Looking for Reviews: DCL Excursions Pompeii

[Foreveraprincess17]

Hi everyone,

I am looking for Pompeii excursion reviews: Amalfi Coast Drive and Ruins of Pompeii NP04 and Pompeii Half Day NP 31 or 39.

If you went on one of these excursions, please let me know how you liked the tour. How was the walking in Pompeii??

Take care,
Rener

 

[Flossbolna]

@Louise97 posted a Trip report from her Med cruise writing about the half day Pompeii tour. You can find it here:
Post in thread 'Disney Dream May 20 2023 7 Night Mediterranean - Trip Report - Complete'
https://www.disboards.com/threads/d...an-trip-report-complete.3920352/post-64838675

We did Pompeii on our own by train from Naples. It’s easy to do.

You asked about how the walking is. It’s a challenge. We are fairly used to uneven surfaces, living in Europe in a town with a medieval center that is full of cobble streets. Pompeii was another league on its own. The streets are really uneven. There are walkways sometimes that are better, but they aren’t there everywhere and they are about a foot over street level, so crossing often requires huge steps.

 

[Flossbolna]

That’s what the street looks like.

 

[keighttf]

We didn’t do the DCL excursion but did Pompeii on our own and it was pretty straightforward. Directions we used from Rick Steves Mediterranean cruise ports guidebook and used a Rick Steve’s free audio tour at Pompeii.
If mobility is an issue for you though it would probably be worth it to do the DCL excursion for the transit.

 

[msmama]

A half day will just barely scratch the surface of Pompeii. We did the climb Mt. Vesuvius and then visit Pompeii excursion and it was a pretty brutal day. Still, it's one of the best things I've ever done. But post volcano climbing legs made for a rougher Pompeii experience.

Like others have said, it's not easy to walk around Pompeii, there are big steps and lots of cobblestones. I'm going to guess the real success of a Pompeii tour will have to do with the guide, though. There are parts that are only open on certain days (though unless you want to see something very specific I don't think it matters because there's always SOMETHING amazing) and there's a lot of work still being done at the site.

Seeing things like the wagon wheel ruts in the picture above and imagining it as the bustling city it was is pretty incredible.

There's A LOT you can't do in a half day tour but I also feel like we got a good overview. Right outside the gates there's a little souvenir market with lots of people trying to sell you stuff (and yelling at you) so be aware of that.

 

[pjacobi]

I would not recommend Pompeii with small children. Certain buildings graphically depict adult situations in frescos. You can avoid these buildings, but other buildings have fertility symbols painted on the outside. Even the gift shop may sell adult objects.

Note that Naples and Pompeii are very high-risk areas for pickpockets!


-Paul

 

[Flip flops in winter]

We did the DCL Pompeii excursion and it's totally G rated. Our tour guide was amazing and I could have listened to her talk all day. They don't view or talk about the graphic stuff. My kids enjoyed Pompeii immensely, but they also didn't bat an eye at the full nudity we saw on the beaches of Barcelona. They all go to public school now and see and hear things that might make Pompeii's fresco makers blush.

If you do have littles, a backpack toddler carrier was a must for our 3 year old in Pompeii. A stroller is a no-go there.

 

[SheSingsAlong]

Jen Lefforge on Youtube did the Pompeii excursion this summer and I think her video (might have been Adam Hattan's video as they were together) gave a good review of the experience, the difficult terrain, the weather, etc. Worth looking up, I think.

 

[braysmommy]

I would not recommend Pompeii with small children. Certain buildings graphically depict adult situations in frescos. You can avoid these buildings, but other buildings have fertility symbols painted on the outside. Even the gift shop may sell adult objects.

Note that Naples and Pompeii are very high-risk areas for pickpockets!


-Paul

Took my 8 yr old and we loved Pompeii. He had helped research our day ahead of time and it's still one of our best port days of all our cruises. We had a driver and first went to Vesuvius, spent hours at Pompeii and drove up the coast on way back to the ship. Not debating just giving another perspective.

 

[o&smom]

I would not recommend Pompeii with small children. Certain buildings graphically depict adult situations in frescos. You can avoid these buildings, but other buildings have fertility symbols painted on the outside. Even the gift shop may sell adult objects.

Note that Naples and Pompeii are very high-risk areas for pickpockets!


-Paul

Our tour guide took into account that there were kids in our group and steered us away from those areas. Still plenty to see.

 

[MrMagoo]

We looked at the Amalfi Coast and Pompeii tour through Disney but chose a private tour guide instead and were glad we did. A private guide will be able to alter your plans at the last minute and make it so much better.
Pompeii does take a while to see as well as getting to and from the Amalfi coast.
Many tour guides will advise not going to the Amalfi coast when doing Pompeii due to the time constraints.
We did the coast first and then Pompeii and it was still 7 1/2 hours. We would have liked to spend more time at Pompeii but time did not allow even though we still spent about 3 hours there.
With a Disney group I am sure you will very limited time at both areas.
We strongly suggest a private tour of the area.

 

[MrMagoo]

I would also like to add that if you do go with a private tour, chose a guide that is a guide and driver.
It makes it so much easier. They should also furnish any entrance tickets you will need.
We found our guide through Tours By Locals.
However, our guide also has his own tour company.
Our guide was Giuseppe and he has a tour company called Leisure Italy. He was fantastic!
https://www.leisure-italy.com
Pompeii can be hard to walk around. It is a lot of cobblestone!

 

[Foreveraprincess17]

Thanks everyone for your advice. Very helpful!!