21 Best Sights in Italy

Explore the ruins by the terrace of Marcus Nonius Balbus, where the town's great benefactor is buried, and the Suburban Baths (undergoing restoration). Directly below, on the onetime seafront, in the barrel arches, which were once storage for boats, 300 skeletons of escaping residents were found in 1980.

In antiquity, the Casa dei Cervi was one of the first houses that visitors to the town would have passed as they entered the city from the seaward side. As in most top-notch town residences, however, the entranceway is plain and leads into a vestibulum, a small vestibule, that opens onto an open courtyard called a peristylium. The showpiece in this particular house is the garden area, surrounded by a so-called cryptoporticus embellished with fine still-life frescoes and terminating in a partially reconstructed gazebo. Of course, prior to the eruption the house would have had a fine view over the Bay of Naples.

The ruin of this house takes its name from the mosaic in back that still sports its bright blue coloring and adorns the wall of the small, secluded nymphaeum-triclinium (a dining room with a fountain). The mosaic depicts the following scene: according to legend, in the time-honored fashion of the Olympians, Neptune (or Poseidon) saw Amphitrite dancing with the Nereids on the island of Naxos, carried her off, and married her. The adjacent wall, in similar mosaic style, has a hunting scene of a stag being pursued by a dog. Annexed to the same house is a remarkably preserved wine shop, where amphorae still rest on carbonized wooden shelves.

Selinunte was one of the most important colonies of ancient Greece, recently discovered to have been home to the largest industrial quarter found in any ancient European city. Founded in the 7th century BC, the city became the rich and prosperous rival of Segesta, making its money on trade and manufacturing ceramics. When in 409 BC Segesta turned to the Carthaginians for help in vanquishing their rival, the Carthaginians sent an army to destroy Selinunte. The temples were demolished, the city was razed, and 16,000 of Selinunte's inhabitants were slaughtered. Archaeologists recently discovered pots with the remains of food inside, proof that some were in the middle of eating when the attackers arrived. The remains of Selinunte are in many ways unchanged from the day of its sacking—burn marks still scar the Greek columns, and much of the site still lies in rubble at its exact position of collapse. The original complex held seven temples scattered over two sites separated by a harbor. Of the seven, only one—reconstructed in 1958—is whole.  This is a large archaeological site, so you might make use of the private navetta (shuttle) to save a bit of walking. Alternatively, if you have a car, you can visit the first temples close to the ticket office on foot and then drive westward to the farther site. Be prepared to show your ticket at various stages.

Lying more than 50 feet below the present-day town of Ercolano, the ruins of Herculaneum are set among the acres of greenhouses that make this area an important European flower-growing center. In AD 79, the gigantic eruption of Vesuvius, which also destroyed Pompeii, buried the town under a tide of volcanic mud. The semiliquid pyroclastic surge seeped into the crevices and niches of every building, covering household objects, enveloping textiles and wood, and sealing all in a compact, airtight tomb. Excavation began in 1738 under King Charles of Bourbon, using tunnels after a series of chance finds, most famously when in 1709 locals digging a well inadvertently discovered the city's theater. Digging was interrupted but recommenced in 1828, continuing into the following century. Today less than half of Herculaneum has been excavated. With contemporary Ercolano and the unlovely Resina Quarter sitting on top of the site, progress is limited. From the ramp leading down to Herculaneum's well-preserved edifices, you get a good overall view of the site, as well as an idea of the amount of volcanic debris that had to be removed to bring it to light. The city's grid layout consists of cardi and decumani (north-south and east-west orientated streets), which define six blocks known as insulae. 

About 5,000 people lived in Herculaneum when it was destroyed, many of them fishermen and craftsmen. Among the recent poignant discoveries of human remains was that of the blood-stained skeleton of a 40-something man found on the old beach in 2020. Experts believe he may have been trying to escape the 750°F--950°F atomic-bomb-like blast. He is clutching a small leather bag with a wooden box, from which a ring is protruding.

