Pompeii and vesuvius appropriate clothing

Shorts are allowed. Bring sunblock and a maybe a hat. I have not been to Mt. Vesuvius but there is no shade in Pompeii and it is a big place! Have fun!

Are you talking about clothing restrictions in some European churches? I can't imagine any restrictions at either of these places. But as noted above, they are both, sweltering and exposed from May to September. There is exceptionally little "shelter" at both of them. Pompeii does have an air conditioned snack bar where you can buy more water. Many posters recommend seeing Pompeii first thing in the morning in summer, because it's so fierce after the sun is high. Bring plenty of extremely high SPF because you'll sweat it off promptly.

We had no interest is scrambling up sweltering heaps of ashes, so I can't comment on the volcano visit. You certainly can see it from Pompeii, as well as everywhere else in the area. The question is, can you see Pompeii from the public part of Vesuvius?

Neither are religious sites so there's no dress code.
As already mentioned, if you are going during summer it will likely be very hot so wear lightweight, comfortable clothing and a hat, and bring plenty of water.

As with Tim, I'd personally skip Vesuvius as it's more poignant to see it looming over Pompeii, and will make for an especially long, hot day to do both.

If it is summer when you go, it will be hot and not much shade. No restrictions on shorts and that, but I would think that sturdy shoes, lightweight pants and a light shirt, as well as some type of head covering would be more protective and in the end cooler than shorts or exposing lots of skin to the sun. Don't forget to take water as well.

When I visited Pompeii I wore a long sleeve white shirt made of breathable fabric, white linen pants, walking shoes and a lightweight tee shirt. It was extremely hot and sunny in the low 90s F (Early June). Consider bringing a light hat or even a small sun umbrella if you are visiting in the summer. There is a cafeteria at Pompeii but bringing your own bottle of water is advisable.

To climb mount Vesuvius I recommend shoes with a good tread. The sides of the mountain are covered with a soft pumice that is a lot like climbing a huge sand dune. There are walking sticks available en route if I remember correctly and those can come in handy.

Thanks for the advice. I thought I read somewhere that someone wasn't allowed in due to their clothes but in reading different books and articles I could have gotten two places mixed up. We are doing Mt. Vesuvius because it is my daughter's pick. (Not sure if it would be on my list.) I hope we are prepared for the scorching heat as we are going in the summer. I have a backpack to put water and Sunscreen in. Hopefully that will help get us through the day.

We enjoyed the (somewhat arduous) climb up Vesuvius back in '08. We also did Herculaneum that trip as a day trip from Rome.

We did Pompeii last Sept (I wore a tank top and capris) and hooked up with one of the tours offered at the train stn as we only had 3-4 hours before we had to hightail it to the Amalfi Coast. The tour (3 hrs) touched the highlights, but we could have certainly spent another few hours there. You def want a hat and bring a bottle of water (which you can refill there from the fountains) and maybe some snack bars. We were there in Pompeii on an overcast day (it rained just a bit - not enough to soak everything - just a spatter) so we didn't get overheated, but it would certainly be easy to do.

The views from Vesuvius are amazing - but I would only go up if the weather is fine. Covered/closed shoes would probably be better for that climb as the soil is quite loose and rocky - with sandals, you'd be stopping every few minutes to dislodge rocks.

A note on that backpack? Make sure yours is within the size limits allowed at Pompeii:

http://www.coopculture.it/en/heritage.cfm?id=1

"STRICTLY FORBIDDEN to introduce inside the excavations of Pompeii, Herculaneum, Oplontis, Stabia and the Museum of Boscoreale, handbags, backpacks, luggage, cases, larger than 30x30x15 cm"

This is roughly abt. 12" x 12" x 6", and I would err on the side of smaller versus pushing the limit.

Dress rules for men/women - knees, shoulders and midriffs covered, no shirts with violent or offensive graphics, and only modest amounts of cleavage on display - apply to Italian churches, the Vatican Museums, and maybe some other attractions which are religious in nature and may have lots of clergy present.

Uh...if you are talking about the ancient fountains at a couple of spots in the Pompei ruins, the water looked fine when cascading out of the faucet but after filling up our empty water bottles, it was a revolting shade of yellow. Couldn't bring myself to even taste it on a dare.

We filled them up in the bathroom/water fountains inside the concession area, and then bought more up at the snack bar. In that kind of heat, you want to be hydrated if you're stuck at the other end of the ruins, where I don't believe there are any concessions.

I drank the water from the fountains and didn't have any stomach issues...but I didn't notice any discolouration...lots of people using them...

Drank the water from the fountains. It was fine. Pompei has a bag-check if you have a large backpack. RS's book says to buy tickets near the train station but we could only find tickets at the entrance. Maybe someone else can point out a better spot.

You will be hot. Plan accordingly.

Yes, there is a left-luggage service but it's really more useful for people traveling onward with, well, luggage. When it comes to the water bottle, sunscreen, wet-wipes (nice for cleaning up when it's hot and dusty), guidebook, tissues, camera, Advil or Tylenol (for possible sun headache) and other stuff, you don't want to have to check the bag carrying what you need for the day.