Lamorna

We are planning to stay in Naples for 3 nights in late August, before catching the train down to the Cilento in early September. We've not been to Naples before but I've got a real hankering to spend a few days there.

For all you Napoli lovers, how would we be best filling out time? We like art, pizza, history, walking. Hubby would like to see Pompeii or Herculaneum, I'm not that bothered, I'd rather just enjoy Naples. My draft itinerary goes something like:

Day 1 - arrive midday, get some lunch and explore the city, wander the streets, Spaccanapoli, the prom, piazza's and eat out
Day 2 - Morning Archaeological museum, Afternoon San Gennaro Chapel and see more of the city
Day 3 - Morning Day trip to Herculaneum, Afternoon Museo di Capodimonte
OR
Morning - Capodimonte, Afternoon tour of underground Naples

Day 4 - early train to Cilento

A few questions:
- How does the above look?
- Does anyone have any a) major tourist sites b) hidden gems / obscure things or c) general areas, streets, piazza's etc that you would recommend?
- I'm an art lover but I hear the Archaeological museum talked about a lot more than Capodimonte. Is it more important, representative, just a better use of my time? How is Capodimonte?
- Are we best to just concentrate on Naples or is a half-ay trip to Herculaneum do-able? We're doing a lot of travelling with Liverpool to Naples, Naples to Cilento, without also adding in day trips from Naples, but my other half really wants to do something like that.

Also, if anyone gets pleasure from just recounting their experiences of Naples, Id love to read them - I get as much help and inspiration from just reading peoples stories as from top tips and answers

massimop

I would visit the Capodimonte in the morning. I would skip the underground tour (having done it myself).

If you are not averse to tours, I would suggest you take a guided walking tour of Napoli your first day, just so you start out with good overview of the layout of the city, and have confidence to explore.

I would also say that in addition to the archeological museum & the Capodimonte, high on my list of places to visit in Napoli (time permitting and in no particular order): Cappella Sansevero, the Cloisters of Santa Chiara, the food markets, Teatro San Carlo & Castel Sant'Elmo.

PalenQ

Half-day to Heraculneum is very possible - take CircumVesuviana commuter train right to near that deep hole. Pompeii is only a short way down the line and if want a few hours there could suffice too.

Could do both - Heraculaneum though is nice and compact and probably being in a hole not as hot as Pomeii.

Book Italian long-distance trains early enough to nab discounted tickets (local trains like CircumVesuviana just buy at station - like regional trains no seat reservations possible) - but long-distance trains www.trenitalia.com -check www.seat61.com for help with that - general info trains www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.ricksteves.com.

Jean

I don't handle the combo of heat and humidity well, so my plans would be less ambitious. I'd hit the priorities first thing in the morning and then play the afternoons by ear. You might find you want to return to your hotel for an hour or two of riposo in the middle of the day, then see a bit more late in the day.

FWIW, I enjoyed Capodimonte a lot. It's closed on Wednesdays but open until 7:30p the other days. A couple of galleries have a specific admission hour, so you have to plan your visit carefully if you want to view those galleries. The gardens/park are lovely, and the shady bits would be nice on a hot day.

We were absolutely fascinated by Pompeii (and the archeo museum), but trudging around the excavation in the heat would do me in quickly. I'd get there before it opens and have an idea of what you most want to see. The archeo museum is closed on Tuesdays but open until 7:30p the other days.

Cappella Sansevero is closed Tuesdays.

sundriedtopepo

Here are a couple things you might find helpful:

http://www.museocapodimonte.benicult...nte3_11_16.pdf

It's quite a long way up to the Museo Capodimonte, but worth it. Buses in Napoli are famously slow, you might find the tourist shuttle is a bit more dependable, as it only has certain stops, and is a good value compared to taking a taxi up.

Watch the hours of the Capodimonte

https://www.cntraveler.com/story/why...useum-in-italy

Also, the views are beautiful over the Bay of Naples, and a park surrounds the Museum.

The archaeological museum is completely different, but both are very good.

PalenQ

Don't be scared away from Pompeii by heat or crowds -it's a vast site and if you get there early in morning much better on each front.

I enjoyed ascending Mt Vesuvius - can take public buses to access paths.

kja

I love Naples!

Your plan could work for a nice leisurely visit. Given the diffrerences between your interests and your husband's, Herculaneum would seem a good choice – but I’m not so sure that combining it on the same day as the Capodimonte is ideal as each can take a bit more than a half day. If you do put them on the same day, consider going to Herculaneum second, as you could then take the return train to Naples after the Capodimonte closes, and would therefore extend your viable sightseeing time.

