Pompeii and Herculaneum at a slower pace

Hello Bree88, my thoughts,

Herculaneum probably isn't a full day attraction - one full day will be plenty to see the small museum and explore every inch of the site as it is much smaller and more intimate than Pompeii. It is only partially excavated - the rest lies under the current city - but it is a great site.

I would visit the museum after Pompeii but I could make a case for either way. If you see it first it can help you to visualize Pompeii at its finest while you're there, but seeing the real sculptures in the museum after seeing the replicas is great too. The museum has much more than Pompeii artifacts so it is a broader experience. I don't think there's "wrong way" to do it.

I would suggest staying in Salerno rather than Pompeii since it is an interesting southern city with good access to Pompeii by train and also Paestum which I would urge you to add to the schedule. If you're that dedicated to seeing Pompeii do not miss out on Paestum wherever you stay. The Salerno archeological museum is small and mildly interesting but don't pass on something else for it. The cathedral on the the other hand - especially the basement - is well worth seeing.

If you're taking your time I'm sure you'll see it but my favorite part of Pompeii was the new excavation center Insula dei Casti Amanti on Via dell’Abbondanza. You climb the stairs and can walk over the current excavation and watch the crew at work - expect Sundays when they are off - but you get to see ruins emerging from the ash and rubble. Really interesting. Also the previously boring Palestra Grande where the gladiators trained had exhibits added to the covered areas that were interesting to look at and I bet most people missed.

I'm assuming you've seen the recent PBS documentary series on the new excavations but if not be sure to watch it before you go.

My $.02, hope that helps,
=Tod

PS The best sfogliatelle in the world is 5 minutes from the Naples train station. Antico Forno delle Sfogliatelle Calde Fratelli Attanasio Vico at Ferrovia 1/2/3/4. Walk over, show up, grab a number right away and wait your turn. So worth it.

I have to agree with the hiredman. Yes, A couple of hours are enough for Herculaneum, and there is no wrong order to visit Pompeii and the Archeological Museum, however, I think seeing the museum after the site is more enjoyable because there are some really beautiful and interesting objects at the museum, and it’s easier to imagine them in their place if you have already been to that place.
But, either way.
And yes, don’t miss Paestum.

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/herculaneum-and-pompeii-questions

Using a Climate website is best, but do read the weather comments in this nearby discussion:
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/naples-b54b9c7f-b5f3-4b5a-8a8f-47433782230a

I think the Archaeology Museum visit should be more related to your schedule, your hotel, and your general attitude towards museums. (Many posters here overlook the Farnese Marbles, an incredibly important collection held there, little to do with Pompeii ... ) There are replicas of many statues and frescoes in place AT Pompeii, you're going to see the real thing, close up and in good light. And of course the Erotica room.

It is totally unnecessary to sleep in modern Pompeii city. I personally would stay in Naples and take the Circumvesuviana to my daily outing. Note that you cannot re-enter Pompeii or Herculaneum with a same-day ticket. So you're going to have a merely satisfactory cafeteria lunch inside Pompeii. Do you know there are three other, much smaller sites, which are also really important and wonderful visits? I'd pair one of them, like Oplontis, with the Herculaneum day. No food inside Herculaneum, so you're stuck with a two-hour Slow Food lunch that day. Note site hours carefully, they are related to seasonal sunset, for example.

Having extra time to visit these sights is good (you’ll see plenty of people trying to see Pompeii en route to the coast), but it doesn’t really mean you’ll get more out of them. It’s really about efficient sightseeing, using your flexibility to avoid peak hours and give yourself a break. Herculaneum is a few hours to visit, and the Archeological Museum is just a few hours as well. As large as Pompeii is, the real meat of it is near the main entrance. There’s a LOT of Pompeii that is just streets and empty dwellings. The amphitheater is a long walk in, and honestly is a letdown by comparison. And we all have a sightseeing fatigue point on us. Mine was about 4hrs with a break in Pompeii.

As others have pointed out, there’s other things to see here. Like, I’d trade extra time at Pompeii for a visit to Oplantis. Naples is also a great place for a day, and often overlooked or actively avoided. There’s very, very little reason to stay in Pompeii itself. From all accounts it’s a basic working town, and not necessarily any more convenient (the Circumvesuviana station is probably closer to the front entrance than your hotel would be.) Naples is a good base with its own sightseeing, but it’s urban, gritty and busy which may not be your cup of tea. Sorrento is a good home base, close on the Circumvesuviana line and absolutely spilling over with fine restaurants and terrific views over the bay. Think about what best suits your off-hours time. With long days of sightseeing, where you spend the non-sightseeing hours can be just as important.

