avatarAdrienne Beaumont

Summary

The author recounts their unforgettable and emotionally charged experience visiting Pompeii, emphasizing the value of the trip despite the high cost.

Abstract

The article titled "The A-Z of My Favourite Travel Destinations — Pompeii" details the author's profound fascination with historical sites, particularly Pompeii. The author's passion for subterranean cities led them to prioritize a visit to Pompeii over other destinations while in Rome, even at a significant personal expense of 351 euros for a day tour with their daughters. The experience was transformative, filled with awe, sadness, and joy, as they explored the ancient city buried by Mount Vesuvius. The author describes Pompeii as a sprawling urban area, much larger than anticipated, with only a third excavated. The tour guide's extensive knowledge enriched the visit, answering dozens of the author's questions. Despite the cost being well above their daily budget, the author considers the expense to be the best investment in a day tour they have ever made, highlighting the inclusion of a glimpse of Naples and a delicious lunch as added bonuses.

Opinions

  • The author held a deep fascination for Pompeii and was willing to pay any price to visit the ancient city.
  • They believed the experience was worth every cent, describing it as beyond belief and the best money spent on a day tour.
  • The author was impressed by the size of Pompeii, realizing it was a city rather than a small village as they had imagined.
  • They were enraptured with the city and the historical insights provided by the knowledgeable guide.
  • The visit to Pompeii fulfilled a lifelong dream for the author, evoking a wide range of emotions from amazement to happiness.

The A-Z of My Favourite Travel Destinations — Pompeii

I didn’t care how much it cost!

Photo by D Jonez on Unsplash

Have you ever been travelling and wanted to see something so badly you were prepared to pay anything to make it happen?

That was me and Pompeii. I had always wanted to see Pompeii for myself. I have a general fascination for things that are discovered under the ground. I don’t quite understand how that happens. Of course, I know how Pompeii came to be buried — by the eruption of the local volcano, Vesuvius.

The wall of the brothel Photo by Keeley Schroder

But how do whole cities become buried? Why are there ruins under the ground in almost every city I’ve visited? I might be exaggerating here but without thinking too hard I’m thinking of Chester, York, Sevilla, Troy and Athens, where whole cities have been covered up and archaeologists have to excavate to find them.

Photoo by Keeley Schroder

Anyway, Pompeii intrigued me more than anyone else in my travel group. I was determined to see it while I was in Rome even if it meant cutting a day off my week-long stay in Cinque Terre. And I was prepared to pay anything to get there. I found a tour from Rome for 117 euros per person, but I didn’t want to go on my own. I wanted to share my excitement so I bribed my daughters Keeley and Stacey to some on the day-long tour with me. That was a lot of money for me to spend in a day — 351 euros! My daily budget was 50 euros…

Photo by Keeley Schroder

Let me tell you that 351 euros were the best money I ever spent on a day tour! That’s how good Pompeii was! Worth every centimo! We got a glimpse of Naples too and had a delicious lunch thrown in but even without these, the tour of Pompeii was beyond belief.

Another wall Photo by Keeley Schroder

Our guide had unlimited knowledge about Pompeii and answered all of my hundreds of questions — well, I may be exaggerating, but definitely dozens! I was enraptured with the city. And when I say city, it is a city — only a third of the populated area has been unearthed. For some unknown reason, I had imagined it to be a village.

Photo by Keeley Schroder

I was a mishmash of emotions — amazement, sadness, wonder, exhilaration, and happiness that I had fulfilled my lifelong dream of visiting Pompeii.

Ophélie Quillier gives some sage advice from her recent visit to Pompeii.

Here’s my story of the whole day tour.

Here are some more A-Z favourite destinations. Come join the fun!

And Sam Millichap who started this whole crazy adventure only has W,X,Y and Z to finish!

Travel
Pompeii
Italy
Vesuvius
Naples
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