We spent a month near Sorrento which is a short train ride from Naples, Pompeii, and Herculaneum. While we’d hoped to also visit Mt Vesuvius on this day trip, the trails were closed so we made do with history and pizza.
We are continuing our exploration of ancient Roman ruins in Southern Italy. The Archeological Park of Herculaneum was a small location for the rich class that Vesuvius destroyed in the 79AD eruption. To compare Herculaneum vs. Pompeii consider that When Vesuvius erupted in 79 A.D, the volcano covered the city with ash instead of pumice. Hence, the ruins are actually much better preserved than Pompeii. However, the town is a much smaller archeological park which makes it much more approachable. To get to Herculaneum from Naples, simply take the same Circum Vesuviana line as you would to Pompeii or Sorrento. And of course, you just reverse direction if you are traveling from Sorrento to Herculaneum. Then take a short but straightforward walk from the train station. You will pass several nice little restaurants along the way if you need some delicious Italian food.
🇮🇹Ruins of Herculaneum Walking Tour – Walk with City Walks 4K!
Many people catch a bus from the train station up to Vesuvius and then tour Herculaneum afterwards. Unfortunately, they were doing construction work up at Vesuvius so it was closed while we were in the area. You can totally visit Herculaneum without a tour with a downloadable phone app. If you wish to visit Herculaneum, you can get tickets on the Herculaneum official website and in the visitor center where they have lockers too. To get to Herculaneum from Naples, you can just take the train.
Herculaneum is open every day from 8:30AM to 6PM.
Recently, researches made a huge advance in reading the Herculaneum Scrolls. It’s mainly a technical advance that ha allowed them to scan through the scrolls to read just a single word. However, the technique promises to allow them to read much more going forward. What an exciting time!
Other Ancient Ruins:
🇮🇹Ruins of Herculaneum Walking Tour
🇮🇹Ancient Pompeii Ruins Walking Video
Findlater Castle, Scotland – Coastal Walking Tour
Orkney Scotland – Ring of Brodgar Walk
Tikal, Guatemala – Explore the Ruins of the Ancient Mayan City
Copan Ruinas, Honduras Mayan Ruins
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