I support the rec for seeing Pompeii first and then the museum. Seeing the ruins sort of gives you a framework for fitting in the museum. Don't miss seeing the room and the display that one time required the Pope's permission to see it.

Many thanks--wonderful information and tips. I'll skip staying in Pompeii and use Naples, Sorrento and Salerno as bases. Paestum was on my list, but Oplantis was not!!

I greatly appreciate your time and advice!!!

In April 2022, we spent 4 nights in Pompei and really loved it. For some reason, the town of Pompei frequently gets disparaged by people who never actually spent a night there. We stayed here:

https://hotelforumpompeii.com/en/

Consider a visit to Stabiae in addition to Oplontis. When we were there, it was even more deserted than Oplontis. It was like having a mini-Pompeii all to yourself.

https://pompeiisites.org/en/stabiae/

I read half of hiredman's comments and agree wholeheartedly on Paestum, seeing the archeology museum after Pompeii, we stayed in Salerno - did daytrips from there.

We were there over the April 1st holiday. Half of all things closed down. The Archeology Museum was open, so we took the train up and visited it. The line (free entry on that day) was SUPER long. We had purchased a multi-day pass (it's been 5+ years, so I don't recall its details), we walked up to a person (employee) at the museum entrance and he let us right in - skipping the line. I don't know if we were blessed (:lucky") or ....

Paestum was WAY more fun than Pompeii. I don't mean to say "skip Pompeii." The exciting aspects of Paestum were:
** you can walk on the mosaic floors of the villas!!
** there are three (?) greek temples and you can walk inside one of them
Here are videos I made - the best (temple) one is the first one:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WbJdy9oWtwk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RWvkuw1rcyw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UoDaos-5HG4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ZqCDoQ2BU8

To Estimated Prophet - thanks for tip on Pompeii accommodation and nearby Stabaie!
To Evan -- thank you for the wonderful videos, won't miss Paestum!

We visited the museum after visiting the ruins last year. I'm not sure if before/after matters, but seeing some of the intricate artifacts in the museum (jewelry, glassware, furniture, etc.) really illustrated how advanced their culture was. I guess standing among crumbling buildings leaves a lot of the story untold, even with a great tour guide.

And we did spend a few nights in Pompei. It's a nice quiet city compared to Napoli but there's not much to see or do there, as a tourist, other than the ruins and the church just east of the ruins.

Is it practical to visit Pompeii - to visit the ruins and climb Mt Vesuvius, - as a day trip from Naples?

My recommendation would be to split your stay between Naples and Salerno, which are connected by high-speed train. It's as easy to get to Pompeii and Herculaneum from Naples as from Sorrento. IMO Sorrento is overrated. Salerno is more convenient to explore the Amalfi Coast and is worth a day of sightseeing on its own. It has a well-preserved historic center, a beautiful seaside promenade and better restaurants at cheaper prices.

If you can, visit Paestum in the afternoon and stay till dusk. The temples are most beautiful at sunset and as the they are gradually lit up. I rented a car, but I've been told that going by bus is better than by train. If you want to splurge, a private driver would be great, allowing you to stop on the way there at Vannulo buffalo farm for fresh mozzarella, terrific gelati and maybe the best canoli ever. Which reminds me, while you are in Salerno and exploring the AC, do stop at Sal de Riso in Minori for to-die-for pastries. They are also known for their gelati.

Chani--thank you! this is very helpful!

I'll also give a recommendation for Oplontis, it's one train station north of Pompeii Scavi. We tacked on a couple hours there after a few hours in Pompeii. In all, we spent 12 hours over 2 days in Pompeii, 3 hours on another day in Herculaneum and 3 hours at the museum in Naples which I thought wasn't enough, but I have a love for museums that my wife does not. I don't think the order matters, in our 2 weeks in Sorrento we did Pompeii, then the musem in Naples, then Herculaneum and then back to Pompeii plus Oplontis. I was happy with the way it turned out but I could have reversed the order and been happy as well.

IMO Sorrento is overrated.

If you go there to see the sights and not to stay, then maybe. But it's a fantastic base to stay.

bdweiss:

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/pompeii-and-vesuvius-69e8366c-1e75-4a14-a0bc-0677269492d1

Allan and Tim -- thank you!

I was just there a few weeks ago. There's no wrong way but my advice would be to try to visit the Museum in Naples before visiting the sites. I really appreciated having seen pieces that I could then imagine being in the places I was walking. It added a lot to the visit compared to a decades-earlier visit without the benefit of a trip to Naples to see the Museum.

I will say that the RS walking tour of the museum is pretty outdated compared to the current floor plan. Maybe spring for one of the many guides waiting at the entrance rather than trying to follow along on Rick's charming but (currently) confusing banter.

Have a great time. March/April will be a good time. Lighter crowds and good weather.