Pompeii On Your Own Excursion

[lucky346]

Just returned from the Mediterranean cruise on the Epic. Had a great time, but wanted to pass along some advice for this particular excursion.

 

We did the Pompeii On Your Own through NCL. When we arrived at the site, the lines to get in were huge. And this was mid-May. My understanding is that it will get worse throughout the summer. When you do the "on your own" tour, admission is not included. You're just paying for the bus ride to the site and back.

 

The guide (from the bus) said, "Oh, it will take about 15 minutes to get through the line." Not true at all. It took us almost an hour. Considering we only had a few hours to tour the site, we used up almost a third of our time standing in line.

 

There was a separate line (almost no one in it!) if you purchased your tickets ahead of time. I wish we'd known that was an option because even though it was a little more expensive, it would totally have been worth it. Highly recommend doing that!

 

There were a bunch of independent tour guides clustering around the line, asking over and over, "Do you want a tour?" If you paid them 10 euros per person, plus the cost of admission, they could short-cut the line (tour guides had priority) and let you basically skip the lines. One guy in our group asked, "Can we pay you and then go off on our own?" and none of the guides would agree to that. If they take you in, apparently they need to give you a tour. Which is fine if you want a tour, but if you really want to do it on your own, obviously you won't be hiring one of the guides.

 

Anyway, everyone in our group was really upset about the long lines and the wait, mostly because none of us had been warned about it and it would have been so easy to pre-purchase the tickets while at home and avoid the lines. Or at least expect the lines and not be so frustrated. Or expect to hire a guide once we got there and pay extra for it and stick with the guide.

 

 

So, if you are considering this excursion, buy your tickets ahead of time!! Or maybe consider a different way to get there so you aren't so rushed. We felt like we didn't get to see very much of Pompeii.

[Longstockingpippi1]

Just returned from the Mediterranean cruise on the Epic. Had a great time, but wanted to pass along some advice for this particular excursion.

 

We did the Pompeii On Your Own through NCL. When we arrived at the site, the lines to get in were huge. And this was mid-May. My understanding is that it will get worse throughout the summer. When you do the "on your own" tour, admission is not included. You're just paying for the bus ride to the site and back.

 

The guide (from the bus) said, "Oh, it will take about 15 minutes to get through the line." Not true at all. It took us almost an hour. Considering we only had a few hours to tour the site, we used up almost a third of our time standing in line.

 

There was a separate line (almost no one in it!) if you purchased your tickets ahead of time. I wish we'd known that was an option because even though it was a little more expensive, it would totally have been worth it. Highly recommend doing that!

 

There were a bunch of independent tour guides clustering around the line, asking over and over, "Do you want a tour?" If you paid them 10 euros per person, plus the cost of admission, they could short-cut the line (tour guides had priority) and let you basically skip the lines. One guy in our group asked, "Can we pay you and then go off on our own?" and none of the guides would agree to that. If they take you in, apparently they need to give you a tour. Which is fine if you want a tour, but if you really want to do it on your own, obviously you won't be hiring one of the guides.

 

Anyway, everyone in our group was really upset about the long lines and the wait, mostly because none of us had been warned about it and it would have been so easy to pre-purchase the tickets while at home and avoid the lines. Or at least expect the lines and not be so frustrated. Or expect to hire a guide once we got there and pay extra for it and stick with the guide.

 

 

So, if you are considering this excursion, buy your tickets ahead of time!! Or maybe consider a different way to get there so you aren't so rushed. We felt like we didn't get to see very much of Pompeii.

 

We were there at the end of April right before opening time and already the line was long. That is to be expected, but I was most upset about NOT getting a group tour guide. I heard that there were guides around looking to form a group. There were none around when I was there. I was so sure I would find one so didn't bother making plans ahead of time to hire my own. So my advice if your heart is really set on a tour guide, hire your own ahead of time.