Although Herculaneum had only one-third the population of Pompeii and has been only partially excavated, what has been found is generally better preserved. In some cases you can even see the original wooden beams, doors, and staircases. Unfortunately, the Villa dei Papiri (Villa of Papyri) is currently closed to the public—this excavation outside the main site was built by Julius Caesar's father-in-law (with a replica built by Paul Getty in Malibu almost 2,000 years later). The building is named for almost 2,000 carbonized papyrus scrolls dug up here in the 18th century, leading scholars to believe that this may have been a study center or library. Also worth special attention are the carbonized remains within the Casa del Tramezzo di Legno (House of the Wooden Partition). Although open sporadically for a separate fee—for hard-hat and torchlit guided tour only (check the website for latest schedule)—the Teatro Antico makes for a dank and atmospheric subterranean visit, where you can explore a Roman theater and view graffiti scrawled by 19th-century grand tourists. The MAV museum, housed outside the excavations near the main entrance, uses multimedia and virtual technology to bring Roman Herculaneum and the eruption to life.    

Be sure to stock up on refreshments beforehand; there is no food at the archaeological site. At the entrance, pick up a free map showing the gridlike layout of the dig, which is divided into numbered blocks, or insulae. Splurge on an audio guide app via  www.ercolano.tours (€10; adult and children's versions): the standard audio guide (€9 for one, €14 for two) may be available for those without a smartphone. You can also join a group with a local guide (around €20 per person). Most of the houses are open, and a representative cross section of domestic, commercial, and civic buildings can be seen. Check the website for the latest openings and news of recent excavation discoveries.

Painstaking excavations begun in 2003 below the oratory of Santa Maria Assunta are now open to the public and showcase tantalizing traces of Positano's vast Roman settlement buried by the AD 79 eruption. Through volcanic debris some 30 feet below the piazzetta is a cool subterranean world with different captivating chambers and crypts. The new entrance by the campanile leads to the most recently discovered Roman villa excavations, which sit below the Cripta Superiore with its spine-tingling funereal seating, reserved for Positano's most upstanding 18th-century citizens (i.e., the wealthy wanting to book a pew in heaven), members of the Confraternita del Monte dei Morti. Among the Roman artifacts are vibrant frescoes, ornate stucco reliefs, intricate bronzes and ceramics, and the mother of all stone mortars. The excellent restoration shows the impact of eruptions in the strewn debris, contorted surfaces, and cracks; glass stairs and walkways, multimedia displays, and subtle lighting cleverly illuminate the finest details below your feet and all around. Another entrance nearby leads to the Cripta Inferiore, with two naves, marble columns, and later additions (a rough stone altar believed through various documents to be dedicated to the Nativity, plus some 17th-century funereal seating). Ask one of the enthusiastic archaeological guides stationed in the small box by the church entrance for a tour, and you'll be guided down the steps to the new Ingresso Museo Villa Romana entrance behind the bell tower.

A remote and atmospheric archaeological site, Morgantina is quite beautiful, especially in spring when carpeted with wildflowers. In addition, it attracts few tourists, despite the fact that it hit the international headlines in the 1980s when it was discovered that several priceless but illegally excavated finds from the site had ended up in the Getty Museum in California. These have now been returned to Sicily and are on permanent exhibition in the small museum in nearby Aidone.

Here, Greeks and indigenous Sikels seem to have lived together in relative peace on a hill named Cittadella until 459 BC, when the Sikel leader Ducetius, determined to free central Sicily of Greek influence, drove the Greeks out. By the following century, the Greeks had regained control of Sicily, and Syracuse, in the southeast, had become the most powerful city in the Mediterranean. Lying roughly halfway along the road that led from the east to the north coast of Sicily, Morgantina was rebuilt, this time on the hill now known as Serra Orlando. The ancient economy of Morgantina was founded on the cultivation of wheat, so it is little surprise that the dominant cults were those of Demeter, goddess of harvest and fertility, and her daughter Persephone. Even today, the site is surrounded by an ocean of wheat and cereal fields, and asphodels, the flower sacred to Persephone, are abundant.

In 211 BC, the city was sacked by the Romans and handed as a war prize to Spanish mercenaries, who seem to have paid it little attention; according to the geographer Strabo, by the end of the following century, the city was nowhere to be seen. Excavations began in 1955, led by Princeton University with funding from the king and queen of Sweden (who became regular summer visitors to the site).

