Wondering how to visit Vesuvius? How do I get there? How best to organize your trip? You’ve come to the right place!
Vesuvius, an active volcano, is an incredible natural site not to be missed during your stay in the Naples area. At the top of the crater, you will have an unforgettable view of the bay of Naples, located 25 kilometers away.
We’ve put all our tips together in this article(buying a ticket, parking, finding the right hiking trails on a map…) and we’ll explain the mistakes you shouldn’t make.
Summary of how to visit Vesuvius
To help you plan your visit to Vesuvius, here’s a summary table with key information.
We advise you to prepare your visit well in advance. We’re used to organizing our own excursions, so for Vesuvius we had a hard time finding useful and, above all, up-to-date information .
Info and tickets for Vesuvius
Key information
⚠️ No ticket sales on site
☝️ There is no network at the entrance to the site, so remember to save your ticket on your phone.
Booking links
- 🎟️ Online Vesuvius ticket with time slot + French audio guide
- 🎟️ Ticket for an excursion (ticket + journey + guide included) from Naples or Pompeii with guide in French
- 🅿 Parking ticket
- 🅿 Shuttle ticket (purchase only on site)
- 🎟️ 1-day combined ticket (Vesuvius + Pompeii)
Hotels
In Naples: Information and booking for the Hotel Garibaldi room, right in the center of town
In Pompeii: Information and booking for Hotel Il Vecchio Fauno, with parking, a 5-minute walk from the ruins and a 30-minute drive from Vesuvius.
To book admission tickets, we recommend using the Get Your Guide online booking platform (official reseller), as tickets benefit from flexible cancellation and modification conditions , and can be refunded up to 24 hours before the activity. Prices are the same as on the official website.
This guide is completely independent, based on our own experience. We visited Lake Como by creating our own itinerary (after extensive research) and selecting our own activities.
You can download this guide free of charge as a PDF file for offline consultation at the end of this article.
Visit Vesuvius on foot: our hiking tips
When to go?
As is often the case, we recommend that you get up early and be at the entrance before 9:00 a.m., so you can avoid groups and crowds. You can take a nap once you get back to your hotel!
How do I get up there?
From the parking lot, a shuttle (3€ round trip) will take you up to the beginning of the hiking trail (at the ticket office) which will lead you to the crater. You can also walk these 2km on foot, the path is accessible but not very interesting.
Then, after a 30-minute climb along a wide, signposted path , you’ll reach the summit of Vesuvius, which rises to an altitude of around 1,200 m, offering an unforgettable view of the Bay of Naples and the interior of the crater.
At the summit, the first part of the tour (about 20 minutes) is done in a group with a guide who will explain the volcano to you, and then you can explore the crater on your own.
Tours are generally in Italian and English, but don’t hesitate to ask for a tour in French, as some guides speak French.
Afterwards, allow around 40 minutes at the summit to enjoy the view to the full, and remember to bring warm clothing, as the wind often blows.
Here’s an interactive map we’ve made to help you find your way around, which is also available offline.
Mistakes not to make
We were rather surprised by the lack of information on the official website and the rather mixed feedback from other travelers about the organization on site.
If you’re organizing this excursion yourself, we’ll give you the mistakes to avoid:
- ❗ Before arriving at the site, you must reserve your tickets for Vesuvius with French audio guide and your time slot .
- or book your tickets for an excursion (ticket + journey + English-speaking guide included). As you’ll read in many comments on the internet, if you arrive without a reservation, you won’ t be able to access the site even if you’ve already paid for parking and the shuttle…
- Download your tickets before you get to the site, because the connection is very very bad at the ticket office.
- Reserve your parking space (7€) in advance, too, after you’ve bought your ticket, you’ll receive a link to the parking lot.
- The park is open all year round, although in winter the Vesuvius Park is open until 3 pm.
- Bring good shoes, as the climb to the crater is steep and slippery. Also bring water and snacks as there are no restaurants at the summit.
- Remember to pack warm clothes, as the wind can be cool at altitude.
Vesuvius and Pompeii 1-day tour from Naples
💡 To save time, you can combine a visit to the archaeological site of Pompeii and Mount Vesuvius on the same day (as they are only 30 minutes apart). Pick-up is possible from your hotel, train station or port.
In the morning, you’ll explore the incredible site of Pompeii with your guide, in French, who will give you explanations and anecdotes, then after your meal (included), you’ll have 1h30 to go up, around the crater and back down again.
🎟️ Your combined ticket (Vesuvius + Pompeii) includes transport, entrance tickets, guides and lunch for a very attractive price.
Where to buy your tickets?
➡️ Attention! Tickets for Vesuvius are sold almost exclusively online. No tickets are sold on site. Here are the different options:
- Tickets for Vesuvius: from €24, buy your tickets with audio guide here and book your slot online, well in advance, as the number of visitors per day is limited.
