Herculaneum Stabiae and Oplontis private tour

A day in the province of Naples on an historical tour, visiting Herculaneum, Stabiae and Oplontis.

Travel to each site in a comfortable Mercedes vehicle with a personal local Guide  who’ll give you important information about the history and the culture of the places that you will visit. Explore each of the archaeological sites and see in first person the substantial difference from each other.

And of course some good food won’t go amiss, just ask your driver for recommendations for the best delicacies of the land!

In contrast to modern Ercolano, classical Herculaneum was a peaceful fishing and port town of about 4000 inhabitants, and something of a resort for wealthy Romans and Campanians.

Herculaneum’s fate paralleled that of nearby Pompeii. Destroyed by an earthquake in AD 63, it was completely submerged in the AD 79 eruption of Mt Vesuvius. However, as it was much closer to the volcano than Pompeii, it drowned in a 16m-thick sea of mud rather than in the lapilli (burning pumice stone) and ash that rained down on Pompeii. This essentially fossilised the town, ensuring that even delicate items, like furniture and clothing, were discovered remarkably well preserved.

The town was rediscovered in 1709 and amateur excavations were carried out intermittently until 1874, with many finds being carted off to Naples to decorate the houses of the well-to-do or to end up in museums. Serious archaeological work began again in 1927 and continues to this day.

Known today as Castellammare Di Stabia, the ancient Stabiae is another important archeological site that was buried from the eruption of 79 A.D of mount Vesuvius, although it was unearthed  way before the discovery of the other two main archeological sites of Pompeii and Herculaneum.

Located essentially at the beginning of the Peninsula of Sorrento, Stabiae was partially protected by the “Monti Lattari” (Milk Mountains), and in fact it used to be a small fortified town, but after its conquest by Lucio Cornelio Silla it became a resort area for the wealthy Roman Patricians

In Stabiae you can admire the two beautiful “villas”, Villa San Marco and Villa Arianna, where you can admire many colourful frescos representing various themes such as architectures, lanscapes, nature and animals, some of which have now been transported to the archeological museum of Naples.

Oplontis is another archeological site resulted from the eruptions of 79 A.C. of mount Vesuvius, and infact its ubication its not far away from the excavations of the famous Pompeii and its considered more like an extension of it rather than a city by itself.

The site contains a number of points of interest, the most important of them being the “Villa di Poppea” which as the name suggests belonged to Poppea Sabina, the second wife of Emperor Nero, where she spent most of her free time and where she also produced wine and oil.

Other important elements of Oplontis are the Villa of Lucius Crassius Tertius and Villa of Caio Siculi, which excavations are still in progress but nonetheless interesting, offering to the public many beautiful frescos and mosaics .