Culture
Herculaneum — the better Pompeii
Smaller, more concentrated, two-storey houses preserved with wooden beams still in place. And almost no crowds.
Why it's preserved better
Pompeii was buried by 6 metres of ash and pumice; Herculaneum by 20 metres of pyroclastic flow that hardened into rock. The seal preserved organic materials — wooden roof beams, marble inlaid floors, even loaves of bread in the bakery.
Only a fifth of Herculaneum has been excavated (the rest is under the modern town). What's open is unusually intact: a 4-storey insula, the suburban baths, mosaic-floored townhouses still with their second floors.
How to visit
Take the Circumvesuviana from Naples Garibaldi to 'Ercolano Scavi' (20 min, €2.40). Tickets €13, often available walk-up. Allow 3 hours.
If you can only do one site, go to Pompeii. If you've done Pompeii before, do Herculaneum — different lesson, fewer people.
Where to stay
Our homes in Pompeii
The Roman city frozen by Vesuvius in 79 AD — and a working modern town that makes a serious base for the volcano, Herculaneum, and Naples day trips.
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