People arrive at Ercolano waving a Pompeii ticket, or hunting for the combined ticket a guide promised them. Neither works. There is no combined Pompeii–Herculaneum ticket.
Separate park, separate platform
Herculaneum has been an autonomous archaeological park since 2016, with its own ticketing on a different system to Pompeii’s. The only thing that bridges the two is the Campania Artecard “Campania 3 days” at €41, which covers Pompeii, Herculaneum, the Naples Archaeological Museum and regional transport. Note it does not cover Vesuvius.
Price
- Adult €16, plus a €1.50 presale fee. EU visitors 18–25, €2.
- ErcolanoCard annual pass €30, or €58 for a family, valid 365 days from first use.
- Guides quoting €13 or €14 are out of date.
Two things are currently shut
The Villa dei Papiri and the Ancient Theatre are closed for maintenance. Both appear in older guides as bookable extras; at present they cannot be visited at all.
Open 08:30–19:30 in summer, last entry 18:00, and 08:30–17:00 in winter, last entry 15:30. Free on the first Sunday of the month and on 25 April, 2 June and 4 November. The park does not publish a weekly closing day.
Why go if you have already done Pompeii
Because Herculaneum was buried differently. Pyroclastic surge carbonised rather than crushed — so upper floors, wooden beams, doors, furniture and roof timbers survive here in a way they do not at Pompeii. It is a quarter of the size and takes half the time.
Source: ercolano.cultura.gov.it, checked 26 August 2026.
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