Pompeii Shopping

I too bought some jewellery from one of the stores on the right, wish i had bought more, cannot find any where else for sale, i think it is actually Austrian crystal they are faceted purple green and blue, am hunting the type of stone down at my local crystal supplier, very frustrating thay are beautiful.

What to buy: Buy the jewellery from the stalls,they are unique and cant be found easily anywhere else in the world.

What to pay: Very cheap about 20 NZ

The row of shops by the entrance to pompeii sell everything from freshly grown fruit, to trinkets, to bottles of water. The sight of the shops with stack of crates full of bottles of water is bizare when you first get there, but when you come out it is like a light at the end of the tunnel.

What to buy: It would be hard to leave Pompeii without buying at least a little souvenier of your trip. I myself bought a plaque of the 'Cavec Canem' sign, a copy of the mosaic seen on the floor of the entrance to the House of the Tragic Poet. It has a picture of a dog, and the words mean "Beware of the Dog" in latin.

What to pay: You will pay a bit more for things here than you would for the same thing in the surrounding towns, but at least you can say you bought it from Pompeii.

Before peering into any of the glass cases filled with the particular jewelry this factory store offers, we were given a demonstration illustrating which part of the seashell a cameo actually comes from. We learned that the beauty of the final product depends on the expertise of the artisan. Well, that makes sense!

I was hoping to find a ring to go with a cameo pendant bought decades ago for me by my parents on our first visit to Pompeii. Ah-ha! In minutes I spied a ring which bore a profile that to me seemed a delicately carved beauty. It was also modest in price.

Yet if you are not searching for jewelry, there are other items to be found at the store, such as music boxes, inlaid furniture and other keepsakes.

The cameo factory continues to be a traditional stop for travelers who are visiting the ancient ruins. Its location certainly makes it convenient since it is directly outside the site.

There are several shops and street vendors at the entrance of the ruins and they sell everything you can imagine, from a pencil to a piece of lava! There are also very explicit souvenirs :). Prices were high as in any souvenir shop but they accept credit cards.

What to buy: my sister bought a piece of lava for 1€!
I bought a book of Pompeii's history.

What to pay: as much as you want

There are many shops outside an entrance gate of Pompeii. You can buy the souvenir from these shops, because you cannot find the souvenir shops in train station. Actually there are one shops at train station, but its quite expensive.

What to buy: Buy 'Pompeii activities'!

What to pay: If you are young, just say that you are student, then they give you very cheap price. I get almost 60% discount of their shown prices bucause I acting as a student... hehehe

This vendor was close to the main square on the way to the ruins, close to McDonald's. I really got suckered into buying this corral necklace. The man and woman running the "shop" seemed nice, but I accidentally asked how much this large corral necklace cost. They picked up the necklace and put it in a bag before I could even look it over and inspect it. They started making a big to-do about how pretty I was and how they were going to give me this great deal!! I asked how much it was, even though it had already been put in a bag! I couldn't really understand their broken English. I thought they said $15, which wouldn't have been a bad price. I asked my husband to get out money so I could negotiate. Big mistake!! The nice lady took 50 euros out of his hand and actually gave him back 30 euros! (Big suprise) My necklace cost 30 euros. My Mom liked it and bought one for 30 euros too. The next day, my beautiful corral necklaces orange paint started to chip to reveal large plastic white beads!!!! Both of our necklaces were fake corral. Upon inspections it was actually pretty obvious too....if we would've been given a chance to look!! The holes of each bead where it is strung are lighter in color and look obviously painted!!!

We visited a cameo factory and I was totally bowled over. This is a dying artform and I truly hope that the Italian government will ensure and put plans into action to keep this art form alive.

What to buy: Side lamps

Just a block outside of Pompei there are several shops that sell high quality copies of Roman and Greek pottery. Shop around and avoid the shops right near the entrance usually they sell the cheap tourist goods.

What to buy: Some of the pottery jugs are very realistic.

Warning its illegal to buy and take real antiquities out of the country! Best to have a proper receipt for customs.