Naples

A lot of people are intimidated by large, chaotic cities, plus many people are in the area for the idyllic small villages of the Amalfi Coast. If you like cities and/or are a history buff, put it on your list. There is a great website devoted to the city called NapoliUnplugged.

I don't see it as a matter of pros and cons (every large, dense city has those), but rather the unique sights and attractions that draw you to see Naples in the first place - those things tend to overshadow the bad. Personally, I am not put off by any place just because some people aren't enamored by it - I go and draw my own conclusions. I really enjoyed Naples even though it was a bit intsense compared to small idylic islands.

We wanted to visit Naples last trip but that day was pouring rain so we skipped it (we were staying in Sorrento) and I’ve regretted it ever since.

We had planned to visit next month until we changed our itinerary and are staying to the north of Rome instead.
We’ll get there eventually maybe along with Puglia and/or Sicily.

I saved this post that has a lot of good suggestions
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/napoli-finally

We loved Naples. We loved the food, the energy, the outstanding archeological museum as well as other sites. It didn’t feel intimidating, even though we got stuck in the middle of a political demonstration. Watching the teens mill about in the evening in the center of the city, enjoying each other’s company, had a very authentic feel to it. We would go back in a heartbeat.

If you are on Facebook, check out "Adventures with Sarah", she may also have a blog or website. She did at least 3 videos recently about Naples.

I've been to Naples twice in the past few years, and loved it.
First visit was for a week, next one was for 5 days.
It's very loud and busy and in your face; but full of an energy that needs to be experienced to understand.
We found the people there very helpful and friendly, and the only "danger" was walking through intersections in the tiny older streets and having to watch out for a scooter or motorbike zooming by.
The food is great, and there is so much to see you'd need a coup[le of weeks there.
I hope you plan a few days there!

After all those positive comments, I think you should hear the downside of Naples. I really hated it and couldn’t wait to leave. First of all, it was very dirty, trash everywhere. Secondly, there were no city maps available; and people didn’t know, or were so imprecise in giving directions, that we spent hours each day being lost. Even the TI office was hard to find because the sign we followed was pointing to where it used to be located. Another example was when we asked at the TI office where to find a certain bus stop. The person didn’t didn’t know that it was directly across the street. The Campania Card, which is recommended for great tourist bargains, wasn’t actually available anywhere we tried to get it, not the TI office, not at the Archaeological Museum, not at any of the other attractions.
Our visit was several years ago, so perhaps the advent of electronic devices has solved many of these problems.

I went to Naples in July 2018. I was there just long enough to see the Archaeology museum, an art museum, take the train from Naples to Pompeii, and walk on a path next to the bay of Naples. Growing up near Detroit, i was conditioned to think big cities = danger of getting, shot, mugged, or assaulted. I have heard the mafia is quite active in Naples and the neighborhood around the train station is not safe. I took a subway right from the train station to close to my hostel. I survived the city ok. On one night at 4am I heard a crashing, banging sound, like a garbage truck had picked up a dumpster and accidentally dropped it onto the pavement, but i also wondered whether the sound was gunfire. I guess the neighborhoods you see will be safe enough. I doubt you will get shot, mugged, or assaulted

Our experience was a short visit (lunch) in Naples. We were on a tour headed to Southern Italy. The pros for us was that it was convenient to reach Pompeii. I know there have been many discussions about Naples on this forum. A few months ago Stanley Tucci was highlighted in Naples when he was “Searching for Italy.” He featured Pizzeria la Notizia, recognized as “the best Neapolitan pizza.”
You might want to take a look at “Naples, at a glance” on this site for all the historic places to visit.

Thank you for this post, and for all those who have answered and supplied links to more info. I've also heard (even from my relatives who have traveled in Naples) that it wasn't the greatest, but they don't love adventure as much as I do so i'm planning on checking it out for myself. Maybe I'm mistaken, but I feel like it's probably not much different than some of the big cities in the US - which certainly have their crusty sides.

depends on your taste, tolerance, and worldview. just got back from a trip around sicily, and a few days in naples and rome. naples is no different from any other big city around the usa. to the people who say it is dirty and dangerous - have you been to los angeles lately? i stayed 3 blocks away from central station and not once did i feel 'threatened' as i felt during the last 10 years in 90028. besides being the base from visiting pompeii there is much to see and appreciate in naples. for me, a city that has 3 caravaggio paintings, baroque and gothic churches like santa chiara, gesu nuovo and san lorenzo & authentic pizza margherita is an experience not to be missed. as always, ymmv.

eranurn

• Naples is actually dirty and in August it gets very dirty. The Acerra incinerator improved things, but it's a single facility in an overcrowded area that needs three. But nobody is forcing you to visit Naples during a Garbage strike or when an unionised workforce goes on vacation all together.
• Some areas in the outskirts and the Spanish Quarters are potentially dangerous in the wee hours. But nobody is forcing you to to walk around deserted alleys in the middle of the night.
• Yes, standard Italian is a second language to many aged locals, so if you make questions in English their reply may seem imprecise because they are "double translating". But nobody is forcing you to get there without a map and a guide.

