Pompeii or Herculaneum?
Pompeii if it's your one day near Naples; Herculaneum if you've seen Pompeii, or you have two hours and want houses, not a city. Pompeii is a town of streets, the Forum and the Amphitheatre: €20 to €30, and a day. Herculaneum is four hectares of houses with their upper floors and wood still in place: €16, and two hours. Both are on the same train line, and you can do both in a day if you start early.
By Chiara Vitale · Updated September 19, 2026
- Pompeii €20, €25 with the villa · Herculaneum €16
- Pompeii 9:00–19:00, last entry 17:30 · Herculaneum 8:30–19:30, last entry 18:00
- Pompei Villa dei Misteri and Ercolano Scavi, both on the Naples–Sorrento line
- Pompeii: 67 buildings on the park's list, 52 open · Herculaneum: four hectares excavated of twenty
Pompeii
- Two hours for the Forum and the houses around it; four with the Villa of the Mysteries and the Amphitheatre at opposite ends
- €20 city; €25 with the Villa of the Mysteries; €30 Pompeii Plus, three days. Named, 20,000 a day, no re-entry
- The Forum, the Amphitheatre (the oldest standing), the casts, the Lupanar, the baths, the villa
- Two gates on two lines: Villa dei Misteri for Porta Marina, Pompei Santuario for the Amphitheatre
Herculaneum
- Two hours is a full visit; the site is a few streets deep, under 20 m of hardened flow
- €16; €2 for ages 18 to 25; free on the first Sunday. Online through CoopCulture or at the gate
- Upper floors, wooden beams and doors, the mosaic of Neptune and Amphitrite, the Suburban Baths, the boat sheds with the skeletons of some 300 people
- One gate, Ercolano Scavi station on the Naples–Sorrento line. Villa of the Papyri and the theatre closed
Archaeological Park of Pompeii (ticket table, list of open buildings); Archaeological Park of Herculaneum (tickets, hours, "Archaeological Area", "The Eruption"). Updated September 19, 2026.
Which one for you?
Herculaneum park, "The Eruption" and "Archaeological Area"; Pompeii park hours. Updated September 19, 2026.
The two, side by side
| Pompeii | Herculaneum | |
|---|---|---|
| Ticket | €20 city · €25 with the Villa of the Mysteries · €30 Plus, 3 days · €2 reduced | €16 · €2 reduced, 18 to 25 |
| Where to buy | pompeii.vivaticket.it or the offices at three gates; named tickets, 20,000 a day | CoopCulture online or the box office at the gate |
| Summer hours | 9:00–19:00, last entry 17:30 (March 16 to October 14) | 8:30–19:30, last entry 18:00 (March 16 to October 14) |
| Winter hours | 9:00–17:00, last entry 15:30 | 8:30–17:00, last entry 15:30 |
| Closed | December 25, January 1 | December 25 |
| Size | 67 buildings on the park's list, 52 open this season | About four hectares visible of twenty; the rest under modern Ercolano |
| Time needed | 2 hours for the centre, 4 for both ends | 2 hours |
| Station | Pompei Villa dei Misteri (Sorrento line) · Pompei Santuario (Poggiomarino line) | Ercolano Scavi (Sorrento line) |
| Closed this year | Amphitheatre seen from the southern entrance only since June 14; four houses closed August 15 | Villa of the Papyri and the ancient theatre |
| Free day | First Sunday of the month | First Sunday of the month; April 25, June 2, November 4 |
Both parks' official pages. Pompeii prices from January 12, 2026. Updated September 19, 2026.
Can I do both in one day?
- Buy the Pompeii ticket for the morning before you go: named, and the morning fills first in summer.
- Pompeii from 9:00. Porta Marina from Villa dei Misteri station, or the Amphitheatre gate from Pompei Santuario. Give it four hours if you want both ends.
- Train to Ercolano Scavi, toward Naples on the same Sorrento line.
- Herculaneum by 16:00. Last entry 18:00 in summer; two hours is a full visit, and the site closes at 19:00.
Park hours and "How to get there" pages of both parks. Updated September 19, 2026.
Or a tour that does both
Pompeii and Herculaneum tours, compared →Both sites in one day with a guide, the two tickets in the price and the train or coach between them handled. What to compare: how you move between the sites, hours at each, and whether both entries are in the price.
Pompeii and Herculaneum Small Group Tour with an Archaeologist
Pompeii & Herculaneum by Train from Rome with Pizza Lunch
Day Trip to Pompeii, Herculaneum and Vesuvius from Naples
Viator listings. Updated September 19, 2026.
People also ask
Is Pompeii or Herculaneum better?
Neither, and the question hides the real one: how much time do you have. A day: Pompeii. Two hours: Herculaneum. Both: Pompeii first.
Why isn't Herculaneum as famous as Pompeii?
Four hectares are excavated of about twenty; the rest lies under the modern town, beneath around 20 m of hardened volcanic material. Pompeii is a whole city on the surface.
Are the skeletons in Herculaneum real?
Yes. Some 300 were found in 1980 in the boat sheds on the ancient beach, in nine of the twelve vaults. Since July 15, 2026 a new path, over 100 m long, takes you down to the beach to see them.
Which is the base for Vesuvius?
Either. The national park lists taxis and shuttles from Ercolano Scavi station, and EAV buses from Pompei Villa dei Misteri station. The crater ticket is €10, online only, whichever you start from.
Is there a combined ticket?
Each park sells its own: Pompeii on Vivaticket, Herculaneum through CoopCulture. Pompeii Plus, €30, covers Oplontis and Stabiae, not Herculaneum.
Which is better with kids or in the heat?
Herculaneum: two hours and done, on a site a few streets deep. Pompeii is a whole town of streets. What I'd do: in August, Pompeii from 9:00 and out by lunch, Herculaneum another day.
Both parks' official pages; Vesuvius National Park for the buses. Updated September 19, 2026.