Today you enter the site through what was once a well-to-do residential area where several fine mosaic floors, made with tiny tesserae, can be spotted in the foundations of large houses. Beyond, Plateia A, once the main shopping street, leads into the Agora, or official center of town, with a public fountain, several abandoned lava grain mills, an Archive office (where you can still see holes where documents were pegged to the wall), and a very ingenious system of interlocking terra-cotta water pipes, each with an inspection panel that could be easily lifted to clear blockages. Overlooking the Agora is a small but beautifully preserved theater  (where performances are still held in summer), and the stepped benches of the Ekklesiaterion, the meeting place of the town rulers. On the far side of the Agora, you can walk up through ancient kilns to the foundations of what was once the public granary—under Siracusan rule, all citizens had to surrender a quota of the grain they grew as tax. Above are the remains of two elegant private houses, each with a courtyard and mosaic floors.

The narrow promontory outside Pula was the site of a Phoenician, Carthaginian, and then, later, Roman settlement that was first inhabited some 2,800 years ago. Nora was a prime location as a stronghold and an important trading town; Phoenician settlers scouted for good harbors, cliffs to shelter their craft from the wind, and an elevation from which they could defend themselves. An old Roman paved road passes the temple ruins, which include baths, a Roman theater, and an amphitheater now used for summer music festivals.

One of Italy's most majestic sights lies on the edge of a flat coastal plain: the remarkably preserved Greek temples of Paestum. This is the site of the ancient city of Poseidonia, founded by Greek colonists probably in the 6th century BC. When the Romans took it over in 273 BC, they Latinized the name to Paestum and changed the layout of the settlement, adding an amphitheater and a forum. Much of the archaeological material found on the site is displayed in the Museo Nazionale within the park, and several rooms are devoted to the unique tomb paintings—rare examples of Greek and pre-Roman pictorial art—discovered in the area.

At the northern end of the site opposite the ticket barrier is the Tempio di Cerere (Temple of Ceres). Built in about 500 BC, it is thought to have been originally dedicated to the goddess Athena. Follow the road south past the Foro Romano (Roman Forum) to the Tempio di Nettuno (Temple of Poseidon), a showstopping Doric edifice with 36 fluted columns and an entablature (the area above the capitals) that rivals those of the finest temples in Greece. Beyond is the so-called Basilica, which dates from the early 6th century BC. The name is an 18th-century misnomer, though, since it was, in fact, a temple devoted to Hera, the wife of Zeus. Try to see the temples in the early morning or late afternoon when the stone takes on a golden hue.

 Segesta's imposing temple was actually started in the 5th century BC by the Elymians, who may have been refugees from Troy—or at least non-Greeks, since it seems they often sided with Carthage. In any case, the style of the temple is in many ways Greek, but it was never finished; the walls and roof never materialized, and the columns were never fluted.

Wear comfortable shoes; even if you drive, you'll need to park your car in the lot at the bottom of the hill and walk about five minutes up to the temple. If you're up for a longer hike, a little more than 1 km (½ mile) away near the top of the hill are the remains of a fine theater with impressive views, especially at sunset, of the plains and the Bay of Castellammare (there's also a shuttle bus to the theater for €2.50 round-trip that leaves every 15–30 minutes). Concerts and plays are staged here in summer.

The site of Pompeii, the petrified memorial to Vesuvius's eruption in AD 79, is the largest, most accessible, and probably most famous excavation anywhere. A busy commercial center with a population of 10,000–20,000, ancient Pompeii covered about 170 acres on the seaward end of the fertile Sarno Plain. Today it's choked with both the dust of 25 centuries and more than 3 million visitors every year; only by escaping the hordes and lingering along its silent streets can you truly fall under the site's spell. On a quiet backstreet, all you need is a little imagination to picture life in this ancient town.

Come in the late afternoon, when the site is far less busy, and you will understand the true pleasure of visiting Pompeii.

If entering via Porta Marina, the revamped (2021) Antiquarium traces the history of Pompeii from the Samnite era (4th century BC) until AD 79. Among the artifacts displayed are the House of the Golden Bracelet frescoes, the triclinium (dining room) of the House of Menander, and the recently created casts of the Civita Giuliana villa victims.

Get your bearings at the Foro (Forum), which served as Pompeii's cultural, political, commercial, and religious hub. You can still see some of the two stories of colonnades that used to line two sides of the square. Like the ancient Greek agora in Athens, the Forum was a busy shopping area, complete with public officials to apply proper standards of weights and measures. Fronted by an elegant portico on the eastern side of the forum is the Macellum, a covered meat and fish market dating to the 2nd century BC. The nearby Terme del Foro (Forum Baths) offered a relaxing respite. It had underground furnaces, the heat from which circulated beneath the floor, rose through flues in the walls, and escaped through chimneys: temperature could be set for cold, lukewarm, or hot. On the southwestern corner is the Basilica, the city's law court and the economic center. These oblong halls were the model for early Christian churches, which had a nave (central aisle) and two side aisles separated by rows of columns.

