From everything I've looked at, it seems doable. We'll be coming from Sorrento in the morning on a day trip, want to start by taking the Circumvesuviana to Naples, visit the Archeological Museum, then maybe grab lunch, then move on to Ercolano.
Has anybody made this run before? Shall we take the bus or train from Naples to Ercolano? Both are cheap and quick but not sure about logistics. People have talked up Ercolano as an underrated gem--what makes it great?
Thanks in advance!
People have talked up Ercolano as an underrated gem--what makes it
great?
Jay, Herculaneum/Ercolano is better preserved as it wasn't hit by the falling rock/ash debris from the eruption that crushed a lot of structures at Pompeii. It suffered an intense pyroclastic event that instantly carbonized a lot of organic material where it stood, and then was buried under a very hard layer of insulating volcanic material. Its smaller size (much less of it has been excavated as it's underneath the town) also makes it more easily digested in a few hours. Pompeii is huge!
Crowds have been lighter there but as it has been seeing a lot of press for its excellent presentation, I'm sure visitation is increasing.
Sounds great, thanks Kathy. We'll be there next year in early March, hopefully on a weekday with nice weather, so I can't imagine it will be overrun. And yes, Pompeii was huge when we visited it last year in March. Got through maybe 70% in 4 hours and without a guide I know we missed a lot because almost nothing is marked. I'll have to check the Ercolano site to determine whether we need a guide or not.
You are proposing THREE stops, not two, which is unwise. Ercolano is a 15 minute downhill walk from the Circumvesuviana station, and the Naples museum requires local mass transit or a cab. What time of year - that makes a difference. I would only try 2 of these in one day. Discard the museum first, unless you are also interested in the Farnese Marbles. Are you going to stop for lunch? No doubt you're thinking of Neapolitan pizza, which is only fast after you get seated from a 45 minute line.
Got through maybe 70% in 4 hours and without a guide I know we missed
a lot because almost nothing is marked.
Jay, I don't think that you would have missed less even with a guide. It's just so immense! We self-toured as well, with a book, and managed 5 hours without covering it all. And that was my second time! Really, to get into all the nooks and crannies and to absorb the many, many details would take a LOT of visits, I'm thinking. So don't feel bad. :O)
Yes, Tim--that's why I'm asking about logistics.
In the morning we'd take the Circumvesuviana from Sorrento station to Napoli Centrale. Then probably a taxi (bus?) to the Archeological Museum, even though it looks less than a mile away. After that, lunch in the vicinity, hopefully walking distance. BTW, we're traveling in early March next year--I can't imagine the top 10-15 Naples pizzerias are all going to have 45 minute waits that time of year. I'll do some research and we'll see.
Then back to Napoli Centrale for the CV train to Ercolano. Looks like the bus only goes as far as San Giorgio a Cremano, so that's out. We can handle a 15-minute downhill walk to the Ercolano ruins, but...the other way would have to be uphill, for our last leg on the CV back to Sorrento--might be rough after a long day! I'll have to check to see if there are any taxis available for that short ride back to the Ercolano station. I like to know what the options are.
BTW, Tim--a few days before, we'll be touring the Palazzo Farnese in Rome, which currently houses the French Embassy. Will I see any of the Farnese Marbles there?
Visited Ercolano last September. 3rd trip. There are many more excavations to see compared to trips in 2005 w/guide & 2011 w/audio. This year we tried to use the audio again and alot of the numbers were not matching. I'd use a guide for this reason.
To reach the archeological museum, walk out of Napoli Centrale, cross the street to Gallerie Garabaldi, escalator down to metro, Line 2 to Museo. Allow 2-3 hours for the museum.
For lunch, cross street, turn left about one block turn right, street name changes to Via del Santa Maria Constinopoli.
Ristorante Bellini is on the left at # 79 or 80. Found this place in 2010 and eat here every time. Beats all of the well known ones on via Tribunale. Don't eat outside, rather in their upstairs dining room. Pizza is to die for! Seafood is wonderful.
You might want to get the Campania Arte Card tutte la regione 3 day 32 E.
Museum... 12E.