[SeahawkSiren]

We just returned from our Mediterranean cruise on the Spirit and did the NCL Pompeii On Your Own excursion (we were there on May 17). There were many people on our bus that complained of that very same thing. They spent 30-60 minutes just waiting in line to purchase entrance tickets so their actual time in Pompeii was quite limited. That would be very disappointing. DH and I did purchase tickets online in advance (after I called NCL to confirm that entrance tickets were not included) and did get to go in a separate line and got right in at 9:00 a.m. when it opened.

 

Here is the website to buy tickets in advance online:

http://www.pompeiisites.org/Sezione.jsp?titolo=TICKETS+AND+INFO&idSezione=6786

 

I will be doing a review of the cruise with many, many photos and was planning to mention this very issue in my review. As the OP stated, NCL only provides the bus transportation to and from. It was amazing to me that the guide on our bus said that many of the tour guides/groups that work Pompeii have asked the authorities who run Pompeii to make more ticket windows open so people can get through the line faster but so far nothing has happened. There was only one ticket window open for the regular line and there were easily at least a few hundred people there prior to opening and the guided tours get priority entrance.

 

If you buy tickets in advance there is a separate line to get right in. Even though we got right in at 9:00, still wish we would have had more time. It seemed like we hardly got to see any of it. The site is so large it is impossible to cover all of it in just 2.5 hours. The next time we go back I think we will just plan to take the train and spend a lot more time there (and buy tickets in advance again).

 

Pompeii is amazing though and it was one of my favorite excursions on the entire cruise.

[Linda the Book Lover]

I read about long lines during my research and decided to go with a tour group recommended on CC. After reading this I am really glad we made the decision.

[Loonbeam]

If you plan to do it on your own transport wise, book the tour guide on site. Yes, its an extra 10 euros PP or whatever, but besides the priority entrance, they also coordinate inside so that not everyone is at the same place at the same time. Our guide (arranged by RIL) constantly was checking with other guides and re-routing to avoid bus crowds etc. They also know which buildings are open that day, including the unmarked ones, etc...

[williamfturcotte]

whenever their is a huge line , anywhere in Rome the Ship tour does save you the wait of the long line

[easyboy]

Thank you for your feedback.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[Knighton]

If you go on your own, I wouldn't use ships transport anyway-there's nothing worse than being herded onto a bus with 60 other people, waiting for stragglers before the bus will leave and being on their schedule coming back. There's a train station near the port (Naples) we walked to. The train has a stop at Pompeii, so we did that and had plenty of time. Can't speak to the lines-we went in September, so it wasn't as crowded when we got there.

[FredZiffle]

I agree with Knighton. Taking the train was a piece of cake and dirt cheap. So cheap, in fact, that even though we'd bought RT tickets to Pompei, we made a decision when we finished Pompei to buy new tickets to Sorrento and caught a hydrofoil back to Naples. As I recall, there's only one two-lane road from Naples to Pompei, and there was a bad accident that afternoon delaying all buses from returning from Pompei.

[Sauer-kraut]

Beat the crowds at Pompeii and go to Herculaneum which was hit by the same volcano that did in Pompeii, but there are no crowds, the houses are more intact and there is a lot more shade. You can do this on your own with no problem, my parents, who were in their 80's managed to this DIY.

There is a train station near the port, get the train that will stop at ERCOLANO (the modern spelling of Herculaneum) and its a short walk to the ruins. The whole round trip with entrance fees and train will only cost a few Euros!

[Wendy-Europe]

I also agree with Knighton - why should I pay a ridicoulous price for a "on your own" tour, when I am perfect capable to do the tour alone (as indicated in the name).

 

Of course - some research is necessary - but especially at most mediterranean ports ships are within a walkind distance to main attractions or within reliable public transport.

 

I never booked a cruise excursion - we did a lot on our own, sometimes we rented a car and very few times took part at an organized tour with a local company (like at St. Petersburg and Israel, to make the most of our days or because visa are expensive and a tour avoid the hassle).

 

If I want to visit an attractions which is known for "high demand" I always check if I am able to book tickets in advance - so you are able to skip the lines. Did that at Rome for the Collosseum, for Barcelonas Sagrada Familia church or for the Sky Garden at London.

 

Saved us lot of time and lots of money.

