We explored Naples and the surrounding area twice, and yes, when you love it, you don’t count! Each time, we found a plane ticket to Naples at an unbeatable price.
It’s a beautiful region with lots to see and do: the authentic city of Naples, the Bay of Naples and its islands, including Capri, the archaeological sites of Pompeii and Herculaneum, Vesuvius and the Amalfi Coast. We spent 4 days there and then came back for a weekend.
We love Italy as you probably know, Naples and its region is directly in our top 3. Below, we detail our 7 must-do activities in Naples and the surrounding area (and it wasn’t easy to choose!) as well as our 4 to 7-day itinerary, all of course accompanied by our invaluable tips and maps to help you get your bearings!
What to do in Naples our 7 must-haves
1. Explore the historic center of Naples on foot
Of course, one of the best ways to discover Naples is to stroll through the historic center, with its authentic alleys full of history.
It is one of the oldest European cities, with many historical buildings, narrow and colorful streets, a large number of churches and lively squares filled with Neapolitans at the terraces of cafes.
Do not miss the famous Veiled Christ to the Sansevero Chapellocated in the historical center, impressive of realism and the main square ” Piazza del Plebiscito “surrounded by some of the most beautiful Italian baroque buildings including the Palazzo Reale, with a remarkable architecture dating from the eighteenth century, especially from here you will have a superb view of the Bay of Naples !
In short, the historic center of Naples is a must-see for lovers of art and architecture, and if you’d like more explanation we’ve written an article about our itinerary for not missing anything in Naples in 1 day on foot.
If you’d like to learn more about the city’s history and Neapolitan culture, and gain a deeper understanding of its architecture , we recommend booking a guided tour with a local guide!
➡️ Book your combined guided tour of the historic center and the famous veiled Christ at the Sansevero Chapel. For 2h30, your guide will tell you all about the history and architecture of Naples. The city will hold no secrets for you!
➡️En bus: if you prefer, you can opt to visit the city by hop-on, hop-off bus .
The system is simple: you can get off to visit a monument that interests you and then get on the next bus to continue your visit. There are two lines, A and B, serving 23 stops! Line B is the most interesting, as it runs along the coast. To reserve your tickets, click here.
You can reserve your tickets by selecting the day of your visit (French audio guide included).
2. Taste the typical Neapolitan pizza
There are pizzerias on every street corner, so you’re bound to find what you’re looking for for just a few euros, and you’re sure to put on a few pounds during your stay!
You’ll recognize Neapolitan pizza by its thin, crispy dough, which is usually generously topped. The best way to enjoy it is in a local pizzeria, such as the famous Sorbillo.
We also recommend that you try the deep-fried, filled and folded pizzas at Pizzeria 400 Gradi– this is no time to start dieting! It makes us hungry, just to write these few lines!
➡️Gino e Toto Sorbillo: a real institution where you can eat an excellent pizza with fresh ingredients from €4 + €1.5, in short the perfect place right in the historic center! We advise you to arrive early, as soon as it opens, if you are on the waiting list, there are many bars around to drink a Spritz while waiting! (historic center)
➡️Vousopt for a guided tour of the city combined with a tasting of the best Neapolitan dishes and drinks, pizza, ice cream, limoncello… A bit of culture mixed with excellent cuisine, the perfect combo. The tastings will double as a meal!
➡️Vouscan also take advantage of your stay to learn how to cook a real Neapolitan pizza in a restaurant. Book your 2-hour course.
3. Discover the secret city
We discovered that there really is a “hidden” city: the underground passages of Naples are an underground network of tunnels and galleries that run beneath the city, dating back to Greek times.
They are known for their architecture and history and are open to visitors. You can discover the history of the city and its mysteries, while admiring the sculptures and frescoes. The underground passages of Naples are a unique and interesting place to discover.
4. Must-see archaeological sites
There are severalUNESCO World Heritage archaeological sites within a few kilometers of Naples, including the Roman-era Pompeii, where you can learn more about the workings of a Roman city (25 kilometers from Naples).
