My family and I would like to visit Pompeii from Rome. We need to do it as inexpensively as possible. I know there are tour buses from Rome, but they are expensive X 4 people. Is it possible to do on ones own without too much hassle?? I know you need to take a train to naples, and then I believe a local train to Pompeii. Can anyone verify this? Is the excavation site close to train station or within walking distance?

Hi!

You can go by train: it takes 2 hours and 45 minutes at best. From Rome to Neaples there are Eurostars and Intercities. Then a local train will take you to Pompei.

The price per person is approximately 21 euros.

>>Pompeii from Rome<<

It's doable but it makes for a long day....some folks opt to visit the excavations at Ostia Antica (near Fiumicino) in order to maximize their time in Rome and avoid the long round trip.

If you are intent on the trip, check with Enjoy Rome who have run a Pompeii shuttle from Rome....

http://www.enjoyrome.com/shuttle_tour/pompeii.html

Or--for complete instructions on how to do Pompeii on a day trip from Rome--look at this NY Times article by Maureen Fant who made the journey in 2002.

DAY TRIP; Going Back in Time, Briefly

We spent 5 hours at Pompeii with two fidgety teen age boys in the midst of summer heat in July 2001. We arely scratched the surface. And Pompeii was only made understandable by the time spent at the Arceological museum in Naples. And one of the highlights was a stop at Oplontis for the Villa di Poppea which was blissfully uncrowded and wonderful to look at. It was filled with freschi.

The upshot is that it really takes 2 days to begin to appreciate Pompeii and the surrounding wonders. In a day trip, you will get only the briefest of overviews and not do it justice. If you cannot divert for an overnight, your choice is to have a too rushed view of one of the arcological wonders of the world or to skip it in favor of Ostia Antica or a day spent ont he Arceo bus in Roma. I personally would pick one of the latter two.

Hi GS,

You take the train from Rome TE to Naples. Scchedules and prices at Trenitalia.

I recommend the ES* as they are more reliable.

In the Naples train station, follow the signs to the Circumvesuviana train. You want the Pompeii Schavi station. It is close to the site.

>>If you cannot divert for an overnight, your choice is to have a too rushed view of one of the arcological wonders of the world or to skip it in favor of Ostia Antica or a day spent ont he Arceo bus in Roma. I personally would pick one of the latter two.<<

I would like to emphasize that I agree completely with Dean...just because the trip is possible, it doesn't necessarily mean it is a good idea.

When my clients ask me about a day trip to Pompeii, I tell them exactly what Dean wrote and try to get them to spend more time in the Naples/Pompeii area or postpone their trip until they can spend more time.

It just seems to me that the travel time (by train)--door to door--has to be almost four hours each way best case....too much in my mind.

Jim...

Add to that the strain of the actual visit to Pompeii. It is a huge site, all cobblestones that were nice and smooth in the Roman day but are now a little uneven. No shade. Only metalic tinges water from the old pipes. Only one visitor center with cold drinks after a train trip and before a train trip....

Hi Dean,

What is the Arceo bus in Rome? I did a search, but no results? Is it an archeological itinerary or some sort?

Dorothy

It's the Archeo Bus....

The Archeo Bus is a small 16-seat bus which leaves hourly from Piazza Venezia and covers archeaological sites such as the catacombs, old Appian Way, Circus Maximus and other harder to reach areas. Cost for the entire day is about $8/person -- thanks to Context Rome and Tom Rankin.

http://goeurope.about.com/cs/italy/a/archeobus_p.htm

Thanks, Jim. I guess I had seen references to it here and there, but hadn't really focused on it. It sounds like a great idea! The one in Campagna sounds good, too.

Dorothy

I think your question as to train travel to Naples/Pompei has been answered. I just want to say that I whole heartedly agree that it is best to visit the Archeological Museum in Naples if you are planning to visit Pompei. I would recommend going to the museum first. The Capella Sansevero is just a 5 - 10 min walk from the museum.

If you have high endurance, you maybe able to fit all of this into one day. You would have to take an extremely early train to Naples, go to the museum, then walk to the Capella (stopping at Cafe Fiorillo for refreshments), then onto Pompei. It wouldn't leave much lingering time, but it could be done. But as has been said, just because it can be done, doesn't make it a good idea. I would strongly urge you to consider an overnight in Naples. It's a vibrant city, that I for one love. Plus, the shopping is less expensive there than in Rome or Florence (JMHO).

