Paestum skip-the-line — the best-preserved Doric temples anywhere, in the Greek city of Poseidonia, with the unique painted Tomb of the Diver in the museum. One 3-day ticket covers Paestum, Velia and the museum.
See ticket options3-day entry to Paestum, Velia and the museum
€29
Two adults plus their under-18s — children enter free
€54
Four adult tickets — for friends and larger parties
€104
“I've seen the Parthenon and the temples in Sicily, and Paestum's Temple of Hera II is more complete than almost anything I've stood in front of. We had it nearly to ourselves at 9am before the heat and the tour groups.”
“The Tomb of the Diver alone is worth the trip — a single painted figure from 2,500 years ago, the only Greek painting of its kind. The museum is small but every case matters. Three-day ticket meant we never felt rushed.”
“We added Velia on the second day with the same ticket — far quieter, right by the sea. Together they make a proper Magna Graecia trip rather than a quick photo stop. Buffalo mozzarella afterwards was the best I've had.”
5-minute audio guide
Hand-written, narrated by a heritage host, sent to every customer the day before their visit. Five minutes that turns a row of columns into the story of a Greek city — the three temples, the diver who has been falling for 2,500 years, and the second city hidden on your ticket.
Included free with every ticket. No app, no download — plays in any browser.
Paestum was founded around 600 BC by Greek colonists — settlers from Sybaris — who named their city Poseidonia after the sea god Poseidon. Its three great Doric temples, built between roughly 550 and 450 BC, are among the best-preserved Greek temples anywhere in the world, better preserved in many respects than anything left in Greece itself. They stand almost complete on the coastal plain south of Salerno: the Temple of Hera I (long mistakenly called 'the Basilica'), the Temple of Athena, and the magnificent Temple of Hera II, once thought to honour Poseidon or Neptune.
The city passed from the Greeks to the Italic Lucanians at the end of the 5th century BC, and then became the Roman colony of Paestum in 273 BC — and you can still walk the Roman forum, amphitheatre and streets laid out among the Greek temples. In the National Archaeological Museum beside the site is the city's most precious survival: the Tomb of the Diver, painted around 470 BC, the only complete example of Greek figurative painting to come down to us from the Archaic and Classical periods, its lid showing a lone figure diving into water.
Paestum was abandoned and forgotten in the Middle Ages, its temples swallowed by malarial marsh until they were rediscovered in the 18th century and astonished the travellers of the Grand Tour. Today it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and a single 3-day ticket covers the temples, the museum, and the sister Greek city of Velia (ancient Elea) further down the Cilento coast — so you can take your time over one of the great archaeological landscapes of the Mediterranean.
Paestum Tickets acts as a facilitator to help international visitors purchase skip-the-line tickets for the Paestum and Velia archaeological park, which is managed by the Italian Ministry of Culture. We do not resell tickets — we provide a personalised booking and English-language support service, and our concierge service fee is included in the displayed price. For those who prefer to purchase directly, official tickets are sold via the operator's ticketing platform.
Plan your visit
When to see the Doric temples at their best — month-by-month crowds and weather, and why time of day matters so much on an open, unshaded site.
Every realistic route to the temples — regional train, car via the motorway, and day trips from the Amalfi Coast.
The three Doric temples, the Greek-Roman city, and the Tomb of the Diver — what to prioritise and in what order.
Skip-the-line entry to the Paestum archaeological park — all three Doric temples and the Greek-Roman city — plus the National Archaeological Museum with the Tomb of the Diver, and the Velia (ancient Elea) archaeological area. It is a single 3-day open ticket.
No. Paestum's ticket is open admission, valid for three days from first use, with no fixed entry time slot. You arrive during opening hours on whichever day you choose and walk straight in.
Three Doric temples: the Temple of Hera I (c. 550 BC, once called 'the Basilica'), the Temple of Athena (c. 500 BC), and the Temple of Hera II (c. 450 BC). The Temple of Hera II is the largest and best-preserved — one of the most complete Greek temples anywhere — and the highlight of the site.
A painted tomb from around 470 BC, displayed in the on-site museum. Its lid shows a single male figure diving into water, and it is the only complete example of Greek figurative wall painting to survive from the Archaic and Classical periods — Paestum's single most precious object.
Allow about 2.5 to 3 hours for the temples, the Greek-Roman city and the museum together. With the 3-day ticket you can also visit Velia on a separate day, which adds roughly another half-day.
Yes. The standard ticket covers both Paestum and Velia (ancient Greek Elea), a second archaeological site further south on the Cilento coast, as well as the Paestum museum — all valid for three days. Velia is quieter and right by the sea.
Early morning, soon after opening, or late afternoon. The archaeological site is open and largely unshaded, so the midday summer sun is intense; the light is also best for the temples early and late, when the limestone glows gold.
The ticket is open and valid for three days, so for most visits you simply arrive on the day you choose during opening hours. If your plans change, reply to your confirmation email and our concierge team will help.
By car it's about 40 minutes from Salerno and 1h15 from Naples via the motorway. By train, regional services run from Salerno (35–45 min) and Naples (about 1h30) to Paestum station, a short walk from the temples.
Yes — the temples are open-air and dramatic, there is space to roam, and the museum is compact enough to hold attention. Children under 18 enter free; our family pass bundles the paperwork so you skip the queue together. Bring sun protection and water in summer.
Yes. Paestum was inscribed by UNESCO in 1998 as part of the 'Cilento and Vallo di Diano National Park with the Archaeological Sites of Paestum and Velia, and the Certosa di Padula' World Heritage Site.
They tell different stories. Pompeii is a whole Roman town frozen by Vesuvius; Paestum is about monumental Greek architecture — three of the best-preserved Doric temples in the world — plus a unique painted tomb. Paestum is far smaller, far quieter, and stands almost complete where Pompeii is ruins.