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Pompeii: guided tour with an archaeologist
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Book tickets and tours →Opening hours of Pompeii
Pompeii is open every day of the week: 9:00 to 19:00 in summer and 9:00 to 17:00 in winter. Summer runs from 16 March to 14 October and winter from 15 October to 15 March. Last entry is at 17:30 in summer and 15:30 in winter. The Park lists 25 December and 1 January as closed “salvo diverse comunicazioni” (unless announced otherwise).
Today
Opening hours for every month are on the Opening hours page.
Checked against the official website on 23 October 2026 · Official source
| Period | Last entry | Closes |
|---|---|---|
| 16 March – 14 October (summer), opens 9:00 | 17:30 | 19:00 |
| 15 October – 15 March (winter), opens 9:00 | 15:30 | 17:00 |
| 25 December and 1 January | Closed | - |
Open every day except 25 December and 1 January, unless the Park announces otherwise: for 1 January 2026 it opened with reduced hours (until 13:00, last entry 12:00), so for 1 January 2027 check the Park's notices. There is no weekly closing day. 1 May is not an official closure (the Park opened on 1 May 2024 and 2025). National free days are announced by the Park: check its notices.
Checked against the official website on 23 October 2026 · Official source: Parco Archeologico di Pompei – Ministero della Cultura
Time slots and the daily limit
The Park's regulation sets a limit of 20,000 entries a day, split into 15,000 in the first time slot (9:00 to 13:00) and 5,000 in the second (from 13:01 to the last entry). The named ticket shows the day and the slot. For summer the Park's tariff page breaks the limit down by ticket type: 9:00 to 13:00 at most 12,000 Pompei Express and 3,000 Pompei+; afternoon at most 3,000 Pompei Express and 2,000 Pompei+.
The Park's tariff page speaks of slots “in the summer period”, while the regulation defines them for winter too. Treat the slot as compulsory for every named ticket and check it at the time of purchase. Named tickets have existed since 15 November 2024.
Winter days are short
In winter the Park closes at 17:00 with last entry at 15:30. On the list of visitable buildings, most houses were open from 9:15 to 16:20, with last access at 16:00, and the Park says that from 15 October access to some houses is reduced from 16:00. The Villa of the Mysteries was open from 9:15 to 16:30 (last access 16:15). We could not confirm the summer hours of the houses.
Our advice: in winter, arrive by mid-morning.
Free days
Entry is free on the first Sunday of every month. For 2026 the Park has confirmed Sunday 1 November and Wednesday 4 November; the next first Sundays by the calendar are 6 December 2026 and 3 January 2027. On free days you cannot book or buy tickets online and there is no named ticket: you go straight to the turnstiles, and the limit of 20,000 visitors a day stays in force.
The national free days of 25 April and 2 June are not listed on the Park's pages that we read. National free days are announced by the Park: check its notices.
Evening openings
The Park's home page of 23 October 2026 carried a notice about the “Serate della Grande Pompei”, evening openings from 19:30 to 23:30 with last entry at 22:30. The Park's notices give the 2026 dates as 28 August to 10 October, so that programme has ended; we could not confirm any later edition.
Other sites of the Park
The Antiquarium and Villa Regina at Boscoreale open at 9:00, with last entry at 16:00 in winter and 18:00 in summer, and close at 17:00 and 19:00. Oplontis and Stabiae follow the same hours and are closed on Tuesdays.