Has anybody been to Pompeii?

[mudskipper]

Thinking about where to go in the summer and always wanted to see Pompeii, maybe take a guitar and play a tune in the amphitheatre.

Never been to Italy at all so want to see a few other places while I'm there. I'd welcome any suggestions, experiences, abuse...

Yep - went last summer. Pompeii was excellent. Very, very hot though (August). Amalfi coast was fantastic - but take your own toilet seat

Really enjoyed it - good mixture of relaxation and stuff to do.

Highly recommend Mary Beard's book Pompeii - probably not for a hardcore historian, but for those of us who don't know much and want to know more, she presents the evidence in an interesting way - relating it to the lives of those who lived there. Having read it definitely enhanced my visit.

[norrahe]

If you are going to go to Italy try and stay in an agritourismo, We used the Alastair Sawdays special places to stay while we were there.

PM me and I can recommend a few places that we used

You get to stay on a country farm or cottage and to try fantastic foods and wine. They vary from basic to luxury.

If you are driving, the further south you go the worse the driving gets, in the south they are nutters and the Amalfi coast drive is as dangerous as it is beautiful, the worst thing is meeting a tour bus on narrow coastal corner and the bus is hogging the road.

[TiroFijo]

Seen Pink Floyd live at Pompeii, albeit on my telly from a DVD. There didn't seem to be anyone there tho.

[Lockhouse]

I got married in Italy and love the place.

Firstly, yes go to Pompeii!

I agree with Swampy about The Colosseum and Palantine Hill in Rome. It is fantastic, pre-book your tickets or get a guided tour. This has got to be the highlight of any tour of Rome allow at least 1/2 day to do it properly.

You can quite happily walk from the Colusseum to The Pantheon which is also worth a look.

Trevi Fountain is nice as are the Spanish Steps but not worth going to Rome on it's own for. Think Piccadilly Circus with a statue in the middle.

The Vatican, yes it's lovely but there are far too many people. Go later in the day to see the Sistine Chapel. I was underwhelmed and my wife almost passed out in the crush. I felt most of the best stuff was leading up to the Chapel itself so take your time. My wife went to Mass in St Peters on Sunday Morning if that's your bag but don't miss the Basilica in any event.

Personally we love Tuscany. Florence, Siena and Lucca are all beautiful. We got married in Florence and we're going back there in October for our 10th wedding anniversary. There are too many people there in the summer.

The day before we were due to get married I got a short sharp cold and had to spend the day in bed. We were supposed to go to the Uffizi that day so we never got there. This October, we're having a personal guided tour.

If you are going to Siena, the best time to go is September\October as they lift the wooden boards that protect the floor of the Duomo. That was breathtaking.

[norrahe]

If you are going to to go, go off season to avoid the high prices and crowds.

[Lockhouse]

If you are going to to go, go off season to avoid the high prices and crowds.

Seconded.

[Wonko]

Do the Colosseum as a tour (to skip queue) with the Palentine Hill too. Get an English guide if you can.

Careful as some of the (perhaps unofficial) tour guides might try to rip you off; they will get you past the queue at the Collusseum will but keep your ticket, which only later do you realise is in two parts - valid for the Palatine as well... (and they re-sell these later).

[Bunk]

Stay in Naples -- it's a *very* cool city.

Naples was a dump, 10 feet of rubbish everywhere because the Mafia had organised a strike, but that was a good few years ago.

Definitely agree more with EO about Naples, you can see the nice parts of Naples in half an hour and then move on somewhere nicer.

I stayed in Rome last year, did walking tour around the Colosseum, Palotine Hill, Forum etc. All excellent. I also did a 2 day tour covering Naples, Pompeii, Sorrento and Capri. You can do longer ones that cover the Amalfi Coast as well. Sorrento and Capri were really nice, well worth seeing.

[Cliphead]

Thanks all!

[mudskipper]

Thanks to this thread, remembered I had an unopened bottle of Sorrento Limoncello. The situation has now been remedied.