A Three-Day Ticket Itinerary Around Vesuvius
Pompeii itself fills a day, or a half day for a quick visit, so there is no true multi-day trip to describe. If you want to stay longer in the area, the sensible option is to base yourself in Naples or Sorrento and spread the Vesuvian sites over two or three days. The park’s 3 day ticket is designed for that. Prices are in euros.
What the 3 day ticket includes
The 3 day ticket costs EUR 30. It includes everything in Pompeii+ (the ancient city, the Villa of the Mysteries, the Villa of Diomedes, and the Villa Regina and Antiquarium at Boscoreale) and adds Oplontis, Villa Arianna, Villa San Marco, the Stabiae museum, Boscoreale and the shuttle. You can enter each site once. By comparison, Pompeii Express costs EUR 20 and Pompeii+ costs EUR 25, so the 3 day ticket only pays off if you will use the extra sites. Buy from Vivaticket and keep ID with you, because every ticket is in the holder’s name.
A two day outline
Day one, Pompeii. Reach Pompei Scavi-Villa dei Misteri by Circumvesuviana from Napoli Garibaldi in about 30 to 40 minutes. Take your time in the ancient city, which is large, sunny and uneven underfoot, and finish with the Villa dei Misteri and the suburban villas.
Day two, Herculaneum and beyond. Ride the Circumvesuviana to Ercolano Scavi in about 20 minutes and spend the morning at Herculaneum, where a full ticket costs EUR 16. The 3 day ticket then lets you use the Stabiae villas and museum or Oplontis in the afternoon. Remember that Oplontis, Boscoreale and Stabiae are closed on Tuesdays, and that Villa Poppea at Oplontis has an excavation viewing on Thursdays from 10:30 to 12:00.
Adding a third day for Vesuvius
A third day suits the Gran Cono walk, which has its own online ticket and does not form part of the 3 day pass. Tickets cost EUR 10 and go on sale at the authorised Vesuvius seller 30 days ahead, in 10 minute slots. The walk takes up to 2 hours return, with a guide. The park closes the path in orange weather alerts, so leave a spare day in your plans if you can.
Choosing where to sleep
Naples and Sorrento both have Circumvesuviana stations, and the line you want is the Sorrento line for Pompei Scavi-Villa dei Misteri. Staying in the modern town of Pompei puts you near the Pompei Santuario stop and the Trenitalia station Pompei, each about 15 to 20 minutes on foot from Piazza Anfiteatro. To compare places to stay, search Booking.com .
Coming from Rome, change at Naples. Trenitalia publishes the main line schedules at trenitalia.com .
Read more: sightseeing in Pompei helps you plan how to use each day.