If you do decide to go to the museum, pick up a copy of Pompei Then and Now in the bookstore. It's a small spiral bound book with overlays that will aid you in picturing Pompei in its heyday once you arrive on at the site. It's small enough to fit into a tote or backpack. Also, the gift shop at the museum carries the same items as the shop at Pompei, but the museum shop has a much better selection, so shop there instead of Pompei.

You can check out the Den of Thieves and A Little Piece of my Heart chapters in my trip report for a humorous look at my visit to these sites.

Happy traveling

The Archeo bus has a series of stops around Roma from Piazza Venezia, Piazza della Boca della Verita, the Catacombes (San Callisto and San Sebastiano), the tombe of Cecelia Metalica (SP), on down to the Via Appia Antica and the Acqueduct. You can get on and off when ever you like.

The first bus leaves P Venezia around 10am and the last leaves the last attractions around 6pm. We did the Catacombes, Chiesa Quo Vadis, the Caves of the Martyrs and then just road the bus. It was a great way to spend a day and we will do it again.

Remember that the Catacombes close from 1pm to 3:30 so plan your day around that.

This thread was of great interest to me because my three boys have their hearts set on seeing Pompeii and we were also going to try to do it in a day trip from Rome. After reading the advice here and other Pompeii threads I can see that the trip would be exhausting especially for my 7 and 10 year olds. This leaves us with the option of flying into Rome a day early and going straight to Sorrento, spending the night, seeing Pompeii the next day then heading to Rome in the late afternoon. And we will then get our six days in Rome uninterrupted as a bonus. Any suggestions for getting from the Rome Airport to Sorrento and then back to Rome the following day? Does this still seem to hurried for much begged for visit to Pompeii?

Thanks, Hallie

In a word.... yes. The visit to Pompeii will exhaust, and I guess there are worse things to do than be on two trains for 3 hours or more with tired children. You could drive in Firenze or Napoli. You could eat menu touristico. But that is about all that I can think of and still stay within ouot guidelines on the board.

What are you going to do after your Rome stay. I would still fly in a day early but put the overnight to Sorrento to the end. That way you are not jet lagged etc. You will also want to take them to the Museo Arcologico Natzionale in Napoli for the mosaics and freschi from Pompeii. Our teen aged Pompeii loves really enjoyed it. Figure on an hour or two at most in the Museoa nd then get them some real Neapolitan pizza.

And you might want to stay right by Pompeii rather than Sorrento.

One big tip for your kids... the orange granita right outside of the digs is the best you will ever have!

Hallie,
Could you fly into Naples rather than Rome?
I took my two kids to Pompeii, wouldn't have missed it for anything! They were fascinated. We spent a half day there twice and still need to return.
Would you consider a rental car? We drove without any problems and spent a couple of nights in Sorrento on one trip.

Thanks for the tips Dean,

We are flying in after a few days stay in London (should help with jet lag)and I realized (DOH) we could fly right into Naples and save ourselves at least a few hours of travel. I just checked and found a decent fare on BMI. I was thinking Sorrento because an Italian friend of my husband suggested it, but we are very flexible. Any suggestions for a place nearer to Pompeii (with air conditioning!!)

Our flight gets in at 12:45 so we will at least have some time on that day. Do you suggest we visit the Museo Arcologicio Natzionale after Pompeii or can we do it either way.

We are locked into our return flight from Rome back home, so I think it will work better to visit Pompeii at the beginning of our Rome stay. I still want to maximize our time in Rome or I would stay in Pompeii for more than one night.

Hallie

Chiara, I read your post right after I sent mine and thankfully, we can fly into Naples. We have driven in Northern Italy...Milan north by the lakes into Alps and thereabouts and it was a little scary on those tiny mountain roads. It seemed we were the only ones who didn't drive right down the middle and expect everyone else to get out of the way. We could rent a car again or perhaps get a driver. I've seen a few listings for private car services on this site. I'm going to check out hotels with shuttle services to and from the Pompeii ruins also.

Hallie