[tel2]

If you want a middle ground between a ship tour and taking the train, we used Cant be missed tours. It was very reasonable compared to ship tours, was by clean, air-conditioned bus that had wi-fi, and we got a very good tour guide at Pompeii with it. https://cantbemissedtours.rezdy.com/index

[Frugalsgirl]

We were going to take the train but when we got off the ship there were numerous taxis. We haggled a price to Pompeii and another chap askedif he could join us. En route we agreed a price for the driver to come back for us. We arranged a pick up point at the exit. He dropped us at the entrance refused to take any money from us until we got back to the pier. Worked out really cheap. We were there before any crowds or organised trips.

[mochas8]

If you go on your own, I wouldn't use ships transport anyway-there's nothing worse than being herded onto a bus with 60 other people, waiting for stragglers before the bus will leave and being on their schedule coming back. There's a train station near the port (Naples) we walked to. The train has a stop at Pompeii, so we did that and had plenty of time. Can't speak to the lines-we went in September, so it wasn't as crowded when we got there.

 

Best thing about this for us- we had time for lunch at an outdoor pizzeria before going back to the train and still missed the crowds! :)

[marklloyd]

We were going to take the train but when we got off the ship there were numerous taxis. We haggled a price to Pompeii and another chap askedif he could join us. En route we agreed a price for the driver to come back for us. We arranged a pick up point at the exit. He dropped us at the entrance refused to take any money from us until we got back to the pier. Worked out really cheap. We were there before any crowds or organised trips.

 

 

Could you remember how much you paid for the return taxi so to give me a idea how much

thanks

[TrumpyNor]

There were a bunch of independent tour guides clustering around the line, asking over and over, "Do you want a tour?" If you paid them 10 euros per person, plus the cost of admission, they could short-cut the line (tour guides had priority) and let you basically skip the lines. One guy in our group asked, "Can we pay you and then go off on our own?" and none of the guides would agree to that. If they take you in, apparently they need to give you a tour. Which is fine if you want a tour, but if you really want to do it on your own, obviously you won't be hiring one of the guides.

 

Just wanted to let you (and everyone else who reads this thread) know that the "independent tour guides clustering around the line" that you are talking about, actually are the official tour guides of Pompeii, and quite knowledgable - and not someone who is out to "scam" you. They have to have an official "Pompeii Tour Guide Permit" to be allowed to guide groups of tourists at the Pompeii site, and some of them are very well educated. They do the tours at a pre-set fixed price for groups with up to 10 persons that is set by the local government, but of course also possible to do the tour with less people, but then the price per person will be higher. We did the "Pompeii on your own" ship excursions last year, and the lines to buy tickets were even worse than you describe - so after 45 min wait without the lines moving at all, we were a total of 10 persons who didn't know eachother who decided to "share" on a guide, and that was an excellent choice! I did some research "after the fact", and wish I had known about this in advance and not been so "sceptical" at first - would have saved me lots of "fruitless" time waiting in lines in front of the ticket office.

[sparkygirlfamily]

Just wanted to let you (and everyone else who reads this thread) know that the "independent tour guides clustering around the line" that you are talking about, actually are the official tour guides of Pompeii, and quite knowledgable - and not someone who is out to "scam" you. They have to have an official "Pompeii Tour Guide Permit" to be allowed to guide groups of tourists at the Pompeii site, and some of them are very well educated. They do the tours at a pre-set fixed price for groups with up to 10 persons that is set by the local government, but of course also possible to do the tour with less people, but then the price per person will be higher. We did the "Pompeii on your own" ship excursions last year, and the lines to buy tickets were even worse than you describe - so after 45 min wait without the lines moving at all, we were a total of 10 persons who didn't know eachother who decided to "share" on a guide, and that was an excellent choice! I did some research "after the fact", and wish I had known about this in advance and not been so "sceptical" at first - would have saved me lots of "fruitless" time waiting in lines in front of the ticket office.

 

 

 

This! The same is true at Herculaneum which in my opinion has better ruins, less crowds and awesome tour guides. We met our guide and walked right in.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk