Your Trip in Search of the Most Beautiful Places in Italy Starts Here
Among all of the Italian cities, Naples certainly knows how to arouse the curiosity of its visitors and remain etched in their hearts. Colorful, rowdy, cheerful and above all, rich in charm, it captures every tourist with its unique atmosphere, created by its history, its art and the panorama of the Gulf that surrounds it, dominated by Vesuvius. Is that enough to begin with? Then follow us and together we will discover the things to see in Naples.
The Piazzas
The piazzas, the meeting places of every city: those of Naples are among the most beautiful and the most visited in the world.
We must begin with the splendid and iconic Piazza del Plebiscito, 25 square kilometers in the most ancient heart of the city. A semicircular colonnade reminiscent of San Peter’s in Rome, with its statues, it celebrates the talent of sculptors such as Canova and his disciples. It houses some of the most important and visited monuments in Naples: The Basilica of San Francesco di Paola in the semi-circular area and the Palazzo Reale (the Royal Palace) immediately opposite. The Royal Palace is a must see that will fill you with wonder, and on our 8-day holiday tour of Naples and Amalfi, we couldn’t miss bringing you right here, to the center of Bourbon power in Italy for over 4 centuries, where everything has remained intact and you can explore its wonderful frescoed rooms and wonder at its decorated ceilings.
Wandering through the alleys and narrow streets, you are right in the middle of the historic center that has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site and that deserves all of your attention. You have arrived at one of the symbols of the oldest part of the city. At the foot of the imposing obelisk of the Immaculate we find the Piazza del Gesù Nuovo, within an area that can be visited only on foot. It is here that the largest Gothic cathedral in Naples is located, the Monastery of Santa Chiara, which holds a museum with archaeological finds and 4 cloisters.
Add one more Piazza to your list. If you go to Naples and don’t spend a bit of time in Piazza San Domenico Maggiore, you could really regret it, because here, in the Chapel of Sansevero, there is a one-of-a-kind masterpiece, the marble statue of the Veiled Christ by Giuseppe Sanmartino, the Naples must- see that will leave you speechless for its realism and the pathos that it will convey to you.
Castel dell’Ovo
Have you ever heard the story of the origin of the name of this castle at the edge of the sea?
It all begins with Virgil: an ancient legend has it that the Latin poet had hidden an egg in the dungeons of the castle, a symbol of the stability of the fortress. If the egg were to beak, the castle would have collapsed taking the city of Naples with it. Subsequent sovereigns, during periods of turmoil in the city, have always reassured the population by claiming to have replaced the egg for the good fortunes of the city.
Today a small port has developed around Castel dell’Ovo which is teeming with cafès and restaurants, and the castle itself is open to visitors and hosts national and international events.
Parco Virgiliano
As we continue to answer the question “what to see in Naples” we take you to the Parco Virgiliano (the Virgilian Park).
The large city park, 92 square kilometers to be precise, dates back to the 1930s, and to enjoy its views you will have to climb the hill of Posillipo.
From here, from the terraces at 150 meters above sea level, in a single glance you will see all of the beauty of the Gulf and its islands. It is one of the best viewpoints in the city: you can see Capri, Ischia, and Procida, on the Sorrento peninsula. And if you want to visit one of these magical places, just plan your 8-day trip between Naples and the Amalfi Coast.
Underground Naples: between myths and reality
In the city of “the Smorfia” superstitions and popular beliefs are not lacking. The Smorfia is a Neapolitan book of dreams and their corresponding numbers.
You may think that during your trip the city has already offered you many surprises, but you still haven’t seen everything. Naples isn’t just on the surface, there is also an underground city that exists and tells a story of its own, often on the borderline between fiction and reality. Let’s discover the incredible underground Naples.
At 40 meters below the surface, one of the most unusual and unexpected itineraries of your journey begins. The deep excavations started in the III century B.C. by the Greeks to extract material for buildings on the surface and after that these open spaces were used as cisterns to contain rainwater and more. It is here that the figure of the “monaciello” is born, a man of small stature with small limbs, probably to be able to slip between the tunnels and wells and bring water to the surface, who became a popular figure in Neapolitan culture. A sly man who used the secret passages to sneak into the houses on the surface, steal valuables and seduce the women of the house.
The most striking testimonies of life date back to World War II, when these hidden mazes were used as air raid shelters for over 4,000 people.
Today in a group tour with a guide in your language, you can go down and get to know a hidden part of the city, where even now tanks and objects from daily life represent testimonies of a difficult historical period for the entire city.