I have been to many ancient Greco-Roman cities and Pompeii is off the charts. There is nothing like it except the Herculaneum, which I also recommend if you are in the area and enjoy that kind of travel.

I can't even imagine someone recommending you skip Pompeii unless they just are not into archaeological sites at all...even then, it's still a must see, imo.

I've seen so many archaeological sites throughout the world that they have lost any awe to me; but the first time I went to Pompeii, it was awe-inspiring. There are only a couple of archaeological places that have done that for me. The pyramids of Egypt didn't even do that for me.