Several homes were captured in various states by the eruption of Vesuvius, each representing a different slice of Pompeiian life. The Casa del Poeta Tragico (House of the Tragic Poet) is a typical middle-class residence. On the floor is a mosaic of a chained dog and the inscription cave canem ("beware of the dog"). The Casa dei Vettii (House of the Vettii) is the best example of a wealthy merchant's home.

There's no more magnificently memorable evidence of Pompeii's devotion to the pleasures of the flesh than the frescoes on view at the Villa dei Misteri (Villa of the Mysteries), a palatial abode built at the far northwestern fringe of Pompeii. Unearthed in 1909 this villa had many rooms, all adorned with frescoes—the finest of which are in the triclinium. Painted in the most glowing Pompeiian red, the panels relate the saga of a young bride and her initiation into the mysteries of the cult of Dionysus, who was a god imported to Italy from Greece and then given the Latin name of Bacchus.

Pompeii's other major edifice is the Anfiteatro (Amphitheater), once the ultimate entertainment venue for locals. It provided a range of experiences, though these essentially involved gladiators rather than wild animals. Built in about 70 BC, the oval structure was divided into three seating areas. There were two main entrances—at the north and south ends—and a narrow passage on the west called the Porta Libitinensis, through which the dead were most probably dragged out.

To get the most out of Pompeii, rent an audio guide (€9 for one, €14 for two; you'll need to leave an ID card) at Porta Marina, and opt for one of the three itineraries (two hours, four hours, or six hours). If hiring a guide, make sure the guide is registered for an English tour and standing inside the gate; agree beforehand on the length of the tour and the price. You can find a knowledgeable and qualified guide at  www.vesuviusvspompeii.com or  www.contexttravel.com. Advance tickets can be purchased online at  www.ticketone.it/en/artist/scavi-pompei (there's a link on the official Pompeii website).

A few words about closures: which excavations are open or closed when you arrive might seem a caprice of the gods adorning many of the buildings' walls, but the actual determining factors include availability of staff, geological uncertainty, and restoration. Many excavations are closed long-term for restoration. The Casa del Fauno and Casa del Menandro are usually open, however, as is the central core of the city, a visit requiring two or more hours itself. In 2019, La Schola Armaturarum—the so-called Casa dei Gladiatori (House of the Gladiators)—was restored after water damage had caused its roof to collapse in 2010, an event that made world headlines and highlighted the need to better protect Pompeii's treasures. It's an emblem of revitalized preservation efforts and improved management. Check the website for the latest news and exhibitions, and the updated list of visitable buildings at  pompeiisites.org/en/houses. If you're lodging in the town of Pompei, note that there's a convenient entrance to the ruins near the amphitheater off Piazza Santa Immacolata.

The temples of Agrigento, a UNESCO World Heritage site, are considered some of the world's finest and best-preserved Greek temples. Whether you first come upon the Valley in the early morning light, bathed by golden floodlights after sunset, or in January and February when it's awash in the fragrant blossoms of thousands of almond trees, it's easy to see why the poet Pindar celebrated Akragas (Agrigento's Greek name) as "the most beautiful city built by mortals." The temples were originally erected as a showpiece to flaunt the Greek victory over Carthage. They have since withstood a later sack by the Carthaginians, mishandling by the Romans, and neglect by Christians and Muslims.

Although getting to, from, and around the dusty ruins of the Valle dei Templi is pretty easy, this important archaeological zone still deserves at least several hours, and it's pretty easy to spend a whole day at the park. The temples are spread out, but the Valley is all completely walkable and usually toured on foot. However, since there's only one hotel (Villa Athena) that's close enough to walk to the ruins, you'll most likely have to drive to reach the site. The best place to park is at the entrance to the temple area. The site opens at 8:30 am and is divided into western and eastern sections, linked by a bridge. The best way to see them both is to park at the Temple of Juno entrance and walk downhill through the eastern zone, across the footbridge into the western zone, and then return uphill, so that you see everything again from a different angle and in a different light. The best time to go is either first thing in the morning or couple of hours before sunset. However, if you are in Agrigento in high summer you might want to consider a night visit; the gates open shortly before sunset, with the temples floodlit as night falls.

