Hi! I'm planning a family trip from our base in Lucca to Pompeii later this month, and I have a question that I haven't seen answered on the boards yet. We are staying in Lucca this month but we want to see Pompeii, and I have booked a hotel there for 2 nights so that we can see the sights without feeling rushed. My question is whether it is better to take the train from Lucca to Pompeii (a 6-7 hour trip via Florence and Naples) ... OR ... rent a car to take the trip from Lucca to Pompeii, via stops in Volterra, San Gim., and Siena (all of which we've been to before but would like to see again briefly). We would be happy to spend a night somewhere between Lucca and Pompeii (perhaps Orvieto?) as we realize that this trip is too long to drive happily in one day. If we take the train back and forth from Pompeii we might rent a car for a couple of days as a separate trip to see Volterra, San Gim. and Siena. What is the better option here? Thanks for any advice!
The places you are interested in all seem to be around Lucca, so it doesn't seem to me to be practical to make them part of a trip to Pompei. You don't mention how many of you there will be. Chances are it will be more practical in every way to take the train. 1) gas is expensive 2) driving around Naples is chaotic at best 3) train travel here is cheap I always keep in mind the ecological consequences when I decide whether to drive or train somewhere. If I have to lug something big or heavy I will drive because that makes sense. Otherwise I take the train, because in every single way Italy is suffering from the fact that there are more cars here per person than anywhere else and Italians just plain drive too much. Italy has no oil and has to buy it from other countries. Once when traveling with others we drove from N Tuscany to near Naples and I found it a boring drive until we got to Naples and one could see the miles of covered tomato and zucchini plants.
Your post gives me the impression that you are staying in Lucca for a long period of time.If so, I'd say "go for it". Driving versus a train depends on mny fctors. If you are in Lucca,you don't want a car (except for day trips). I would probably train,although breaking your trip up with a night down (and back) is doable. How long is your trip?
We're only in Lucca for the rest of April, which is why I was trying to pack in as much as possible into the 4-5 day excursion to Pompei. But I think that the train is probably the better idea. I looked at the Michelin website to calcuate driving time and costs, and the cost of gas and tolls to Pompeii is almost as much as the cost of the train. We'll do a trip to Volterra, San Gim., and Siena separately if we can. Thanks so much for your replies.
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