano as well.

If Pompeii is a must-see that you wouldn't want to miss for the world,
it is worth asking yourself if it might be better to visit only
Pompeii and spend all your time there, rather than trying to include
Ercolano as well.

Some very good points about timing, especially the free Sundays to be avoided! To put this in perspective, we spent about 16 hours over 3 days in Pompeii, staying nearby in the town of Pompeii, and we're not even archeologists! HA. I'm not sure what 'Is this a good use of my time' means - The choice of a day trip is brief, you will be back at your hotel late at night, so I would give myself another day to relax and enjoy Rome before going on a Best of Italy tour.