Beyond Pompeii, The Land of the Sibyl
Summary
Pompeii has fascinated us for centuries, but archaeological interest isn’t confined to this one area. On this tour we go beyond the sites of the regular tourist trail and discover more. We explore the hinterland of Vesuvius, a land of myth and legend, and, paradoxically, a land of luxury and wealth dotted with the vast villas of senators where the city of Pozzuoli was a ‘second Rome’ in the summer season. The excesses of fine living here were satirized in the Satyricon of Petronius.
We are based for a whole week in just one comfortable hotel in Naples, the living embodiment of a classical city. Resplendent and ramshackle, Naples is bursting at the seams with life and passion. From cheek by jowl living where balconies are festooned with laundry, to the roaring wood fires of the friggitorie, the scream of vespas and the boisterous greeting of one Neapolitan to another, people here really do seize the day.
What to Expect
- Explore the playground of the Roman elite, buildings created at the height of Imperial indulgence and excess
- Discover the now subterranean thermal complex at Baia by glass bottomed boat
- Descend underground into the catacombs and remnants of the ancient city below the streets of Naples
- Enjoy ancient Capua and its connection to the famous Thracian gladiator and escaped slave, Sparticus
