Is two hours enough in Pompeii?

[calenita]

All the tours seem to allot only two hours in Pompeii. Is this enough time? Or do people wish they had more time there? Still looking at whether we will do this with the ship or on our own. Thanks Debbi

[texancruzer]

Depends on how "in depth" you want to get. Pompeii is huge - you could spend days there.

 

We had about 2-1/2 hrs. there and then did Amalfi coast - but we were on a private tour.

 

I thought we had enough time to get the highlights.... I am not a huge history buff but wanted to see Pompeii as my Dad (a merchant marine who travelled the world his whole life) always told me to go there if I got the chance. If you go....use a guide. It is big and without a guide you might not always know what you are looking at ;)

[tomko2]

We were on the Legend of the Seas and took the RCI sponsored tour of Pompeii -- it was excellent. The guide kept the group moving and did not wait for stragglers at each stop; he gave excellent insight into the people living there and helped us understand what we were viewing. We bought a book in advance plus attended an onboard lecture so we felt the time allot was fine. It was a half day tour and included the bus trip, a stop at a Cameo Shop and then Pompeii. We were back in Naples around noon and had time to freshen up onboard then went to find a pizza! We followed some crew members and went to Castel Nuova Pizzeria for some Peroni beer and pizza. Photos and review in the links below.

Kathy:)

[cruisemom42]

It depends on your level of interest, the crowds, the heat....a number of things.

 

We went in November, so the crowds were minimal -- in fact, I snapped a few shots down one of the main roads where there wasn't another soul in sight. Also the weather was beautiful, sunny and mild. We were there for about 3 hours, then had lunch and went in the afternoon to the Naples Archeological Museum. As I'm obsessed with ancient Rome, I could've stayed longer but after 3 hours I did feel fairly satisfied.

 

And the Museum was DEFINITELY worth a visit as they have all the most beautiful mosaics, frescoes, statues, etc that have been removed from Pompeii and other cities. Even huge statues from the baths in Rome....:D

[dorakk]

We spent two hours in Pompeii on our own last month. It's hard to say whether two hours is enough or not, for us, we wish we could have extra time because we spent too much time finding directions, getting lost. The map provided by the park official is very poorly printed, also there were only minimal amount of direction sign inside the park. If I was to do Pompeii again, I will either join the ship's tour or get a license guide.

[WeBeGone]

You definately need a guide. The site is so big that to see the "best" of what's there, a guide is crucial. We were there at 8am when they opened the gate, spent 2 hours there, then 2 hours at Herculeum, pizza lunch, then Naples museum to see all the things that have been removed from Pompeii. We booked with Marcello of "See Sorrento".

[chipmaster]

All the tours seem to allot only two hours in Pompeii. Is this enough time? Or do people wish they had more time there? Still looking at whether we will do this with the ship or on our own. Thanks Debbi

 

As OP have said, depends on your interest and if you did your homework.

 

With guide and or homework two hours is just enough to hit the highlights. You do want to get there early as some of the best attractions become a mass of humanity during peak season. Also there is the weather to consider, in the heat of summer spending more then two hours there can be simply exhausting and even dangerous for some.

 

We were on a private tour, got there right at opening, literally the first people with tickets to get in. As we left the mass of tours were jammed into some of the best ruins and heat was nasty and I could not imagine spending another two hours hiking the place.

 

So if you are going in summer, plan to get there early then head out to Amalfi coast, Sorento would be a good plan.

[RachelG]

We hired a private guide at Pompeii and were there about 2 1/2 hrs. I would say we would have spent more time there on our own, but we are huge history buffs and love seeing EVERYTHING. Some stuff I felt he rushed us past.

[wwinfl91]

We did a private tour with 3 other couples and had one of the local guides hired to take us on our tour. She did a good job but got it done in 2 hours so she could pick up another group. I would have liked to have had more time there but we then went to Herculaneum and then to the Museum of History in Naples where most of the best finds from both sites are actually exhibited.

 

I suspect all the standard tours whether private or cruise organized are about 2 hours in Pompeii but to be honest there is so much to see there you really would need at least a full day just to see all the highlights.

 

My wife and I hope someday to go back there and spend the day with a good guidebook and a lot of water.

 

Have a great next cruise.

[bjb1957]

I was on the Carnival Freedom in October and this was the one time we hired a private driver. I was in Italy and visited Pompeii in 1990. I didn't have enough time then and always said that I needed to go back and visit Pompeii again. That is why we hired a driver as I didn't want to be tied to the ship tour, stopping for a leisurely lunch, stopping for the toilet, stopping at a touristy shop etc. I wanted to get to Pompeii early, go to Vesuvius and then to Herculaneum all on my schedule, not the ship's schedule. We hired the driver with Bienvenuto Limo. We were very pleased with the service and the driver. I would also recommend hiring a guide for your tour of Pompeii. We rented the audio guides but as someone has posted before me the map was not very user friendly.

[dileep]

All the tours seem to allot only two hours in Pompeii. Is this enough time? Or do people wish they had more time there? Still looking at whether we will do this with the ship or on our own. Thanks Debbi

 

We had only 2 hours last year and that was rushed. That is the bare minimum tio get afeel for the place. 3 hours would have been better.

[2Fltravelers]

All the tours seem to allot only two hours in Pompeii. Is this enough time? Or do people wish they had more time there? Still looking at whether we will do this with the ship or on our own. Thanks Debbi

 

 

We had a private tour of Pompeii last month with a history professor which lasted for 2.5 hours. It is impossible to see all of Pompeii in one trip. There is a line for the amphitheater and it is a long walk from the entrance. Knowing this, our guide took us to less visited parts of Pompeii including a villa with incredible red frescoes. It's difficult to tour ancient ruins for many hours walking over rocks, uneven surfaces, etc. I would have like another 30 minutes but we decided we'll just have to return.

[sizzle_sisters]

Recommend :hat, h20, h20, h20, more than 2 hours, and a guide. Worth every penny.

Never saw any lines?? Just lots of heat, and fascinating stories and history, and dogs.

[KCcruisin07]

I agree with the consensus: two hours is not enough for Pompeii. We took the Legend of the Seas tour, and we waited for the slower ones, then had to spend part of our limited time at the Cameo Shop. If we did it over, I would rather have a private guide and more time.

[jesse]

We were there early morning, with a private guide since we were heading to Positano after the tour. We told him two hours max, and we had an excellent tour. I'm not so sure another hour or two would have been necessary since we were getting so much information from our guide. Also, if we were just roaming around, we would never have really known what we were looking at--got lots of that kind of information from our guide.

we also chose early morning since there is no shade there-and we were there in the heat of the summer.

[janmcn]

We liked doing both Pompeii AND the surrounding areas of the Amalfi Coast...what a great combo! Yes, I'd have liked more than the two hours we had (on our own), but I felt we saw the highlights of it and the bonus was that we had a leisurely lunch in Ravello overlooking the Med. and stopped in Amalfi, too...it all depends on your interests. We wanted to experience as much as we could in one day. (Definitely get a private tour via the Roll Call...cheaper and better!)

Jan