Pompeii and the Campi Flegrei: A Journey Through Time

Just minutes from Casa Petito

One of the great advantages of staying in Giugliano in Campania is the location. Casa Petito is about 20 minutes from central Naples, 35 minutes from Pompeii, and just a few kilometres from the entrance to the Campi Flegrei. With a car or the regional train, the entire region is within easy reach.

Practical tip: leave early in the morning, before 9, especially in summer. The sites are immense and the Campanian sun is generous - having a couple of extra cool hours can make the difference between a wonderful experience and an exhausting one.

The excavations of Pompeii: a city frozen in time

On 24 August 79 AD, Vesuvius erupted and buried Pompeii under four metres of ash and lapilli. What might seem like a disaster for history turned out, paradoxically, to be a gift for archaeology: the city was preserved intact for nearly two thousand years.

Walking through the cobbled streets of Pompeii is an experience without equal. The cart tracks in the stone, the counters of the thermopolia where hot food was served, the mosaics in the peristyles of the domus: every detail tells the ordinary life of men and women who lived two millennia ago. It's not a museum - it's a city.

Pompeii is not an archaeological site. It is an open window onto the daily life of humanity.

The Campi Flegrei: volcanoes and history

West of Naples lies one of Europe's most fascinating active volcanic complexes. The Campi Flegrei - whose Greek name means 'burning fields' - form a caldera 13 kilometres in diameter, with over forty craters and continuous geothermal activity. The phenomenon of bradyseism, the slow oscillation of the ground, has submerged and resurfaced ancient Roman structures in the port of Pozzuoli.

The Solfatara of Pozzuoli, with its sulphurous fumes and bubbling mud, looks like an alien landscape in the heart of the Campanian countryside. Nearby, Lake Avernus - described by Virgil as the entrance to the Underworld - reflects the sky with an unsettling stillness.

Practical tips for your visit

For Pompeii: buy tickets online (the official Archaeological Park website) to skip the queues. Bring a refillable water bottle - there are fountains inside the site. Comfortable shoes with sturdy soles are essential: the ancient paving stones don't forgive heels. Allow at least three hours for a satisfying visit, five for a thorough one.

For the Campi Flegrei: the Solfatara is the most visited and easiest to reach. Lake Avernus is accessible by car. For the full picture, the Archaeological Museum of the Campi Flegrei in Baia, reachable by boat from the port of Pozzuoli, is a must-visit.

The ideal base: returning to Casa Petito

After a long day among history and nature, returning to a welcoming home is a luxury you appreciate even more. Casa Petito is in a strategic position: close enough to Naples, Pompeii, and the Campi Flegrei to make every excursion easy, quiet enough to allow real rest.

A hot shower, a private kitchen to prepare something light, a sofa and the evening calm of Giugliano: after the emotions of Pompeii, it's exactly what you need.