How much time to allow for Pompeii, Herculaneum and Paestum
 

We are headed for the Amalfi Coast next Friday.

Should I allow the better part of a day for each of thes places...or is it possible to do more than one in a day.

We will have the time to allow one day for each. Thanks

We spent a day at Pompeii, could easily have spent 2--you might want to reserve and English guide in advance--we wound up using the audio guide which was excellent, but we did it because there were no English guides available for another hour or so.

The drive to Paestum is long, so you may wish to incorporate a morning in Ravello. The ruins are very impressive but you will spend no more than 2 hours there--and that is generous.

We did not have time for Herculaneum.

What a fabu part of the world. Have a great trip.

Take care,
Robyn France

I'm with Robyn on those 2 sites.
Pompeii you can spent a day at.
Paestum I'd say 2hrs also. The actual site is a walk-thru meaning besides the 3 impressive temples the rest of the site is basically just foundation ruins. But the museum is very impressive and not to be missed.
Herculaneum is small and much has been closed-off, in 2hrs you can complete their audioguide tour at a slow pace plus explore on your own. Regards, Walter

Herculaeum took us between 4 and 5 hours but we could have spent a day there. If you intend to go to both Pompeii and Herculaneum, go to Herculaneum first. It is more manageable and better preserved, and consequently will give you a better understanding of Pompeii when you get there. You'll spend more time apprecaiting the grander structures in Pompeii and wont feel guilty about glancing through the ruined bars and stores. Herculaeum felt like it had 2 very well preserved bars to every block :-)

Herculaneum is very good because it is better preserved. It is also small. We spent 2 hours there but that was a little rushed since we had an afternoon flight to catch. Pompeii is a full day. I like ssachida's idea of doing Herculaneum first.

Have only done Pompeii, but we spent a good five hours there. We took a guided tour first (found the guide at the entrance and he turned out to be very informative and funny) and then wandered around on our own afterward. When you buy your ticket you get a little booklet that is very detailed. Pompeii is stunning.

Pompei is open til 7pm. We were there last week...got there around 2 and there were NO lines and several guides avaliable. The next morning on the way out of town there must have been a million people. So later you may have less time but actually see more.

How does one reserve a guide? Is there a website or is this something accomplished via hotel concierge or...?

Dick: take the full day for Pompeii. You will need it if you are a "look into every corner" type.
Herculaneum requires about four or five hours and I would do it first.
Paestum is a marvel. There isn't that much to see, three temples and some ruins as indicated and of course, don't miss the museum. But, the Greek style of architecture is so striking after all the Roman ruins that we just circled repeatedly and stared in awe. Roman architecture is impressive, even forceful. Greek architecture is so refined. It is just beautiful.
We went down by bus from Amalfi with a change at Solerno. There are no real attractions at Solerno, but it was really fun and interesting to wander the shops with the locals to see how they live. Not a tourist in sight. You will have the time if you spend a half day at Paestum and I would recommend it.
We had one of the best travel experiences we have ever had on the way back from Paestum, but that is another story. Have a great trip.

Thanks for al the GREAT advice !

ssachida, good suggestion to do Heruclaneum first..thanks.

ourjetboat, what time did you go by in the morning. we planed on being there when the site opened.

joegri, We do like looking into corners....and I take photos..so we won't be going through fast.

We will ne driving from Massa Lubrense( outsdide Sorrento). any othe suggestion s for places to sop during our drive back from Paestuem?

thanks

You'll probably find that the drive to Paestum and the visit will consume most of a day. We ran into a lot of road construction and heavy traffic (this was off-season, in November) going to Paestum from Sorrento. Do make sure you leave some time for the museum; it's very nice, and we didn't spend as much time as we would have liked there, because we were afraid it was going to rain. (Fortunately, it didn't!)

We especially liked the books (for both Pompeii and Paestum) with the plastic overlays showing how the ruins used to look.

Also, as I recently posted on another thread, the London Times suggested tour of Pompeii:
http://travel.timesonline.co.uk/arti...080163,00.html
is excellent. Use that along with the audioguides and the audioguide map.

Hi Dick,

>We will ne driving from Massa Lubrense...<

You might want to consider taking the ferry from Sorrento to Salerno - beautiful views of the coast.

From the ferry dock it is <10 min to the train station and a 1/2 hr ride to Paestum.

In addition to the ruins, they a have very nice museum.

See the Naples/AC portion of my trip report for more details.

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34451044

((I))

Can't speak about the other sites, as I haven't been to them, but you'll definitely want a full day for Pompeii. You won't believe how big it really is until you're there. And let me tell you, you'll never be impressed by ruins again. After having my mind blown by Pompeii, the Roman ruins in Rome and Mayan ruins in Copan (Honduras) were like "ho hum." Pompeii is that amazing.

nonnafelice,

thanks for the link to the great times article.

I know exactly the books you are referring to...we got on at the coliseum in Rome

Ira,

Thanks for the info. My original thinking was that we would get a view of the coast when we go to Capri.

I kind of like driving..and exploring..stopping wherever we like. I already have a map.

I'm keeping your Naples notes because we will be spending 2 nights there before flying home.

Again, requesting best information re: pre-reserving a guide. Can you do this on line, or by hotel concierge, or must you brave using the telephone?