Advice needed - climb Vesuvius & Visit Pompeii.

[mimlypops]

We are visiting port of Naples for 1 day in August. We would like to visit Vesuvius crater and then Pompeii. THere is a ship tour that includes both but we would rather go under our own steam. I have found lots of information on getting to Pompeii from port but can not find out how easy or difficult it would be to visit Vesuvius first (by which I mean transport up most of way and climb final bit of footpath to crater). HOw would we get there from port and then how would we get from Vesuvius to Pompeii ?

 

We are a family of 4 (2 adults & 2 teenagers).

 

Thank you for any help or advice.

[euro cruiser]

There are several options.

 

There is a bus from Naples to the base of the crater footpath, but it only runs twice a morning and may not fit your schedule: http://www.eavbus.it/export/sites/default/eavbus/orari/ordinarie/pdfOrari/Totale_Orari_New/Napoli_-_Vesuvio.pdf. After climbing the crater path you can use the Vesuvio-Pompei bus (see link below).

 

You can take the Circumvesuviana train to Ercolano Scavi, where you can pick up a van tour. The fare is around 20 Euro per person, but that includes the park fee (10 Euro). Alternately, you could pay for a taxi from the Ercolano Scavi Circumvesuviana station to the crater, then use the bus to go from there to Pompei. Pompei-Vesuvio bus info here: http://www.eavbus.it/export/sites/default/eavbus/orari/ordinarie/pdfOrari/Totale_Orari_New/Pompei_-_Vesuvio.pdf

 

You can take a taxi from the port. There is a fixed fare of 90 Euro round trip, including a two hour stop at the crater. Since you won't be looking for a return with the cab you can probably negotiate something less than this.

[mimlypops]

Thank you for the links. I will look at those now. Do you think we are wise to do this rather than a ship tour ? In all other ports we are doing our own tours and happy using trains/buses etc. it is the added complication of Vesuvius that is making me wonder if this is one where we are better to go with an organised tour. I am also very conscious that it will be extremely hot.

 

Thank you

[euro cruiser]

I'd at least consider the ship's tour, something I rarely ever do. It can be done DIY but, as you'll see when you look at the schedules, it takes a lot of time, which is a precious commodity on a port day.

 

If you do go DIY, I'd strongly consider spending the money on a one-way taxi, either all the way from Naples, or from the Ercolano Scavi train station. This is likely less expensive than the ships tour and will resolve most of the time issues.

 

The goal should be to climb Vesuvio as early as possible in the day. The fastest way there would be a taxi right from the cruise port, a 30 - 45 minute ride. The next fastest would probably be the Circumvesuviana to a taxi from Ercolano Scavi.

[mimlypops]

Yes I think I agree. We will either skip vesuvius and make our own way to pompeii or do the organised trip and accept some compromises.it is the only port where we will do this.

 

Thank you for your help.

[Presto2]

Hi,

 

Thanks for your advice re my question earlier! We did the Vesuvius hike and wine tasting last year with the ship and it was a fabulous day. Not sure if we'd bother with the wine tasting again though but the hike up the Volcano was amazing - if somewhat exhausting !!:)

[mimlypops]

Hello again presto2 ! Did the Vesuvius trip you did also go to Pompeii ? Celebrity ?

[petsgalore]

we took a med cruise about 3 years ago (two families with a totalof5 teenagers) and did the tour through celebrity. we very much enjoyed it and we had a tour guide on the climb and a different one guiding us through pompeii. we usually do things on our own but we thought the logistics would be too challenging to do both in one day. as the climb is somewhat challenging, there were not that many people on the tour.

[flyingboy]

Maybe think about a car rental. If you can drive a "stick" it may be a cheaper and more time effective option for you. We have driven to the crater and to Pompeii on separate trips and found the driving and parking pretty easy for both destinations.

There are threads re Naples car rental if you are interested.

[mimlypops]

Pets galore, did you find you had enough time in Pompeii on the ship tour ? Did you have to do obligatory stop at cameo factory ? Was that a problem for you ?

 

Thanks

[Presto2]

Hello again presto2 ! Did the Vesuvius trip you did also go to Pompeii ? Celebrity ?

 

Hello again - we didn't do the one that went to Pompeii as we wanted to do something different. We went to the Celebrity one that had the hike up Vesuvius followed by a tour of a vineyard and then a meal and wine tasting.

