Herculaneum

I’ve been to Herculaneum a couple of times. It is better in the winter when there are no tour groups clogging the streets. Still, it’s great. Narrow streets lined with the buildings of everyday life. It’s not hard to imagine what life was like for average citizens back in the day, which I find more interesting than the monumental architecture of imperial Rome.

This is an archaeological site. It is one of two prominent towns that were buried by the eruption of Mt Vesuvius in 79AD. Herculaneum (Ercolano) was actually the more-​upscale of the two towns (sort of like Beverly Hills compared to Pasadena). We had limited time due to the cruise ship schedule, so we had to choose. I can’t say we chose the best since we have not seen Pompeii (the other town), but we definitely chose well!
This site is in amazingly good condition. The structures are mostly intact, and many of the mosaics and frescoes are still vibrant and colorful. We paid extra for a guide (through Rome in Limo), and it was worth it. He provided a great deal of information about what we were seeing. Sometimes it seemed almost as if we might surprise a resident, it was so well preserved. You really get a feel for how these people lived, and how clever they were in their engineering.
You can actually buy a dual ticket to see Pompeii AND Herculaneum, but alas we didn’t have that much time. I haven’t seen Pompeii so I can’t say Herculaneum is better, but you won’t regret coming here.