Pompeii guide?

[Softball20]

We are looking at a couple tour options for our Naples port day next year. We are traveling with some friends who have not been to Pompeii, so they are going to head there, while my husband and I likely do a wine tour and then to see Naples. In all the times we've docked in Naples we've always gone elsewhere, so actually seeing part of Naples will be different for us.

 

We've got a couple tour options for our friends to go to Pompeii and do the same winery before we split up. In addition to the cost of the tour, she has been quoted an addition 120 euros for a two hour tour of Pompeii. I think this is pricey, and they can do better. I'll probably throw it on our roll call to see if we can get others to join in. Otherwise, I know that there are generally guides available at the entrance to Pompeii and that there are audio guide options. Does anyone have an idea of the cost of a guide if one just waits until they get there?

[dkata]

In addition to the cost of the tour, she has been quoted an addition 120 euros for a two hour tour of Pompeii. I think this is pricey, and they can do better. I'll probably throw it on our roll call to see if we can get others to join in. Otherwise, I know that there are generally guides available at the entrance to Pompeii and that there are audio guide options. Does anyone have an idea of the cost of a guide if one just waits until they get there?

 

FYI, We are paying 130 euro for a private guide for two hours for our small group. She will meet us at the Pompeii train station. At the site, you can see if a guide is available. They will charge 15 euro p/p, but will wait until they have 10 people before starting. So if it's just you 2, you may have to wait. How long are you willing to wait? I suppose you could negotiate a private tour for you or your group at the site but not sure you can do better than 120 euro for a private tour for your group.

[Softball20]

FYI, We are paying 130 euro for a private guide for two hours for our small group. She will meet us at the Pompeii train station. At the site, you can see if a guide is available. They will charge 15 euro p/p, but will wait until they have 10 people before starting. So if it's just you 2, you may have to wait. How long are you willing to wait? I suppose you could negotiate a private tour for you or your group at the site but not sure you can do better than 120 euro for a private tour for your group.

 

I know that there's a wait involved, but for just two people, 120 seems high. If there were more than two, it wouldn't be bad at all, but as we have already been to Pompeii, it's just the other two who are going.

[dkata]

Really? Where are you getting that price? I checked 4-5 companies from Trip Advisor.

[thunes]

I think that price is in line with what we paid this summer. We had a top tier guide recommended by Rick Steves with a PhD in Art History so we paid appx 100 euro/hr which included private transportation.

[Softball20]

Thanks. The complete tour our friends are looking at is a combined winery visit/tour (near Vesuvius) and then a couple hours in Pompeii. The cost of the overall tour is 300 euros (plus lunch), but the 120 for the company to provide the optional guide in Pompeii is additional. I get the whole driver vs. guide thing, so I'm not questioning the need to pay additional for a guide, it just sounded a bit high to me and I was just wondering if it might be better to just get a guide at the entrance to Pompeii once they arrive.

[cruisemom42]

I'm not sure if you're saying 120 is too much as in you think it should be slightly less (e.g., 90-100 euro, which is in the range of what licensed Pompeii guides have charged for years), or if you're saying they could get a guide for a lot less?

 

European guides generally charge by the hour, however many people they have. So groups will split the 100 (or 120) into a more reasonable per-person rate. But for two people, the cost is still the same.

 

Look at it this way: they are licensed professionals. They charge an hourly wage (much as a plumber or an electrician does). It doesn't matter to the plumber whether there are two people or eight people living in the house, the hourly charge for his services is the same.

[Softball20]

Thanks for the info. It has been a few years since we were there, and I just wasn't sure if this was the going rate these days. It seemed like it might have been high, so that's why I threw it out here to see. Obviously for just two of them it will be more than if there were more in the group by which to divide the total cost. We are going to check on our roll call to see if anyone is interested in joining in.