 

We didn't have to visit any factories etc etc though they tried to sell us wine. We did complain though as we were limited to the amount of wine we could take back to the ship (which sort of defeats the object of visiting a vineyard) but we took some olive oil back ! :)

 

I think we are going to do the Celebrity 'do it yourself' trip to Pompeii which is only about £19 each. It will give us about 2 and a half hours there so we will start at the far end of the site (that we haven't seen as much) and work back to the 'meet up point).

 

:D

[euro cruiser]

We didn't have to visit any factories etc etc though they tried to sell us wine. We did complain though as we were limited to the amount of wine we could take back to the ship (which sort of defeats the object of visiting a vineyard) but we took some olive oil back ! :)

Just a point of curiosity, as I've never sailed with Celebrity, but wouldn't you have been able to bring back as much wine as you wanted (within reason, of course), just not in your cabin? Would they not have stored it for you until the end of the cruise?

 

Olive oil is a pretty good second, anyway!

[petsgalore]

Pets galore, did you find you had enough time in Pompeii on the ship tour ? Did you have to do obligatory stop at cameo factory ? Was that a problem for you ?

 

Thanks

 

as far as i remember we had plenty of time to tour pompeii, at least for or purposes, even some time to look around by ourselves at the end of the tour. we saw all the important sites and got a good overview. and yes, we had a stop at the cameo factory. we were not particularly interested but i guess these sales stops always seem to be part of the ships' tours. we did not spend too much time at the factory and the climb and pompeii made it worth putting up with it for us.

[mimlypops]

thanks petsgalore. Think that is our mind made up then ! We will do the celebrity trip for this port. My kids very excited about this one. One loves latin at school & roman life. The other is very into physical geography so something for both.

[Presto2]

Just a point of curiosity, as I've never sailed with Celebrity, but wouldn't you have been able to bring back as much wine as you wanted (within reason, of course), just not in your cabin? Would they not have stored it for you until the end of the cruise?

 

Olive oil is a pretty good second, anyway!

 

Hi, yes they do store the wine, but we love to take the wine back and open a bottle to enjoy it on our balcony. We did this on P&O and it was really nice. Wine from the trip never seems to taste the same when you are home ..;)

Then there is also the problem of fly / cruising and how you get it home in your suitcase ?! :confused:

[ttnc4me]

There are several options.

 

There is a bus from Naples to the base of the crater footpath, but it only runs twice a morning and may not fit your schedule: http://www.eavbus.it/export/sites/default/eavbus/orari/ordinarie/pdfOrari/Totale_Orari_New/Napoli_-_Vesuvio.pdf. After climbing the crater path you can use the Vesuvio-Pompei bus (see link below).

 

You can take the Circumvesuviana train to Ercolano Scavi, where you can pick up a van tour. The fare is around 20 Euro per person, but that includes the park fee (10 Euro). Alternately, you could pay for a taxi from the Ercolano Scavi Circumvesuviana station to the crater, then use the bus to go from there to Pompei. Pompei-Vesuvio bus info here: http://www.eavbus.it/export/sites/default/eavbus/orari/ordinarie/pdfOrari/Totale_Orari_New/Pompei_-_Vesuvio.pdf

 

You can take a taxi from the port. There is a fixed fare of 90 Euro round trip, including a two hour stop at the crater. Since you won't be looking for a return with the cab you can probably negotiate something less than this.

We are considering doing both as well, but I'm still confused.

Can we walk off the cruise ship to take the bus to? Or, pay a taxi to the crater base (cost for 6 people?)

Then, Vesuvio-Pompei bus to Pompei?

Then, how to get back to the ship?

 

Would renting a car make more sense maybe? I've read of Hertz...is that the only logical rental choice if opting for that form of transportation?

[euro cruiser]

The EAV bus stops in the street in front of the cruise port, if you decide to try that option. There's an information booth on the sidewalk, they can point the stop out to you.

 

Taxis will be waiting at the cruise port as you exit, if you choose that route. You could take the taxi one way to Vesuvio, then the Pompei-Vesuvio bus. This bus does sell tickets on board (most others do not). After seeing Pompei you could take the Circumvesuviana train back to Naples and either walk back to the port or use the #1 tram.

 

A rental car would also work. There are several companies in the neighborhood.

