Tour Details
Duration
8 hours
Product Type
Tour
Venues
- Pompeii Archaeological Site
- Naples Archaeological Museum
Photos & Highlights
- Uncover the history behind the most important ancient artifacts and collections of Roman Remains
- Led by an archaeologist
Select a date
Tour Description
Looking to spend a full day exploring two of Naples' most important sites for ancient artifacts? This full-day Pompeii Tour begins with a visit to the ancient city via private car service, returning to Napoli to visit the Naples Archaeological Museum, one of the world's most important collections of ancient Roman remains. In between, we'll enjoy a short lunch in the city, receiving a brief synopsis of Naples' history and culture. While we offer a separate half-day Pompeii Tour and Naples Archeological Museum Tour, this full-day experience is best for those pressed for time, or who condense their time exploring local antiquity to one day. This tour begins and ends in Naples.
In 79 B.C., Pompeii, along with various other settlements on the slopes of Mt. Vesuvius, was buried by layers upon layers of ash, lava, and pumice. Due to this burial, the city offers a fascinating viewpoint for understanding the culture of the time. We begin our day-long excursion with a short drive from the city center of Naples, during which our guide will set up the preliminary socio-historical context that will help us better understand the various aspects of Pompeii we will explore in greater depth later in the day. Upon arriving at the archaeological site, we will move swiftly through the ancient cobble-stoned roads, exploring the private homes, temples, shops, civic buildings, and public spaces that intricately illustrate everyday activities in the city.
Taking cues from our surroundings, we will delve into aspects of religion, gender roles, and commerce. We will pay special attention to the construction and decoration of private homes, most notably the magnificent frescoes of the Villa of the Mysteries. The moving remains of the desperate inhabitants attempting an escape from impending doom create an immediate and emotional experience.
Leaving Pompeii by early afternoon, we will return to Naples via car, where we will have a quick lunch in a small, non-touristy restaurant in the city center. Next, we'll take a short stroll through the city streets, poking our heads into a few churches and providing a short synopsis of the history of the city.
The group will then head to the Archeological Museum of Naples, where we will build on the knowledge accrued during our exploration of the archaeological site. The impressive museum was founded by the Bourbon kings of Naples in the late 18th century to house the antiquity collection amassed during the major excavations the royal family financed. A close reading of these frescoes, models, and artifacts fully illustrates the enigma of Pompeii and is the fitting conclusion to our day-long discovery.
Is the cost of lunch included in the full-day Pompeii excursion from Naples?
No, you'll be responsible to cover for covering the cost of lunch for you and the expert.
What are skip-the-line tickets?
No, you'll be responsible to cover for covering the cost of lunch for you and the expert.
What are skip-the-line tickets?
For this tour, your tickets are pre-purchased, which allows you to skip the ticket office line upon arrival at the venue. You may still have to wait in a security line or in a line to have your pre-purchased ticket scanned.
Is this tour suitable for clients with mobility issues?
Yes, Pompeii and the Naples Archaeological Museum are both wheelchair accessible. However, Pompeii is a little walking-intensive and there are uneven cobbled lanes; clients who use a cane or who have difficulty walking may find this part difficult. If you have any mobility issues, we recommend contacting us so we can ensure the tour is adapted to your concerns.
Can I be picked up from a location outside of Naples?
Yes, in most cases, we can arrange pickups from locations such as the Port of Naples, Amalfi, Positano, and Sorrento. Please let our team know when booking, and we’ll confirm availability and make the necessary arrangements.
Yes, Pompeii and the Naples Archaeological Museum are both wheelchair accessible. However, Pompeii is a little walking-intensive and there are uneven cobbled lanes; clients who use a cane or who have difficulty walking may find this part difficult. If you have any mobility issues, we recommend contacting us so we can ensure the tour is adapted to your concerns.
Can I be picked up from a location outside of Naples?
Yes, in most cases, we can arrange pickups from locations such as the Port of Naples, Amalfi, Positano, and Sorrento. Please let our team know when booking, and we’ll confirm availability and make the necessary arrangements.
Book with confidence — see Context's flexible cancellation policy here.
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40 Reviews
Reviews can only be left by Context customers after they have completed a tour. For more information about our reviews, please see our FAQ.
Maria Laura was terrific. Informed, interesting, responsive. We thoroughly enjoyed our day with her and learned a lot!
Amy
Reviewed on:
Apr 12, 2014
Fiorella was fantastic, our whole family (some who were not super keen for 8 hours walking) loved the day. Fiorella was keen to converse and discuss elements of the ruins with us, and really impressed everyone with her knowledge: right down to the engineering styles of the buildings. Having someone so passionate and informed just made the whole experience far better. She also periodically asked for feedback on the tour and how we were going, which was really lovely and made us all feel comfortable asking further questions. She also made sure we got a chance to say if there was anything in particular we wanted to see which was great as one of us had studied Pompeii this year and really wanted to visit a few particular places.
She was very receptive and encouraging of any questions or clarifications, and particularly to engagement with discussion as a result of previous knowledge or drawing conclusions. We were also never rushed which was very nice on an extended tour, and could rest whenever we wished (fortunately we were so interested and keen to see more that we never needed to rest!).
The whole family enjoyed Fiorella's company to the point that we invited her to lunch, and we had a great time. She showed us the best pizza in Napoli (it really was the best we had, and we ate a lot of pizza), explained which combinations were local and was very happy to recommend pizzas she thought were good when asked. Not only that, but she encouraged us to try more local dishes that we would never have ordered on our own. Not once was it disappointing! We had excellent gelato and espresso all on her recommendation. Not only that, she also gave us a mini tour of Naples as we walked through the get to the Napoli Museum, and it was really great to learn about the nativity scenes that come from the region. Not once during the whole day did she not know the answer to whatever question was asked, whether about Pompeii, life in Naples, the way these nativity scenes were built or the symbolism behind common elements in them.
The archaeological museum was also very interesting, particularly learning from Fiorella about the different styles of art and seeing the preserved frescoes. She even knew about the historical significance of the museum building itself!
Our only regret was that we didn't have another day to spend with her! She made us feel very welcome, was very engaging and kept our entire family entertained and educated for 8 hours on a walking tour.
We would definitely recommend her, would be very keen to do it again!
Barbara
Reviewed on:
Dec 25, 2013
She was amazing! Knowledgeable, friendly, supportive - I would take a tour with her again - anytime.
Linda
Reviewed on:
Mar 12, 2013
