Daytrips to Pompeii

Viator.com has packages for day trips from Rome to Pompeii. I researched this last year as I wanted to tack on Vesuvius/Pompeii at the end of my Rick Steves Tour. There are a lot of Rome to Pompeii day trips out there. However, if you also want to go to Mt Vesuvius, as well as Pompeii, there are no guided tours I found leaving from Rome. I had to take the train to Naples at which point I joined a tour for a day trip to both Pompeii and Vesuvius, then caught an early evening train back to Rome. Do a web search for day trips/Rome/Pompeii and you'll find numerous choices for guided days trips, most of which provide transportation via tour buses.

The daytrips are quite expensive, usually over 100 euro per person. Enjoy Rome, www.enjoyrome.com, offers shuttle service from Rome to Pompeii for a reasonable price. Guide is not included but there are always guides offering their service at the entrance to the ruins and you can easily find other people to share the cost on the shuttle. The trip doesn't run every day so check the website for details.

You don't even really need a guide. Just take a RS book with you and follow the Pompeii walking tour described there.

Also, you could visit Ostic Antica instead. It's much much closer to Rome. Pompeii has been drilled into our American heads through so many years of Junior High education that it's hard for us to think that there might actually be a different sight (Ostia Antica) with equally preserved ruins.

Actually, the person who wrote the blurbs about Pompeii in our American textbooks probably never heard of Ostia Antica hence "we" never got to read about it!

An interesting story: I went with a group of family and friends, a total of 15 to Pompeii. We took the train which was very very easy to take. From the rail station (one method), we took cabs to the Ruins. You can also take the local train that will leave you off a block or two from the Ruins. While I was waiting outside of the enterance for my group, a tour bus arrived from Rome. As the tour group departed, their guide told them that they had 3 hours before their bus departed which included their time to eat lunch! In the meantime, my group arrived at 1115 hours, ate lunch for over an hour, walked the ruins for 4 hours, and returned to Rome on the 1830 train. My point is: Why go on a structured tour? Why be told when, with whom, what to see, and at what time to sightsee? What are your parents concern? You can rent an audio guide at the Ruins or hire a guide that is outside of the ticket booth. Go on your own.

Yes, it's quite simple and obviously an easy money-maker to Tour Companies who lure these people into paying lots more than they should. However, Lindsay promised her parents...although I guess Lindsay's parents would never know if Lindsay just jumped on the fast EuroStar train to Naples, changed to the Circumvesuviana and got off right at the Pompeii Scavi entrance :-)

I took a tour to Pompeii from Rome in late 2006. I think it was about $70-75. Anyway, I was picked up from the hotel, taken to the tour company and then went to Naples. We took a short tour of Naples, then went directly to Pompeii. Personally, I'm glad we took the tour. The guides were great and really made Pompeii come alive.At the end of the tour, we had time to explore on our own prior to meeting the rest of the group at the bus. The biggest surprise was the lunch. I expected either a bag lunch or some sad plate of pasta.But we had a salad, pasta, meat and finished with fresh clementines. Really a good meal. So for me, the tour was worth the cost AND would allow you to keep your promise. Unfortunately, I can't remember the name of the company. We just picked up a brochure at our hotel.