You'll want to see the eight pillars of the Tempio di Ercole (Temple of Hercules) that make up Agrigento's oldest temple complex, dating from the 6th century BC. The Tempio di Giunone (Temple of Juno) at the top of the hill is perhaps the most beautiful of all the temples, partly in ruins and commanding an exquisite view of the Valley (especially at sunset). The low wall of mighty stone blocks in front of it was an altar used to sacrifice animals as an offering to the goddess. Next down the hill is the almost perfectly complete Tempio della Concordia (Temple of Concord), perhaps the best-preserved Greek temple currently in existence, thanks to its conversion into a Christian church in the 6th century, though it was restored to its current form in the 18th century. Below it is the Valley's oldest surviving temple, the Temple of Hercules, with nine of its original 38 columns standing, the rest tumbled around like a child's upended bag of building bricks.

Continuing over the pedestrian bridge, you reach the Tempio di Giove (Temple of Jupiter). It was meant to be the largest temple in the complex; it was never completed, but it would have occupied approximately the size of a soccer field. It was an unusual temple, with half columns backing into a continuous wall and 25-foot-high telamon, or male figures, inserted in the gaps in between. Some telamon have been roughly reassembled horizontally on the ground near the temple. Beyond is the so-called Temple of Castor and Pollux, which is picturesque but actually a folly created in the 19th century from various columns and architectural fragments.

We recommend a guided tour for those wanting to learn more about this fascinating yet complex history. You can book guided tours directly via the website, and there are licensed tour guides at the entrance of the temple offering tours. The ticketing office also rents audio guides in multiple languages for those looking to explore independently. Plan to stay at the park for at least half a day; there are plenty of bathrooms and small cafés throughout the park that offer snacks like arancini and even full-sized pasta dishes.  Save time by booking your tickets in advance online.

The exceptionally well-preserved Imperial Roman Villa is thought to have been a hunting lodge of the emperor Maximian (3rd–4th century AD) and offers some of the best mosaics of the Roman world, artfully covering more than 12,000 square feet. The excavations were not begun until 1950, and most of the wall decorations and vaulting have been lost, but the shelter over the site hints at the layout of the original building. The mosaics were probably made by North African artisans; they're similar to those in the Tunis Bardo Museum, in Tunisia. The entrance was through a triumphal arch that led into an atrium surrounded by a portico of columns, which line the way to the thermae, or bathhouse. It's colorfully decorated with mosaic nymphs, a Neptune, and enslaved people massaging bathers. The peristyle leads to the main villa, where in the Salone del Circo you look down on mosaics illustrating scenes from the Circus Maximus in Rome. A theme running through many of the mosaics—especially the long hall flanking one entire side of the peristyle courtyard—is the capturing and shipping of wild animals, which may have been a major source of the owner's wealth. Yet the most famous mosaic is the floor depicting 10 girls wearing the ancient equivalent of bikinis, going through what looks like a fairly rigorous set of training exercises.

The wall outside this ancient wine shop shows four jars (cucumae) of different colors and prices. Above the wine list is the god Sema Sancus, with the inscription Nola at the bottom, possibly an announcement of a gladiatorial show taking place in the town of Nola.

More specifically known as the Baptistry of San Giovanni alle Fonti, this 4th-century baptistry is one of two that lie beneath the Duomo. Although opinion remains divided, it is widely believed to be where Ambrose, Milan's first bishop and patron saint, baptized Augustine. Tickets also include a visit to the Duomo and its museum.

An outstanding example of carbonized remains is found in the Casa del Tramezzo di Legno, as it has been prosaically labeled by archaeologists. Following renovation work in the mid-1st century AD, the house was designed to have a frontage on three sides of Insula III and included a number of storerooms, shops, and second-floor habitations. This suggests that the owner was a wealthy mercator, a member of the up-and-coming merchant class which was starting to edge the patricians out of their privileged positions. The airy atrium has a lovely garden. Look closely at the impluvium (a basin to collect rainwater) and above the open compluvium roof with dog's-head spouts. You'll see the original flooring below, which was later replaced with marble, perhaps after a change of owners. Next to the impluvium is an elegant marble table, or cartibulum, while behind is the tablinum (reception room), partially screened off by a wooden partition that would also have had hooks for hanging lucernae (lamps).

