Pompeii and Herculaneum Visits

Pompeii and Herculaneum are both ancient Roman cities, which were tragically destroyed by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. While both cities offer a glimpse into ancient Roman life, they differ in their size, preservation, and the type of volcanic debris that covered them. Herculaneum, in particular, is known for its exceptionally well-preserved state, while Pompeii was a larger, more bustling city.

I was lucky enough to visit my both places on my Italian trip at the beginning of May.

It was the second time that I have visited Pompeii but the first time was a guided tour and didn’t have much time to explore on our own so only saw a little bit of Pompeii. However, this time we had the full day, which started off with a two hour tour with a private tour guide, who showed us a few of the main highlights and explained the different areas and what happened. The tour was good as the guide didn’t over explain and kept it interesting.

I have had experience with tour guides that talk for too long and you do not get to see much and it ruins the experience but not this time. This private tour guide was informative and happy to answer questions and highlight where we should explore. Using a private tour guide means you can have tour catered to what you wish to see.

We entered the ruins via the Via Plinio road entrance as it is the quieter entrance and it’s from one end of the ruins, so we got to see the Amphitheatre and villas without the crowds, which makes it better to experience the place.

Pompeii is a large site with so much already uncovered and there is more to be done. It is an amazing place to visit and see how the residents lived, also marvel at what the archaeologists have been able to uncover.

You really need to spend a day or two there because the site is vast with so many lanes to walk down and explore. Make sure to get there when it opens in the morning and pre-book your tickets as they are limiting the amount of visitors.

Herculaneum is the smaller site, which is nearer to Naples and due to the city being built around the site it will always be small site as it will be expensive to buy the surrounding areas to uncover the ruins.

Herculaneum is better preserved as the buildings are more intact compared to Pompeii as some of the villas are two storey and you can really see how they lived in those times.

You only need a half day there as it is smaller site and it is best to pre-book your tickets to ensure you can visit.

Just a note - both sites get busy with tour groups and can start to feel crowded so make sure to get there early to see as much as possible without the crowds being there.

If you are vacationing in the area between Naples and Sorrento/Amalfi Coast, it is worth getting yourself to Pompeii and there is a train between Naples and Sorrento that stops at Pompeii making it easy to get to.

Have you been to Pompeii or Herculaneum? What did you think.

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