Ercolano... 11E.
Metro ... 1.5E each way
Circumvesuvian
Sorrento-Naples... 4.50E
Naples-Ercolano... 2.50E
Ercolano-Sorrento. 2E.
You would then have 2 days left on the card for the Sita bus on the AC.
Have a great trip.
Gerri, great information!
Did not know that the Campania Arte Card covered the Naples Metro, Circumvesuviana and the SITA buses around the Amalfi Coast as well as the museums. Did you know that the 7-day is 34 Euro, only 2 E more?! We'll be in the Sorrento area for 5 days so we'll get that for sure as we'll be knocking around the A.C at least one of the days. Guess we can buy the card at Napoli Centrale upon our arrival from Rome.
You can do it, it will be a long day. We were leaving from Naples, so on our last full day we traveled 2 hours from Positano to our Naples hotel. Walked around Napkes for an hour, then got a taxi to take us to Ercolano. We got the audio tour and felt we saw most of it in 3 hours. I've not been to Pompeii, so can't compare, but I felt I could really see what life was like there. It's sort of eerie, really. Then, we taxied to the museum and just stayed 2 hours. We were back to our hotel by 5:00... had the rest of the evening.
You'll have plenty of time if you start early, time to even explore Naples a bit, not just lunch.
Jay,
The 7 day does NOT include transportation
Sorry Jay, I misunderstood. Now I see that you never proposed to go to Pompeii.
I often point out here that some people prefer Ercolano because they imagine that it was so much easier to "see it all." But in fact, most of the city is forever buried under the modern city of Herculaneum. Likewise, our host here, Rick Steves has pointed out that Pompeii must have had a Synagogue. But it has not, so far, been found. Plenty of Pompeii is still out of sight.
Anyway, two places are easy to do in a day. Ercolano, unlike Pompeii, has only snack vending machines inside the site. And you cannot exit and reenter. Eat as early as you can to preserve as much time as possible for the excavation. Some villas always turn out to be closed for repair or for a shortage of guards. Winter hours are shorter due to dusk time.
AFAIK, all the Farnese Marbles are in Naples. Actually the sculptures in the Borghese Gallery are better, but the Farnese Marbles are pretty famous.
The line to buy Arte cards in the Naples station was impossible in May so we gave up and did without. Maybe you won't end up behind people from three different countries, who had a host of questions for the schmo behind the counter.
Jay, take the metro from the train station to the
Museo stop, very quick and easy.
As Kathy said, Ercolano and Pompei suffered two different types of destruction. Ercolano has some beautiful mosaics, whose motifs you will see repeated in later centuries in Christian churches and other religious artwork.
i believe Ercolano is the modern city and Herculaneum is the ancient one.
How about ERcolano first? I haven't checked, but the sight probably closes around sunset, while the museum is probably open till around 7. That gives you all the time you want at the site, and you could always go for pizza after the museum if you don't have time to do it for lunch. BTW from what I'm reading about Napoli, all the good pizzerias have long lines.
Yes, it's downhill from the train station (Ercolano Scavi) to the site but it isn't steep so it's not a hard climb back, though it'll probably take about 5 minutes longer than downhill. I think 15 minutes is a leisurely walk down, per Wiki it's 800 meters. Consider stopping at MAV (Museo Archeologico Virtuale), it's on the main street between the station and the site. I skipped it but I met others who really enjoyed it. I used the audio guide and found that sufficient. I think the difference is that Pompeii has great individual "bits," but Ercolano gives you more of a sense of a city as a whole.
There are precise directions in the RS guide for taking the metro from the Circumvesuviana at Napoli Centrale to the museum. If you don't have the book, email me and I'll send them to you.
True, Lulu, but the Circumvesuviana stop is Porticini-Ercolano. Road signs list both, I think.
Of course, best laid plans. I was setting it up to do the Naples/Ercolano daytrip on a Tuesday, but I found that the Archeological Museum's closed that day. And on Monday we have a cooking class at a farm on the tip of the peninsula across from Capri. Not sure if I want to do this trip on our last full day, on Wednesday, but I suppose it will be predicated on weather conditions anyway--no sense in walking Ercolano in the rain. So I think I had better stay flexible and not overplan, which is so easy to do!