I thought the views from the Castel Sant’Elmo incomparable.

I thought the Duomo a treasure.

I thought the artworks in some of the churchs and monasteries near the Duomo breathtaking (but would make the Capodimonte a priority, unless Caravaggio is of particular interest).

Hope that helps!

kja

BTW, if you don't already have one, please invest in a good guidebook. In comparison to the cost of your trip, the cost of a guidebook will be nominal, and you will have a wealth of information at your fingertips. For that matter, you can consult one at a local library or book store....

Jean

After you've made a plan, look at whether the Campania Artecard would be worth purchasing.

http://www.campaniartecard.it/

Lamorna

Thank you everyone, those replies are very helpful. Ok, so it looks like a day trip or half day trip is viable, and I suppose it is wasteful to go to that part of the world and NOT see Pompeii or Herculaneum.

Jean, I take your point about heat and humidity - I don't normally visit cities in the south at that time of year so yes, maybe I've been a bit ambitious. Much better idea to plan the mornings and come the afternoon, let the chips fall where they will.

Thanks all. Ciao x

MissMandy

We have just come back from our own Naples & The Amalfi Coast trip and loved Naples. I think versus other Italian cities, because the A-list sites such as Pompeii are outside of the city, it's a true city rather than pandering to only the tourist trade.

We took a train to Herculaneum from Napoli Garibaldi Circumvesuviana Station and explored Herculaneum in the morning and then took a bus transfer to Mount Vesuvius from a company that operates in the piazza next to Ercolano Scavi train station. Then we returned to Naples, so this can be comfortably completed in one day.

We self-guided ourselves around Herculaneum but took an excellent tour with Walks of Italy for Pompeii, which commenced after lunch (2pm ish?)and lasted for 3 hours. Our tour guide was incredible and had previously worked at Pompeii for 10+ years. More information can be found here: https://www.walksofitaly.com/pompeii-tours.

As for other things in Naples, the Museo Archeological was really interesting (and is after all, where a lot of the treasures from Herculaneum and Pompeii are now stored) as well as:

Piazza del Plebiscito
Galleria Umberto I
Castel Nuovo
Castel dell'Ovo
Royal Palace of Naples
Shopping in the Chiaia district
Walking along the harbour with its many bars and restaurants


The weather was hot when we went, but didn't slow us down. Just make sure you drink lots of water and wear sun-screen / cover up.

Hope this helps!

kja

“I suppose it is wasteful to go to that part of the world and NOT see Pompeii or Herculaneum. “

One could, I think, just as easily say that it is “wasteful” to go there and not see Capri, or Ravello, or Paestum, or the Capodimonte, or Naples’s Duomo, or … well, I'm sure you get the idea. You don’t have time to see all the gems of the area, so my advice would be to visit what YOU most want to see and experience. From my perspective, the only “wasted” time would be spent visiting something in which you aren’t all that interested just because you think you should. JMO.

And IME, a guide is not necessary for either Herculaneum or Pompeii – it depends on how much you are willing to read in advance, whether you use the audio guides (I thought both wonderful), etc. In contrast to MissMandy, I thought a 6-hour visit to Pompeii a bit rushed.

rosetravels

We've been to Naples twice, both times before a fantastic visit to Cilento.

I love the Capodimonte. It's a gorgeous building and the art there is stunning and in really good shape. I remember a Raphael drawing in a small room and a Brueghal. And incredible paintings by Titian.

We went to Herculaneum and Pompeii in one day, by accident. We didn't get off in time for Herculaneum so we went on to Pompeii, really enjoyed it, then visited Herculaneum on the way back.

Where are you going in Cilento?

Lamorna

@kja - I get like this, want yo see everything and then get stressed that I can't fit it all in! I'm not bothered about going to the archaeological sites, it's my husband's choice, but I'm sure if not regret going. I'm just in the mood for exploring the city.

@rosetravels - we are going back to our beloved Pisciotta. Using that as a base to explore the southern Cilento and northern Basilicata. Next time, we will come from Naples straight to Pisciotta on the train, and then not bother going back north again (we visited Paestum and Castellabate last time) but stay around Palinuro, Camerota, Ascea,Scaria, Sapri Maratea. Love it so much. If money was no object I'd take 3 weeks and visit Caserta too and then Naples, down to Cilento and then to Tropea. I need a better job

PalenQ

How come nealy noone here visits Caserta, the Napoli Versailles?

https://www.google.com/search?q=case...w=1745&bih=863