Archaeological Tour : Pompeii, Herculaneum and Naples Museum.

This private tour aims to take you to discover the most important archaeological sites in the world: Pompeii and Herculaneum. The tour ends with a visit to the Archaeological Museum of Naples, custodian of exceptional archaeological artifacts discovered in the ancient cities you will visit. Our service offers pickup from Naples by private transfer to Pompeii, which will be the first stop on the tour. You will be driven to the entrance of the excavations, where you will continue on this approximately 2-hour archaeological walk. After that, at the end of the visit you will meet again with our driver and leave for the last stop of the tour, which will be the Archaeological Park of Herculaneum. Here too, our staff member will take you to the entrance of the Herculaneum excavations and wait for the end of the tour, which will last about 1 and 45 minutes. From here you will depart to the Archaeological Museum of Naples. The museum will complete your experience admiring mosaics, frescoes and statues from nearby Herculaneum and Pompeii, wonders that survived the destructive force of Vesuvius.

Short historical notes

On August 24, 79 AD, Vesuvius erupted after a very long time, taking the people of the area by surprise. The eruption was atomic: everything around the volcano was obliterated. Of the destroyed cities, nothing remained. After 1,700 years, the Vesuvian towns came back to light. In fact, humanity knew the two most important archaeological sites in the world: Herculaneum and Pompeii. Unlike Pompeii, buried by a layer of ash and lapilli, Herculaneum was submerged by lots of mud and lava. It was exactly because of the mud that the materials became sealed and well-preserved: the wood, fabrics and food underwent a slow transformation, remaining almost petrified.

The great discovery

In 1709 Prince d’Elboeuf, a distinguished figure of the time, during excavations at one of his many villas, accidentally discovered the structures of the Theater. Later, King Charles of Bourbon ordered the official start of excavations in 1738. The most important surprise was the grandiose Villa of the Papyri, in which the heritage of bronze and marble sculptures (now at the National Archaeological Museum of Naples) and the Papyri library (now at the National Library of Naples) were found. From then until today it is always a succession of new discoveries.

Notes about our tour

You can customize the tour itinerary as you wish, according to your needs. For clients traveling on a Cruise ship in the Port of Naples, it is strongly recommended to stick to the suggested itinerary. In fact, the first stop on the tour will be the one furthest from the port, until you end the tour with the closest stop. This way you will be in time for boarding.

Important notes about the tour guide

Please note that for a complete and comprehensive understanding of the history of the archaeological sites and museums, you can book a licensed tour guide with us and get a discounted price. You freely decide whether to have the tour guide for the whole tour, or for only one/two/ of the sites to be visited. Of course, you can visit these places without the support of a tour guide by renting classic self-guides at each site you will visit.

For any information about our tours, please do not hesitate to contact us.