Naples
travel guides

Naples sits on the Bay of Naples in the shadow of Mount Vesuvius, the city that gave the world pizza Margherita and one of the densest concentrations of UNESCO heritage in Europe. Founded by Greek settlers as Neapolis around 600 BC, the historic centre layers Greek, Roman, Bourbon, and Baroque architecture across narrow streets that have barely shifted since antiquity.

The city works as a base for some of Italy's most famous day trips: Pompeii and Herculaneum on the Circumvesuviana train, the islands of Capri and Ischia by ferry from Molo Beverello, and the Amalfi Coast a short drive south. In Naples itself, the Spaccanapoli alleyway slices through the centre, the Cappella Sansevero hides the Veiled Christ, and the National Archaeological Museum holds the finest Roman artefacts excavated from Vesuvius's victims.

Naples is louder, grittier, and more theatrical than Rome or Florence - and the food is the best in the country. Two days minimum to see the city, four to add Pompeii and a coastal day trip.