And re: pizza in Naples, we don't have to do it. I had the pleasure last trip in Salerno of tasting maybe the finest pizza in my life at Pizzeria Trianon, which was right behind our B&B. Pretty good prices too at 6 Euro per pie. Trianon's flagship store opened in Naples in 1929.
I'd rather be at Herculaneum (in foul weather gear) in the rain than in Sorrento in the rain. Anyway, maybe you should consider doing both Herc and Pomp in one day, then you'll know the differences. Or you could add one of the smaller sites, like Villa Oplontis, which is very close to its CV stop.
In high season, the Archaeological Museum is crowded and hot. The reason for going there is to see the originals of the mosaics and statues that have been replaced with replicas at the outdoor excavations. I'm not saying it's "missable", only that it's not as essential as the excavations ("Scavi") themselves. Those two places have been influencing Western culture for almost 200 years. In fairness, Naples is a tremendously important historical, cultural, and political history site, even without the museum. Have you read Rick's book on this area yet?
I would see Pompeii before I would go to a cooking class on my vacation, but that's a matter of taste.
So I think I had better stay flexible and not overplan, which is so
easy to do!
You're a rational man and a wise traveler, Jay. Two big Attaways for you.
Hey Tim--
Already did Pompeii last year March. It was fabulous, right down to the overly fed but friendly dogs sunning themselves on the stones. Not crowded at all, almost silent at times, kind of creepy but very, very cool. As I said upthread, spent 4 hours and maybe caught 70% of the ruins.
Okay, I had heard/read that the Archeological Museum is the 'bookend' for what Pompeii did not have. No, I haven't done my due diligence research-wise on the Museo as of yet but it's gotta be worth a visit, especially off-season. And no, I am not a fan of any ruins in foul-weather gear. Too easy to break an ankle on slippery stones--almost did that in bright sunlight at Pompeii!
We do at least one cooking (and eating!) class each trip. It's a great way to understand the indigenous cuisine of the specific area, and all have been memorable in their own way. Have done them in Taormina (Sicily), Panzano-in-Chianti, and at an apartment in Salerno.
Don't skip the Archeological museum! It includes art and artifacts from other significant locations as well as Pompei/Ercolano.
Jay, if you're going to be in Sorrento that long, how about setting aside a single day for Naples, and doing Ercolano another day. Naples is exhausting - big, bustling, crowded... And the Archaeological Museum is also big, with lots to see. Find a free afternoon for Ercolano; then you don't have to rush or end up dead on your feet by dinner time.
Yes, Jane, I've thought about doing exactly that as an option. I agree that Naples deserves a day alone, if only to navigate the transit system and I've always wanted to visit the Spanish Quarters as well. Never have been there, but the "grittiness" as RS puts it, sounds like it would be right up my alley.
Problem is that we get in from Rome on a Saturday, and even in March I don't want to be anywhere near tourist attractions on the weekend, so that takes up Sunday, leaving only three days before we leave Thursday. Learned that lesson last year--also in March--in Florence. I couldn't believe how overrun the Duomo and Uffizi were on Saturday & Sunday. It was 40 degrees and the tour groups were everywhere. By Monday it was nice & calm again, more my speed!
Jay,
Transportation maps for Naples.
http://www.unicocampania.it/index.php?lang=en¢er=inside&colonna=turisti&action=mappe
Download the 2 PDFs and print the maps as large as you can.
Thes are the best maps you'll find.
I think many sights in Florence and Rome as well are often full of tourists, weekend or not, high season or low. I doubt there will be huge crowds in early March anywhere south of Rome.
I ended up seeing Ercolano in the rain. They put the audio guide in a waterproof pouch. I spent 5 hours there, but some of it was taking lots of photos, a few minutes in the shop, and a picnic lunch I'd brought with me (huddled out of the rain in one of the villas!!). It was cold and hard to keep the camera lens dry, but otherwise it was no problem. It's much easier to walk in Ercolano than in Pompeii - streets and sidewalks are well-preserved.
