Naples and Pompeii in 6 Days on a Budget
Six Days: The Full Campania Spine
Six days nests the Pompeii, Herculaneum-Vesuvius, Amalfi Coast and Capri days from the 4-day itinerary , then adds Procida or Ischia by the cheap Pozzuoli ferry and a day at Paestum’s Greek temples. This is the version that covers every major Campania day trip from Naples without doubling any of them up. The full guide breaks down the cost math behind each leg; the 7-day itinerary turns Day 3 into an overnight instead of rushing it.
Book these before you go:
- Vesuvius Gran Cono ticket: nominative, timed, online-only; book through a guided trip or the park’s own site.
- Pompeii entry: only through pompeiisites.org and VivaTicket.
- Amalfi Coast SITA bus: cash-only at a tabaccheria; the COSTIERASITA 24-hour pass is €10.
- A Capri day tour , if you’d rather skip the ferry-schedule logistics.
- A Naples hotel for the whole week ; you won’t need to change base for any of these six days.
| From Naples to… | Time | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Pompeii (Circumvesuviana) | 30-40 min | €3-4 train + €20 entry |
| Herculaneum + Vesuvius (Ercolano Scavi) | 20-25 min + shuttle | €3-4 train + €16 + €10-11.68 |
| Amalfi Coast (via Sorrento) | ~1hr train + SITA bus | €4.60 train + €10 24hr bus pass |
| Capri (ferry from Molo Beverello) | 45min-1h15 | €19-25+ |
| Procida / Ischia (Pozzuoli ferry) | 20-40 min | €9-16 |
| Paestum (regional train) | 1h15 | €8-12 train + €15 entry |
Day 1: Pompeii
Early Circumvesuviana to Pompei Scavi-Villa dei Misteri, 30-40 minutes, €3-4. Budget 3-4 hours, €20 entry, booked only through pompeiisites.org .
Day 2: Herculaneum and Vesuvius
Ercolano Scavi, 20-25 minutes. €16 Herculaneum entry (current hours at ercolano.cultura.gov.it ), then the connecting shuttle to the Vesuvius trailhead for the €10-11.68 Gran Cono ticket.
Day 3: The Amalfi Coast
Train to Sorrento (~1hr, €4.60-8), then SITA Sud buses to Positano and Amalfi on a €10 COSTIERASITA day pass, bought at a tabaccheria before boarding. Leave by 7:30-8am to beat the crush.
Day 4: Capri
Ferry from Molo Beverello, 45 minutes to 1 hour 15 minutes, €19-25+. Blue Grotto entry is a separate cash-only €18 on top of the boat fare, and closes in rough seas without warning.
Day 5: Procida or Ischia
The shorter, cheaper Pozzuoli ferry runs €9-16, against €19-22 from Molo Beverello. Procida is small enough to walk in a day; if you pick Ischia instead, plan on seeing one area only, like the thermal-spa side or Ischia Ponte, not the whole island.
Day 6: Paestum
Direct regional train from Napoli Centrale, about 75 minutes, €8-12. Entry to the Greek temple site is €15 (March-November) or €10 in winter. There’s no town to pad the day around; it’s the temples and the museum, then the train back.
Is six days too many day trips from one base?
No, as long as you don’t try to fit two into a single day. Each of these six legs uses a different transport mode, train, shuttle bus, SITA bus, ferry, and a different pace, so spreading them across six separate days keeps every one of them unrushed instead of compressing two into an exhausting single outing.
Which of these six is the easiest to cut if you’re short on time?
Paestum. It’s the longest single-purpose round trip on this list, worthwhile for classical-history interest but the most skippable if Pompeii already covers your ancient-ruins day, since the two sites cover overlapping ground.
Book the Vesuvius ticket and the Capri ferry before anything else. Both carry real sell-out risk in summer, and neither has a same-day backup plan if you show up without one.