Hello Italy Experts,
Has anyone taken a Naples tunnel tour recently? I am a little confused after researching. My son and I will be in Naples on a Thursday cruise stop in July. I want to go to the Archeological Museum and a tunnel tour (in English!). It is not clear which tours cover which sights--the tunnels with old cars, the Greco Roman theatre, etc. I would love a recommendation as to which tour is best, or even a known quantity.
Thanks

I've seen some trip reports about the underground, but not recently. YOu might try entering it in the search function.

I've got no idea what a "Naples tunnel tour" is. Do you?

If you've been offered one by a supplier, the easiest why of finding out what it includes is by asking the supplier.

Naples - and much of the surrounding area - consists of today's buildings, constructed on top of several layers of previous generations' buildings. Throughout the region, there are places offering - usually for a fee - some kind of access to the lower layers.

The most widely touted of these subterranean "attractions" is a manufactured stunt called Napoli Sotteranea (http://www.napolisotterranea.org), a private organisation running a network of tunnels under the streets around Piazza San Gaetano. This includes bits of a theatre, and there are a couple of WW2 vehicles (part of the network was used as air raid shelters during Allied bombing of Naples). There's no need to book a tour: just turn up at its ticket office.

To get to the archaeological museum from the city's metro system, you obviously - as everywhere in Naples - go through a number of layers of previous development. Unlike most other exits from the region's underground railways, several of these layers are explained, with artefacts from the relevant layer displayed.

Napoli Sotteranea can induce intense claustrophobia in some, and is a series of curiosities, none of which are of much interest except as odd things to see. Just going to the archaeological museum by metro exposes you to almost as much of Naples' previous existences.

I saw the PBS special that was made about the exploration of underground Naples, and really wanted to see it. I just bought tickets at the office, only a few euros, but don't remember exactly. Actually, I thought it was interesting and fun and quite enjoyed it. DH also liked it and thought it was worthwhile.

If you Google " Underground Naples" and go to Trip Advisor, you can find many reviews and details of the experience. There is an article with quite a few images of what you will see.

Don't book a tour through a company. As Flanneruk said, if you do want to go, just go to the office and get a ticket. Be sure to ask the time for a tour in English unless you speak Italian.

All that being said, if you have time, I would suggest going to Herculaneum instead. It is a much richer experience, IMHO.

I went on one of the underground tours a year or two ago and I didn't find it as interesting as I expected it to be, although it was fairly interesting and the guide was enthusiastic and charming. You don't say how old your son is. If under 16, then it might be more interesting than other sights in Naples. Older? Not so sure.

I have never taken a guided tour of Naples with a local, but for 1 day in Naples, it is worth considering, even if tunnels aren't included. It is a very complex city, and a bit intimidating, and to have an enthusiastic local reveal it to you would be efficient and probably fun. But I would track down a local (try reading reviews on TripAdvisor of tour guides) rather than commercial company tour or cruise excursion.

I enjoy going to the ruins in and near Pompei, but if your son is a teenager or older, and both of your are interested in wild and extraordinary urban life, both historical and contemporary, Naples is really a kick and an extraordinary European port city.