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Herculaneum

Herculaneum is a town close to Naples in Campania, Italy. It is named after the ruined Roman city which forms its main attraction. This is an area of some economic deprivation, so watch your belongings!

Travel to Herculaneum & Visa Requirements

Buses to Herculaneum

Frequent buses run to and from Naples.

By Train

The Circumvesuviana trains take 25 minutes to get there from Naples and 40 minutes from Sorrento. To get to the ruins, get off at the Ercolano station, follow the brown signs right and left, then 8 blocks downhill to the big arch where the ticket office & baggage check are (pick up bag 30 minutes before site closing)

Tours & Getting around Herculaneum

Herculaneum attractions and sightseeing

  • The Ruins of Herculaneum - since Herculaneum was submerged by a boiling mud slide from Vesuvius, which then solidified, the ruins of the houses and streets are in a much better state of preservation than it's neighbour Pompeii, with many of the upper stories still intact. Restoration work is ongoing, and while a lot of the timbers have been replaced, there is still much of the original timberwork present, albeit, badly charred. Urban clearance is taking place in the modern town, which was built above the Roman ruins, in order to expose more of the archaeological remains. There are some surprising finds here such as an intact wooden Roman bed. Since it is less famous than Pompeii, it can also be a more pleasant visit during the tourist season, as you don't have to fight your way past hordes of other tourists in order to get into the buildings. The ruins at Herculaneum are much smaller than those at Pompeii, so it is very possible to walk through the entire excavation and see all the highlights in part of an afternoon. You can get to the ruins by walking down the main street to the very bottom of the hill. Costs €11, or €20 combo ticket with Pompeii, good for three days. Site can be free or 50% off with Campania ArteCard, for more info go to [1] Open daily April to October 8:30-7:30, November to March 8:30-5:00. Ticket office closes 90 minutes before site does, pick up free map at entrance. Audioguides cost €6.50, €10 for two, ID required, turn in 30 minutes before closing. Bathrooms are next to audioguide kiosk. At the ruins, be sure to see:
    • House of the Deer
    • Baths
    • House of Neptune & Amphitrite
    • Gymnasium
  • The Vesuvius Natural Reserve Buses leave in the morning from the Circumvesuviana station to the reserve. You can visit the crater in a guided tour.
  • Villa Campolieto A beautiful 18th Century villa overlooking the shore. It is open for visitors on weekends only.

Herculaneum city tours

Herculaneum souvenirs & shopping

Herculaneum Restaurants: cheap, moderate and expensive

There are pastry shops on the road from the train station to the site. They aren't the food you're used to in Italy. If you aren't going to tour the poorer parts of Italy they'd probably be neat to check out.

Take your own food to the site, there's only one vending machine, and that's mostly for drinks.

Herculaneum nightlife, bars, clubs & pubs

Herculaneum cheap and luxurious hotels, youth hostels & lodging

Get out

  • Take the Circumvesuviana commuter train to any of the following destinations:
    • The grand city of Naples
    • The nearby fellow destroyed Roman town of Pompeii, from here you can also takes buses up to Mt. Vesuvius
    • The lovely town of Sorrento. From there you can take boats to Capri (also from Naples), and go to the stunning Amalfi Coast

This page was last edited at 21:28, on 7 October 2008 by Wikitravel user Spircle. Based on work by Oliver Buchino, Daniel Cowan and Sininen, Wikitravel user(s) Ashibaka, Episteme and Pz-engl and Anonymous user(s) of Wikitravel.

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