I have almost a week to spare and need some recommendations on where to go. I will be staying close to Naples and can travel via boat, train or bus only. I do not drive so a car is not feasible. I will need accommodations so recommendations are welcome :) I have been to the Amalfi coast, Sorrento, Naples, Rome, and Sicily. I am travelling alone and need some guidance. If you had 4 days and 3 nights where would you go for the first week in September? Grazie :)
Posted by
Seattle
49 posts
If you can get to Naples easily, then you obviously have Capri. I'm guessing you've been to Pompeii, but there's also Ercolano, which feels much more intimate and manageable. You also have Paestum, which is an easy day trip by train from Naples. Not a whole lot of people know about the Villa Poppaea in Torre Argentina, which is a small (and a little bit seedy/dilapidated) town along the Circumvesuviana. The villa is believed to have belonged to the Emperor Nero's second wife, Poppaea Sabina, and it's really quite an amazing example of upper class decadence. The villa's frescoes are breathtakingly gorgeous, and in a much better state of preservation than a lot of what you would find at Pompeii (excluding the Villa of the Mysteries.) I'm also a huge fan of Santa Maria Capua Vetere (the site of ancient Capua), which about 30 minutes by train from Naples. The amphitheater there is one of the largest in Italy, and it's almost totally off the tourist path. When I was there last year, it was just me and a few other people wandering around. You get to see and explore waaaay more than at the Colosseum; you can walk out onto the sands, and all around under the stands (!). It's pretty darn awe-inspiring. Your ticket (like 5 Euro total) also gets you into the mithraeum, which the ticket vendor from the amphitheater can walk you over to. It's one of the best preserved painted mithraea in Italy; it's amazing. From Santa Maria Capua Vetere, you're about 10 minutes by train from Caserta, which has the Italian answer to Versailles. It's a gorgeous palace, but the gardens are the true show stopper. The garden is absolutely immense, and its grandeur can't really be overestimated. Pozzuoli (you can take the metro to get there!) also has a great amphitheater, and the Solfatara is a pretty intriguing volcanic feature.
Posted by
OP
Burnaby, BC, Canada
22 posts
Thank you so much. I am going to be in Palinuro the week before so will more than likely make it up to Paestum. But this helps!
Posted by
Bromley, Kent,, UK
1829 posts
"in Torre Argentina" should be "Torre Annunziata". I agree that the Oplontis Villa is well worth a visit. http://www.skenographia.cch.kcl.ac.uk/oplontis/
Posted by
Seattle
49 posts
Thanks, Linda. I don't know why I said 'Torre Argentina' instead of 'Torre Annunziata.' I guess accurate place names are the first thing to go when I get sleepy.
Posted by
Washington DC Region, USA
7055 posts
How about Ischia?
Posted by
OP
Burnaby, BC, Canada
22 posts
Yes Ischia sounds good. Any recommendations on where to stay?
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area (USA)
16572 posts
http://www.minube.it/cosa-vedere/italia/campania?page=1 Campania is the name of that region of Italy. The site above is in Italian, but click on the pictures and see what you like. Procida is the nicest island. You don't even need to see the towns of the Cinque Terre after you see the village of Marina di Corricella on the island of Procida. Search "Procida" on Google, then click on Images. That is where the movie "Il Postino" (the postman) with Massimo Troisi was filmed. The Reggia di Caserta (Caserta's Royal Palace) is second in Europe only to Versailles.