Just outside Carbonia and strategically positioned atop a plateau that provides views inland and far out to sea, the remains of one of Sardinia's most important Carthaginian military strongholds were discovered by chance in 1962. The walls of Mt. Sirai were erected around 375 BC, and they continued to function as impregnable fortress barriers until the Roman conquest in 238 BC. For the full picture, try to combine your visit with a look at Carbonia's archaeological museum on Via Campania.

For those overwhelmed by the throngs at Pompeii, a visit to the site of Oplontis offers a chance for contemplation and intellectual stimulation. What has been excavated so far of the Villa of the Empress Poppaea covers more than 75,000 square feet, and because the site is bound by a road to the west and a canal to the south, its full extent may never be known. Complete with porticoes, a large peristyle, a pool, baths, and extensive gardens, the villa is thought by some to have been a school for young philosophers and orators.

Unlike Herculaneum and Pompeii, no skeletons were found here, leading scholars to conclude that the villa had been abandoned after the earthquake of AD 62 and was undergoing restructuring pending sale to another owner. You have to visit to appreciate the full range of Roman wall paintings; one highlight is found in Room 5, a sitting room that overlooked the sea. Here a painted window depicts the sanctuary of Apollo, while off to the left a peacock perches next to a theatrical mask. Owing to the second Pompeian style, the walls and their frescoed arches and columns seem to open out onto a scene beyond, as seen in the paintings in the triclinium (Room 6) and the cubiculum (Room 7). At the back, through a cooling garden planted with bay trees as in antiquity, is what would be an Olympic-size swimming pool. The adjacent guest rooms, or hospitalia, display murals of the fourth Pompeian style, dating them from AD 50 onward. With painted fruits and flowers, vegetation was guaranteed to flourish all year, and in the open viridarium (pleasure garden, Room 16) guests could compare painted flora and the odd bird with the real things. Room 21 is a Roman latrine, its ancient fittings clearly on view.

No town would have been complete without its sports facilities, and Herculaneum was no exception. Just opposite the thermopolium, on Cardo V, is the entrance to the large Palaestra, where a variety of sports took place. Only a few of the peristyle columns here have been excavated, a reminder of how much of the ancient town remains buried under solidified volcanic mud.

Allow at least two hours to soak up the ambience of the ruins of Cumae, founded by Greek colonists late in the 8th century BC. Centuries later Virgil wrote his epic of the Aeneid, the story of the Trojan prince Aeneas's wanderings, partly to give Rome the historical legitimacy that Homer had given the Greeks. On his journey, Aeneas had to descend to the underworld to speak to his father, and to find his way in, he needed the guidance of the Cumaean Sibyl. Virgil did not dream up the Sibyl's Cave or the entrance to Hades—he must have actually stood both in her chamber and along the rim of Lake Avernus. When he described it in Book VI of the Aeneid as having "centum ostia" (a hundred mouths) and depicted the entrance to the underworld on Lake Avernus so vividly, "spelunca alta...tuta lacu nigro nemorum tenebris" (a deep cave...protected by a lake of black water and the glooming forest), it was because he was familiar with this bewitching landscape. Virgil also describes how Aeneas, arriving at Cumae, sought Apollo's throne—remains of the Temple of Apollo can still be seen—and "the deep hidden abode of the dread Sibyl / An enormous cave..."

Although Cumae never achieved the status of Delphi, it was the most important oracular center in Magna Graecia (Great Greece), and the Sibyl would have been consulted on a whole range of matters. Governments consulted the Sibyl before mounting campaigns. It was the Sibyl's prophecies that ensured the crowds here, prophecies written on palm leaves and later collected into the corpus of the Sibylline books.

Explore the fascinating Sibyl Chamber, a long trapezoidal corridor where light filters through shafts cut into the tufa rock. Steep steps climb above the cave and lead to the Sacred Road; before reaching the remains of Apollo’s temple that Virgil described as immanea templa (spacious temples), you can stop at the terrace overlooking the sea. From the temple of the God of the Sun, the via Sacra reaches the highest part of the acropolis, where the remains of the temple of Jupiter can be seen. This Greek temple was transformed by the Romans and then became a Christian basilica with a baptismal font still visible. Unlike in Greek and Roman times, when access to Cumae was through a network of underground passages, an aboveground EAV bus service leaves outside Fusaro station at regular intervals. (See  www.eavsrl.it for times.)