Things to Do in Naples - 2

Architecture

The Greeks, Romans, Spanish and Bourbons are just some of the settlers that have left their mark on the architecture and urban development of the city of Naples. More recently, the city’s massive government-sponsored risanamento (“making healthy again”) project of 1889 to 1918 was designed to clear large sections of the city that had been riddled with overcrowding and disease for centuries.

Unfortunately it resulted in the full-scale destruction of many historic areas and medieval and Renaissance buildings, though a few beautiful buildings were also erected. This is when the elegant Galleria Umberto I was built, and the wide Corso Umberto, (also known the Rettifilo, the “straight line”) running from Piazza della Borsa to the main train station at Piazza Garibaldi.

Under Mussolini, the city’s urban face changed again, with the area in and around Piazza Matteotti becoming a showcase for the rationalist style, such as the Palazzo delle Poste e Telegrafi (Piazza Matteotti).

Modern Construction

In recent decades there have been few constructions of note, other than the gleaming but rather unloved business and residential district (east of the center and north of the station) known as the Centro Direzionale completed in 1982 by Japanese architect Kenzo Tange, and the rather happier renovation of the industrial area of Bagnoli, which houses the Città della Scienza (Via Coroglio 104, tel. +39-081-735-2202), the city’s hi-tech science museum.

 

• The Galleria Umberto is a not-to-miss building, thanks to its architecture and interesting shops.

Global Jet

On the Amalfi coast, the dreamy hilltop town of Ravello is set to inaugurate a small but eye-catching music auditorium by 102-year-old Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer in late 2009. It features an overhanging canopied roof and a window through which the audience can admire the shimmering blue sea while they listen to the music.

Parks and Leisure

The ideal Naples stroll is along the lungomare, a 1.5-mile stretch of seaside that runs from the luxury hotels and open-air restaurants and bars of Via Partenope, along Via Francesco Caracciolo and the palm tree- and fountain-lined Villa Comunale park, to the harbour of Mergellina and the small chalets where you can enjoy aperitivi or a gelato at sun-down. On Sunday mornings, Via Francesco Carraciolo becomes a car-free parade of skaters, joggers, bikers and passeggio aficionados, and on any sunny day of the week locals sun themselves on the massive white rocks perched on the edge of the water.

Stylish Gardens

Some of the city’s most attractive parks are the Villa Pignatelli (Riviera di Chiaia 200) with its lawns and English-style gardens, the former royal hunting grounds of the Bosco di Capodimonte (Via Miano 2), the Parco della Floridiana (Via Domenico Cimarosa 77) and the Villa Comunale (main entrance from Piazza Vittoria), a former royal garden-turned-city park. Created between 1778 and 1780 by Bourbon King Ferdinand IV to provide entertainment for Neapolitan aristocracy and royalty, the Villa Comunale runs for almost a mile between Piazza della Repubblica and Piazza Vittoria and hosts the oldest aquarium in Europe.

 

• Take a break from sightseeing on the lush lawn of Villa Pignatelli, a great place to take in the temperate Mediterranean climate.

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Day Trips From Naples

From the ancient towns and archaeological sites of Paestum, Cuma, Pompeii and Herculaneum to the stunning Amalfi coast and outlying islands, there are countless beautiful and interesting places to visit on day trips (or slightly longer excursions) from Naples. [Read more about Archaeological Tours.]

Capri

Though it has become a daytime stopover on the mass-tourism circuit in the last few years, Capri is still the most sought-after of local destinations and a magical and mostly unspoiled place, especially if you head to the smaller and quieter town of Anacapri, on the western side of the island.

Gulf of Naples

Other islands in the Gulf of Naples are Ischia, known for its restorative thermal waters and varied scenery, and Procida, a small and charming island with quiet streets, colorful villages built on the rocks and plenty of rich vegetation.

 

• The terrace of Maison La Minervetta, located on the cliffs of Sorrento.

Courtesy of Maison La Minervetta

Amalfi Coast

The Amalfi Coast offers some of the glitziest and most attractive seaside destinations in Italy. After Sorrento, the main road leads to super-picturesque and ever-popular Positano, which looks out over the sea from the top of a cliff. Farther along the coast, there is the charming town of Praiano. Amalfi itself is the largest and best known of the coastal towns; lofty and serene Ravello is built atop a hill and has the best view of the coast, and farther on, past Trani, are the Roman ruins and picturesque beaches of Minori.

Naples Accommodations and Restaurants

Stylish lodgings in the area are the cool nautical-themed JK Place (Via Prov. Marina Grande 225, tel. +39-081-838-4001) on Capri and the stylish but quirky Maison La Minervetta (Via Capo 25, tel. +39-081-877-4455), which is built into Sorrento's cliffside and offers 12 rooms, an outdoor jacuzzi and one of the most extensive and sumptuous hotel breakfasts that I consumed on an almost indecently large rooftop terrace. [Read more about Naples Hotels.]

If you’ve come this far, then a visit to the gastronomic haven of chef Alfonso Iaccarino, Don Alfonso (Corso Sant’Agata 11/13, tel. +39-081-878-0026), in the tiny town of Sant’Agata sui Due Golfi at the western tip of the Amalfi coast, is in order. Most of the produce comes from the organic farm that the Iaccarino family tirelessly cultivates on their clifftop farm stunningly situated in nearby Punta Campanella (which is the extreme tip of the Sorrentine peninsula).

This is one of the best restaurants south of Rome with a staggeringly extensive wine cellar housed in ancient Roman tunnels (you can visit them if you ask). Alfonso and his wife Livia recently opened eight very elegant suites (and one apartment) for guests in the adjoining buildings. [Read more about Naples Restaurants.]