It would be impossible to visit the south of Italy and not go to the ancient city of Pompeii. Before we booked our tickets, we knew we had to spend half of a day roaming the street of Pompeii.

If you’re visiting Pompeii by car like we did, take the A3 Napoli-Salerno motorway and exit at the Pompei Ovest exit. The Pompeii Archaeological Park is clearly signposted from here.

We came at around 4pm and stayed until 7pm (almost 30 minutes after the site officially closed) so we had the whole city, which was incredible. Other travel blogger recommened going super early to beat the crowds so either one works.  You do need at least 3 hours to visit the whole site, but ideally longer. We bought our tickets from the ticket office when we arrived – but we went in off-peak season and there was no queue. I would recommend booking your ticket in advance if you are going during the summer months.

History of Pompeii

Old Pompeii is one of the cities discovered in the volcanic ash of Vesuvius, being in the archaeological site of the today’s Pompeii.

Vesuvius volcano at about 14km from Pompeii and Herculaneum erupted in late summer in 79 AD. In the first few hours, not many people left the city as they didn’t consider it dangerous enough.

The eruption lasted only two days but its impact was enormous. Together with Herculaneum, Pompeii had a population of about 20,000 people and a lot of them managed to leave the area. Unfortunately, around about 1500 people died. People initially thought that they died from inhaling toxic gas but the real cause of death was actually from the heat emitted by the lava of the volcano, which would have made the atmosphere of the place reach 300 degrees celcius.

Self-Guided Tour

As my husband and I were on a budget for this trip (in the midst of a house renovation!). We listen to the free Rick Steves audio guide of Pompeii. It was so interesting.

We learnt that what made Pompeii one of the most prosperous cities of the time was that i) the soil of that area was quite fertile, making it ideal for agriculture and ii) it was close to the sea making it ideal for trade.

It was so impressive walking through the city seeing their theatres, bars and villas. It was one of the few cities of that time that was built of stone and not wood. The streets was also built in such a way that rainwater and the dirt of the city flowed through and the sidewalks was built higher so that the inhabitants could walk through without getting dirty.

The Main Sights

House of the Faun

This is one of the most well-preserved houses in Pompeii. We were shocked with well-preserved the mosaics were. It was actually the eruption of Vesuvius that made them stand still in time. The dancing Faun statue is made of bronze and was in such good state.

Fast Food

These fast-food joints were scattering around town and you can spot them by their huge holes in stone counters. These holes were to use to hold pots of food that we being kept warms for consumers.

Stepping Stones

These stepping stones were the Roman’s version of pedestrian crossing. As the streets would be flooded most evenings to clean away the muck – these stones would help people cross the street and remain clean.

The Brothel

From some bizarre reason, when I told my colleague that we are visiting Pompeii, the first thing he said to me was to make sure we visit the Brothel. It was fascinating seeing the “menu” on the wall and different stone beds and rooms.

Cast of Victims

Seeing this was extremely sombre but a very important part of the archaeological find. Empty spaces In the ground were discovered and they were the exact shape of bodies. They then poured plaster to form casts of these human and animal bodies. It was interested seeing what they looked like in their last moments.

Ampitheatre of Pompeii

This was used for gladiatorial combat and is the oldest one of its kind in existence. It could hold up to 20,000 spectators!

We stayed half an hour after the place shuts and I’m so glad we did. There was something so eerie about walking around this skeleton of a city without anybody insight. We loved our visit to Pompeii and would definitely recommend a visit here!