Day trips from Naples
Pompeii, Herculaneum, Vesuvius, Capri and the Amalfi coast — five trips from Naples, and only Herculaneum and Vesuvius share a day.
- Pompeii
- about 40 min on the Circumvesuviana
- Herculaneum
- 17–20 min by train
- Vesuvius
- Crater tickets online only
From Naples one suburban line runs to both towns Vesuvius buried in AD 79, and the hydrofoil leaves Molo Beverello for Capri. Of the five trips only Herculaneum and the Vesuvius crater share a day; Pompeii is half a day, and Capri and Amalfi each want their own.
Pompeii — half a day, and the museum for the other half
The Circumvesuviana reaches Pompei Scavi in about 40 min. The ancient town covered 64 to 67 hectares and two-thirds of it has been dug, so you do not see it all: the official themed tours, paid on top of entry, take about an hour and a half each, and a morning covers the forum, the baths and a few houses. Last entry is 5.30 pm in summer, 3.30 pm in winter. The afternoon belongs to the National Archaeological Museum in Naples, where the frescoes and mosaics from the site are — any day but Tuesday.
Herculaneum and Vesuvius — the one pair for a single day
Vesuvius goes first: the park closes the crater trail in bad weather, while Herculaneum does not depend on it, so it keeps for later. Crater tickets (the Gran Cono, trail 5) are sold online only, on the park's official portal, with a time slot — nothing is sold at the barrier. Herculaneum is the afternoon: 17–20 min by train from Naples, two to three hours on site, with last entry at 6 pm in summer. The Villa of the Papyri and the ancient theatre are closed, so count on the town alone.
Capri and Amalfi — two separate days
Capri is about 50 min away by hydrofoil from Molo Beverello. The Blue Grotto's mouth is two metres wide and about a metre high at low tide: you go in on a four-person rowing boat, lying flat on the bottom, and only when the sea is calm — in a swell it is shut. The Amalfi coast is reached overland: the Circumvesuviana to Sorrento, about 1 h 10 (train), then the bus along the coast.
How long each takes
Sharing a day — only Herculaneum and Vesuvius
Matera
Matera is not a day trip from Naples: the direct bus takes about 3 h 15 each way, so it needs a night there, most easily as a stop on the way to Bari.
Sicily
Sicily is a journey of its own, with two gateways: Palermo in the west and Catania in the east, below Etna.
Who should skip them
- Vesuvius in cloud. With mist on the summit you see nothing from the crater, and the climb and the ticket are the same.
- Capri for the Blue Grotto in a swell. The grotto is shut then, so if it is the reason for the trip, the sea forecast decides.
- Pompeii and Herculaneum on the same day. Two large sites in the sun — one of them gets rushed.
Before you go
Short answers to what people ask most before setting out.
Pompeii or Herculaneum?
It depends on the day. Herculaneum lies under some twenty metres of hot volcanic material that carbonised, and so preserved, wooden roofs, beds and doors, so it is better kept, and it opens on Tuesdays, when the museum in Naples is closed. Pompeii is bigger, and with the museum it makes a full day.
How do I get to Pompeii?
The Circumvesuviana, on the Sorrento line, from Porta Nolana or Garibaldi to Pompei Scavi. The site ticket carries your name, and entry is capped at 20,000 people a day.
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Pompeii · 23 km
→The Roman town Vesuvius buried in AD 79 is a half-day trip from Naples, on one ticket and without a car.
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