We also recommendHerculaneum, a must-see in our opinion, as the ruins are even better preserved than Pompeii. Yes, it’s possible! (15 kilometers from Naples)
If you have time, we also recommend the Greek site of Paestum, home to some of the world’s best-preserved ancient Greek temples. (90 kilometers from Naples)
➡️Billets for the archaeological site Pompeii is one of the most visited sites in Italy, we recommend that you buy your tickets in advance online, with a queue-saver ticketto save time and avoid long queues.
➡️AYou’ll find very little information on site, so most visitors walk the site with a guide .
We therefore advise you to either purchase a audioguide (8€ at the entrance of the Marina door or beforehand on the internet) or to book a guided tour in French (with a guide or an archaeologist) before you come.
The story, and above all the anecdotes, of a professional will help you read the site better!
➡️Billets for the archeological site of Herculaneum: to save time, we recommend you book your ticket on the French reservation site, to avoid the long queues at , and add the audioguide, as there are very few explanatory panels on site.
5. Go boating in the Bay of Naples
You can explore one of the beautiful islands located in the Bay of Naples, Capri, Procida and/or Ischia. Located a few kilometers from Naples, you can go there by ferry to discover the small colored houses, the churches and the gardens, the beautiful beaches and especially to get out of the “hubbub” of Naples.
Above all, in Capri (the most visited island), venture off the beaten track, out of the center, to avoid the crowds and take full advantage of the island’s beauty.
➡️Voustake a ferry from the“Immacolatella Porta Di massa” stop or speedboats from the“Gare Maritime“.
➡️PetiteTip: you can also book your tickets for a day trip to the island of Capri (6h), in French, with lunch included, so you don’t have to worry about a thing!
6. Climbing to the top of Vesuvius
Vesuvius, an active volcano, is an incredible natural site not to be missed during your stay in the Naples area. At the top of the crater, you will have an unforgettable view of the bay of Naples.
We advise you to prepare your visit well in advance. We’re used to organizing our own excursions, so for Vesuvius we had a hard time finding useful and, above all, up-to-date information.
➡️En Car from Naples: if you have rented a vehicleYou will reach the Vesuvius parking lot in about 40 minutes. We advise you to prepare your visit to Vesuvius carefully, as information is not always easy to find in southern Italy. mistakes to avoid when visiting Vesuvius !
➡️Pourto save time, you can book a day trip from Naples. You can even combine a visit to Vesuvius and the archaeological site of Pompeii in the same day.
7. The jewel of Italy: the Amalfi Coast
The name certainly conjures up images of picturesque, colourful cliffside villages?
The Amalfi Coast, stretches from Sorrento to Salerno, located about 1 hour south of Naples. It is one of the most beautiful coasts in Italy, certainly in Europe, a real postcard landscape.
The good news is that you can easily get there from Naples, to explore the famous villages of Positano, Almafi… and enjoy magnificent views from the “Path of the Gods”.
Our itinerary to visit Naples and its region in 4 days [carte]
We came to Naples twice, simply because we didn’t have time to do everything the first time.
Below, we detail the 4-day itinerary we followed during our first stay, when we focused on visits/sites in the immediate vicinity of Naples.
Then we came back for a weekend to explore the Amalfi Coast which we really wanted to visit!
The letters in brackets correspond to the different locations on our map!
Day 1: The authentic city of Naples
For this first day, we recommend staying in Naples (A) and exploring its historic center and underground passages. We detail our itinerary so you don’t miss anything in Naples in 1 day on foot.
Also start by trying the local specialties, Neapolitan pizza, fried pizza, ice cream and other Italian pastries. Then we recommend you stay at the Hotel Garibaldi Rooms, ideally located next to the main railway station.
Day 2: The island of Capri (it’s fiiiniii!)
We chose to explore the famous island of Capri (B). We advise you to leave the center of town and take the small footpaths for beautiful views, and there’s no one around!
After a beautiful day, we returned to Naples for the evening and the night (hotel Garibaldi Rooms)
Day 3: Vesuvius and the archaeological site of Herculaneum
Our third day was a little busier, we left in the early morning to pick up our rental car at the airport, to avoid driving in the center of Naples.
It takes about 40 minutes to reach the Vesuvius parking lot (C) by car, count 1h30 of visit. Don’t forget to book your ticket before arriving at the site, as explained in our article, you can’t buy a ticket on the spot (that’s the organization in Southern Italy…).