❗If there are no more tickets available online on the day of your visit, don’t panic, you can book a chauffeur-driven excursion from Naples (+ guide on site). Agencies reserve seats in advance.
How to get to Vesuvius?
From Naples
- Car: if you have rented a car, from Naples you can reach the Vesuvius parking lot in about 40 minutes. As already mentioned in our previous articles about Naples and its region, we advise you to be vigilant, because driving in this city is sporty and the traffic rules are not always respected.
👉 To compare offers and find the best value for money, after testing several today, we’re using the reliable and easy-to-use Discover Cars price comparator for car hire.
🚗 To give you an idea of the rate, we found a car for €35 per day through Galdieri Rent to pick up at Naples airport.
🎟️ Compare Naples airport deals on Discover Cars
- Bus: departure from Piazza Piedigrotta (EAC company), cost around €20 return, with 1h45 on site.
Excursion from Naples to visit Vesuvius in total peace of mind
💡 For those who want to save time, this is the ideal option. We recommend booking an all-inclusive tour (pick-up at your hotel, tickets, parking, shuttle and guide on site) with driver from your Naples hotel, in short no organization required (to visit Vesuvius on your own, you’ll have to organize well), you can fully enjoy the beauty of the place! It’s an excursion we recommend.
🎟️ More information on the excursion to Vesuvius from Naples
From Pompeii
- Car : if you’ve hired a car, from Pompeii you can reach the Vesuvius parking lot in around 40 minutes (the same distance as from Naples).
- Bus: departure from Pompei Scavi station, located next to the archaeological park, the journey takes around 1 hour with the EAV company, and costs around €6 return per person. Once there, you’ll have 1h30 to climb up to the crater.
🎟️ Your combined ticket (Vesuvius + Pompeii) includes transport, entrance tickets, guides and lunch.
From Herculaneum
- Car: Vesuvius is just 12km from the archaeological site ofHerculaneum, and if you’ve hired a car , you’ll reach the parking lot in 25 minutes.
- Bus: with Vesuvio Expressthe bus located in front of the station, which connects to Vesuvius in 30 minutes for 10€ round trip per person. Once there, you will have 1h30 to go up to the crater.
Where to park?
The Vesuvius site is equipped with a parking lot, with spaces along the road, which must be reserved in advance, otherwise you may not be able to park.
When you book your ticket, you’ll receive a link to the parking lot, or you can reserve it on this site, either way for €7.
Afterwards, a shuttle bus will take you up to the start of the hiking trails (€3). There is no need to make a reservation for the shuttle.
Where to sleep near Vesuvius?
After your excursion to Vesuvius, you have several options: book a hotel close to Vesuvius, or stay at one of the region’s other points of interest: Naples, Pompeii or Herculaneum.
We stayed at Il Vecchio Fauno, a 5-minute walk from the ruins, the town center and the train station. Our room was spacious, clean and well decoratedAs an added bonus, there are paintings on display in the hotel’s common areas. The breakfast is very good, homemade cake, blinis, eggs, ham, fruit etc…
The hosts are lovely and will gladly answer all your questions, which is always great! If you’re coming by car, parking is free, which saves you ten euros or so and a lot of stress! In short, excellent value for money!
📍 Pompeii is just 30 minutes south of Vesuvius.
To make it easier for you to find what you’re looking for in Naples, we’ve put together an article detailing the most interesting neighborhoods to stay in and those to avoid, as well as our best hotel addresses.
We recommend the Hotel Garibaldi Rooms, ideally located right next to the main railway station, and therefore the airport shuttle bus stop right in the historic center, so you can do everything on foot. We slept there for 3 nights in a quiet place.
To help you find what you’re looking for, we recommend that you use the Booking search engine to select your accommodation. By filtering the scores above 8/10, we’re rarely disappointed. We advise you to book as early as possible, as Naples remains one of Italy’s most popular tourist destinations.
Vesuvius is one of the most surprising places we have ever visited. We loved writing this article, which allowed us to immerse ourselves in this extraordinary day. The views over the Bay of Naples and its islands, including Capri, will live long in our memories.
We hope we’ve helped you plan your day. Don’t hesitate to book and plan your visit well in advance, as this site requires a little more organization to get the most out of it and, above all, not to be disappointed. Like some passengers who arrive at the ticket office without a ticket and have no choice but to turn back (even though they’ve already paid for the parking lot and shuttle)…
💡 Read our article and find out how to visit Vesuvius and the archaeological site of Pompeii in the same day.
Feel free to leave us a quick note or 5 stars below, to tell us if you’re planning this trip, to ask any questions you may have, here or on Instagram, we’ll get back to you with great pleasure.
