Pompeii--need advice!
 

We are taking our grandson on a Tauck tour of Italy which begins in Rome and ends in Venice. We want to take him to Pompeii before the tour begins, and then travel to Rome to connect with the tour. Will one day be enough to tour Pompeii before returning to Rome to begin the Tauck tour? We need advice on the best travel arrangements and whether this is feasible given our time frame. Also would appreciate hotel suggestions for Pompeii.

Har,

Does your one day in Pompeii with travel to Rome include spending the night in Rome, or must you be there (Rome)by a specific time on the same day? Also, where will you be the night before your visit to Pompeii?

A little more information would help us to help you make a good plan.

You can certainly see Pompeii and travel to Rome on the same day. My friends dropped us off at Naples airport after a visit to Pompeii, the drove on to Rome with a driver. But they could just as easily been dropped off at the Naples train station for a train to Rome. Also, the Circumvesuviana train will take you from Pompeii to the Naples train station.

I would love to hear more particulars of your trip, and how much you want to spend on this leg of it, before making more detailed suggestions.

How old is your grandson and has he independently expressed enthusiasm for seeing Pompeii? Might he also like to see the crater of Vesuvius and the archeological museum (where many of the most beautiful and important artifacts unearthed in Pompeii are now stored)?

I'm assuming your grandson is schoolaged, which would mean you must travel during summer vacation. That means it will be extremely hot, with a blazing sun, in Pompeii.

What I would suggest is that you get a hotel WITH A POOL in Sorrento (one half hour from Pompeii by train). Visit Pompeii and Ercolanum during one day.

The next day, spend the morning in the Archeological museum (they will hold your luggage for you), then take the train to Roma.

If your grandson wants to go to the top of Vesuvius, I would spend two nights in Sorrento, visiting Vesuvius in the morning and relaxing in the afternoon in Sorrento. He may be able to take all that heat and climbing, but you two will want to take it easy in the heat! (Again, before you leave the area, visit the museum in Napoli.)

If it is your idea, but not really your grandson's, to visit Pompeii, you should probably get a hotel in Sorrento to stay one night and plan to make only a limited visit to Pompeii in the morning. If he becomes enthusiastic, you can always stay the afternoon, and visit the museum the next day. Otherwise, call it quits before lunch and go back to Sorrento to have fun by the pool or take a boat to an island.

Be sure to prepare for the very hot and dry environment (shade/hats, water) and the one thing I wish we had done at Pompeii is use a guide.

I visited Pompeii in May. Sorrento is a great base for exploring Pompeii and the Amalfi Coast. We stayed at a lovely place which had the best breakfast, a pool and attentive staff-Hotel Gardenia. Pompeii is very hot but worth the visit as is Herculanuem. Herculaneum is smaller than Pompeii but brilliantly preserved-a better proposition if you have time constraints. Both sites are easy to get to by local train(circumvesuviana)
You can also purchase a ticket which lets you visit 5 sites for 18 euros.
If you have time, visit Positano and Amalfi- you won't regret it they are perhaps the most beautiful places I have ever visited.
Visiting Pompeii as a daytrip from Rome is certainly a possibilty but do yourselves a favour and spent more time there.

Yes you can.
These directions will walk you thru it http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34665492

I've never stayed in Pompei but I have read alot of good reviews over the years about the 'Hotel Forum'.

If you do search for hotels remember the modern town of Pompei has only one 'I'.
Regards, Walter

Dear tuscanlifeedit: We are thinking of taking a night flight from the U.S. probably to Rome, unless we should rethink that. We would have a full day and one night before joining our Tauck Bridge Tour in Rome.

Dear nessundorma: Our grandson will be 13 plus, and he is interested in seeing Pompeii and we think he would enjoy seeing the crater of Vesuvius. We may be able to move the trip from mid-June to April vacation, and we are contemplating that, since so many of you have mentioned the heat at that time of year, especially at Pompeii.
Thanks for all your good suggestions, especially the hotel with pool--it will be a perfect way to end a day of (hot) sightseeing! Please comment on Italy in early April. Thank you.

That's great your grandson wants to visit Pompeii! There are great videos and picture books you should try to get ahead of time from someplace like Amazon. It really helps ahead of time to understand how huge the site is, and the history and the meaning of the layout of the town.

I visited that area in April and it was already warm but not unbearable. There was often a bit of mist in the morning, which cleared up during the day. If you can go in April, I very much encourage it. Even then, you should bring sunhats and sunblock plus water to drink.

The sites -- including taking a bus up to the crater of Vesuvius -- are accessible by public transportation from Sorrento. But if you are able to spend some extra dough, you can hire a driver to drive your family to all these sites and take you back. They can even offer tours. It is a mite easier and saves time.

I had GREAT experience hiring the family-run, English speaking Benvenuto Limousines. If you e-mail them, they will explain their hourly rates and tell you what tours they offer.

http://www.benvenutolimos.com/

The Archeological museum in Napoli is more exciting than it might sound, especially once you've seen Pompeii. The mosaics from Pompeii are the quality of great Rembrandts, and there are also gold coins and other interesting personal objects rescued from the site.

I encourage you to go in April if possible, and to give as much time to Pompeii and its artifacts as you possibly can.

It would be great to take your grandson to Pompeii. I think it is a wonderful site and worth visiting for any child (mine is 5 years old and loved it). It is quite extensive and do allow enough time to see each area of the place. Definitely giving yourself 1 day would work fine.

I would agree with suedownunder, stay in Sorrento. From Sorrento, you can walk to the convenient Circumvesuviana train and take it to the "Pompeii Scavi" exit and then walk across to the entrance. The following morning, you can take the Circumvesuviana train from Sorrento into Naples, then connect with another train from Naples to Roma's Termini station to begin your tour. Buon viaggio!

April might still be too cold for the pool at the hotel. I am not sure if it would be in use yet until May. They seem to have definite start times for pool openings in Italy.

Hello:
Pompeii is a great excursion whether you spend a couple of hours or a day. I would strongly suggest, though, that you do a guided tour versus just walking around on your own:-)

Thanks to all of you for your helpful hints!