Afterwards, we recommend parking at the pay parking lot near the site of Herculaneum (D) (15 minutes from Vesuvius), then fortifying yourself with an excellent pizza at Pizzeria Ro.Vi. Located at the foot of the site.
You can then explore the site ofHerculaneum (count 2 to 3 hours of visit). Remember to book your tickets for Herculaneum (Ercolano).
At the end of your visit, we drove back to our hotel in Pompeii for a well-deserved rest!
Day 4: The must-see: Pompeii
We advise you to get to Pompeii (E) early, as it too is very crowded. If you only have a few hours, we advise you to plan your itinerary carefully so as to see as many buildings as possible in a few hours, or to take a guided tour (in French, generally lasting 2 hours).
For our part, after 5 hours we had seen enough and we were getting saturated. To help you and optimize your visit, we have detailed our itinerary and our must-sees in Pompeii.
We then returned our car to theairport and flew back in the evening, already planning a future trip to the area!
Our additional 5, 6 and 7 day itinerary ideas
- Day 5 and 6: we advise you to book 2 days on the Amalfi Coast, located 1 hour from Naples to explore the famous villages of Positano, Almafi… and enjoy the magnificent view from the path of the“Gods“. We are preparing an article on this corner of paradise!
- Day 7 You can choose to explore another island in the Bay of Naples, Procida and/or Ischia because they are less touristy than Capri or to explore the Greek site of Paestum located 2 hours south of Naples, a reader had recommended this site to us and it is one of the most beautiful Greek sites we have visited (while we spent 3 months in Greece).
The best things to do in and around Naples
To visit the various points of interest in the incredible Naples region(boat tours, pizza tastings, day trips…) you can book your activities in advance via the internet.
We advise you to take a look at the getyourguide website which offers various activities at unbeatable prices. It can also give you plenty of ideas for original activities to organize your stay.
Practical information (plane, car and hotels)
How to get to Naples?
From Paris, without a stopover, it takes about 2h30 to fly to Naples. From France, you can find flights from 50€.
We recommend the Skyscanner website, which we usually use, to compare prices of different airlines and find your flight at the best price.
Getting around Naples
In Naples, you can do everything on foot or easily take the metro.
Then the best option to get around Naples is to rent a car. You will be free to move around and you can stop to take photo breaks whenever you want. We have, as always, done our research on RentalCars in order to find a car at the best price.
We advise you to be careful, as Italians are very sporty drivers. The second point to watch out for is that in Naples, there is a ZTL in the historic center and on the coast.
This limited-traffic zone is reserved for local residents. If you enter it without authorization, you’ll be fined. On the whole, we recommend parking outside the historic centers in this region, to avoid finding yourself in a ZTL and having to maneuver through the tight lanes.
➡️Voiture: To compare rental prices, we recommend the RentalCars website, which compares the prices of hundreds of car rental companies to find the best price. To give you an idea of prices, we found a car for €50 a day at Naples airport.
Where to sleep?
Looking for a place to stay in Naples? To make it easier for you to find what you’re looking for, we’ve put together an article detailing the most interesting areas to stay in Naples and those to avoid, as well as our best hotel addresses.
➡️A Naples, our favorite : we recommend the Hotel Garibaldi Rooms, ideally located right next to the central train station, and therefore the airport shuttle stop right in the historic center, so you can do everything on foot. We slept there for 3 nights in a quiet place.
➡️A Pompeii at the foot of the ruins: we recommend the B&B Pompei Olympus, located at 5 minutes walk from the ruins. The hotel is very quiet, located at the end of a cul-de-sac. Our room was spacious, clean and well decorated.
The hosts are adorable and offer a lot of little touches, which is always very appreciated! If you’re coming by car, parking is free, which saves you ten euros or so and a lot of stress!
Small tip to find your happiness, we advise you to use the search engine Booking to select your accommodation, by filtering the notes above 8/10 we are rarely disappointed. We advise you to book as soon as possible, as Naples is one of the most touristic cities in Italy.
Map of our stay in Naples
Feel free to leave us a quick note or 5 stars below, to tell us if you’re planning this trip, to ask any questions you may have, here or on Instagram, we’ll get back to you with great pleasure.