[nomad824]

We are visiting port of Naples for 1 day in August. We would like to visit Vesuvius crater and then Pompeii. THere is a ship tour that includes both but we would rather go under our own steam. I have found lots of information on getting to Pompeii from port but can not find out how easy or difficult it would be to visit Vesuvius first (by which I mean transport up most of way and climb final bit of footpath to crater). HOw would we get there from port and then how would we get from Vesuvius to Pompeii ?

 

We are a family of 4 (2 adults & 2 teenagers).

 

Thank you for any help or advice.

 

Hi Mimlypops,

Great question about Vesuvius and Pompeii. We took a Celebrity Cruise in 2004 with our 4 children ages 16, 15, 13, and 12. We also are experienced DIY travelers, but chose a ship excursion for that day. (I don't even remember why) This excursion is great for families and is the one the kids still talk about 9 years later. The hike to the crater was on a beautiful sunny day. We all "rented" a walking stick from this little Italian Lady at the beginning of the hike. Everyone needs to make a living right? The views from the top, all the way to the Bay of Naples, were exceptional and it was nice to have an active excursion where the kids could expend some energy. The Cameo Factory stop, which was after Vesuvius, was relatively short and painless. I think we actually used it as a bathroom stop. Then on to Pompeii with a great guide who made the ruins very interesting. Even the kids paid attention to the info for the most part. It was stuff they could relate to. We took a fabulous family picture from Pompeii with Mt Vesuvius in the background. Actually we used the photo for our family Christmas Card that year. So, I am confirming that for this itinerary, and especially with kids, the Celebrity excursion was easy and stress free.

Karen

[mimlypops]

Hi Karen

 

Thank you so much for sharing your experience. It is quite a challenge planning to keep everyone in the family happy ! We have decided to go with the Celebrity tour for this port. Will be nice to just let someone else worry about the plans that day to allow us to focus on the sights. My kids are looking forward to the Vesuvius & Pompeii experience as much as any other port.

 

Thank you again.

[nomad824]

Hi Karen

 

Thank you so much for sharing your experience. It is quite a challenge planning to keep everyone in the family happy ! We have decided to go with the Celebrity tour for this port. Will be nice to just let someone else worry about the plans that day to allow us to focus on the sights. My kids are looking forward to the Vesuvius & Pompeii experience as much as any other port.

 

Thank you again.

 

My pleasure! I have gained so much valuable info through helpful people on these boards. It's nice to give back. Our next cruise is with Celebrity this November back to the Mediterranean. I have chosen shareashoreexcursion with 6 others from our roll call for our port day in Naples. Having previously hiked Vesuvius and explored Pompeii, we will head to Amalfi, Positano, Ravella, and Sorrento. A new adventure awaits. Happy Traveling...

Karen

[ollienbertsmum]

I have taken teenagers on Med cruises - I would not want to be organising this myself given the heat. At least you will have the tour bus to cool off in between sites.

[jlj1110]

Sorry if this question is in the wrong thread...this is my first time posting!

 

We will be going on a Naples excursion at the beginning of July that includes a visit to Pompeii. The description of the tour makes it sound like the visit up to Pompeii is a fairly strenuous walk/climb. Has anyone done this that can give me a better idea how hard it is to get there? My mother-in-law has some knee problems and isn't sure she wants to attempt it. I appreciate any advice, or a redirect to another thread.

 

Thanks!

[flyingboy]

There is a lot of walking in Pompeii with very little shade. The site is actually a town and the groups will take you from 1 major sight to the next. I believe the tour is descibed as strenuous becase the streets are paved with large cobbles(stones) with a big drop from the sidewalks to the street, about 12in. The main tour entance is Porta marina and its all uphill from there.

If the tour starts at porta di nocera (near the ampitheatre) and least the walking is more or less flat or downhill.

Either way you will be doing a lot of walking in the sun over uneven ground. For a person with limited mobility or joint pain maybe a nice bus ride on the amalfi coast is a better option.

[ollienbertsmum]

I want to second that last sentence. The Amalfi coast is world heritage listed, a wonderful trip.

[karoo]

I've done the Pompeii/Vesuvius trip. Walk straight out the port, cross the main road, buy tram ticket at the Newsstand. Take tram no 1 to the station. Enter station, go downstairs, look at the TV screens for platform number. Take the Sorrento train. Get off at Pompeii Scavi. There will be guys selling minivan tours up to Vesuvius. They drop you and wait for you to return. Once you get back go to Pompeii -all signed. You can hire a guide or just use the maps to find your own way around. Once you've finished you just get the train and tram back to the port. It all works out much cheaper than a tour.