Seriously, this is important: no expensive watches (no Rolex, Patek Philippe etc), no jewellery and no ATMs when it's dark and there is nobody around. No means no. Wear a Rolex around Naples and you have a 50% chance of loosing it. 50, not 5.

@Mike L

but i also wondered whether the sound was gunfire.

I doubt you were staying in Naples' outskirts, it was a dumpster. If you still need a story to tell at parties they did not accidentally dropped it onto the pavement. They did it on purpose because they were pi**d off with the way your hotel ran the garbage collection. Just like the guy in NYC who threw my bin on the other side of the front yard because we had misunderstood the day of wet waste collection. To be fair with NYC, in Naples the things can escalate quickly and take unexpected wrong turns: today they drop the dumpster when guests are sleeping, tomorrow they throw it into the Hotel's lobby.

Although he was talking more about US Congressional politics, Paul Krugman recently wrote a NY Times essay titled “The Durable Myth of Urban Hellholes.”

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/surviving-naples

When I first became a US suburbanite, I was struck by how much people valued their isolation from the problems that tend to be more visible in cities. But the financial crisis brought poorly-maintained houses, and then vacant foreclosures to the "best" towns. My tony town found a homeless person sleeping in a NJ Transit shelter who turned out to be a military Veteran, who had resources he wasn't capable of obtaining without help. Malls (and the financial crisis) left once-thriving 1950s downtowns with vacancies, some filled with fortune-tellers or CBD stores.

When I grew up in Manhattan, a huge public housing project was built a block away, Frederick Douglass Houses. Even today, it is one of the most stable and safest public housing projects in the city. I walk through it all the time, on the way to visit my mother. But, even in Inspector Morse, "Council Flats" are see as the heart of depravity.

Just because Dario is from Italy, I don't give him a pass from sensible scrutiny of internet "facts". We were in Naples in 2014, which is a while ago. But we enjoyed it, and felt safer than in Philadelphia or Newark NJ. I might mention that many discussions of Naples seem to fail to reckon with the modern replacement for the rail station, and the complete redevelopment of the immediate surroundings. Maybe they are from people who were there even longer ago than 2014. But I prefer the Naples rail station to Penn Station in NYC.

I was in Naples for 4 nights in February 4 years ago. I stayed in a budget hotel that was two blocks from the train station. I passed quite a few dicey looking (so it seemed to me) characters as I walked to the hotel with my luggage and felt a bit uneasy. There was nothing to worry about. I did get a little lost a couple of times and getting directions was difficult and confusing. A smart phone and google maps would have solved that. At the time, it just meant that I walked more than I needed to and had some uneasy moments. Again there was nothing to worry about. There are some excellent sights, some interesting sights, and a lot of history. The RS self-guided walking tour was quite good. The National Archaeology Museum is a Wow. I took a day trip to Caserta and recommend it if you have the time. I walked home to my hotel around 9-10 p.m. at least twice without incident. There were always a few people out and about wherever I was. I had some great food, though on that trip I had better pizza in Rome, Venice and Salerno - go figure. I was "assaulted" once, by 3-4 young teens on bikes with foam spray - I was there during Carnevale :-)

Southern Italy is the poorest part of the country and you definitely feel that in Naples. It's definitely on the grubby side but I can't say that it was worse than poorer parts of any city, though it was sometimes more raucous. My room had a balcony overlooking the main street and it was quiet at night - except for a great deal of yelling one night, which I soon realized was folks below watching a football game at night at cafe and celebrating a goal.

You may have heard that it's dangerous to cross the street in Rome. It's much much worse in Naples. I quickly learned (from watching the locals) that it's safer to cross in the middle of the street since you have a clear view of cars coming. Cars and scooters zip around corners at speed and traffic lights seem to be regarded as a suggestion at best.

My favorite saying about the city: The only subtle thing about Naples is its charm.

We stayed in Naples for 5 nights in 2015 with no day-trips (and of course no car) in mid-November. Two whole weeks there is what we thought would have been ideal. We'll go back some day. We loved Naples and actually looked for examples of why people don't like it --- we figured it must be way more uncomfortable there when it's hot and stuffed with tourists. (On our last trip to Italy before the pandemic, we were in Verona in early September for the opera and it was really hot and crowded and I caught myself not liking the city and noticing mostly the problems just because I felt so cranky.)

Going in the off season and staying on a central, pedestrian-only street (right off of the Spaccanapoli) and walking everywhere and not being in a hurry, we really didn't experience the hassle of traffic, driving, metro, taxis, etc. that other people complain of when they describe their visits to Naples. I literally can't recall any issue about street-crossing or garbage or chaos or criminal elements, but we did avoid neighborhoods we were told to avoid. We walked to the train station when we left and that area seemed fine, too. I feel way more nervous in my hometown (Washington DC) and we've had many things stolen from us and had car break-ins here in our quiet Saint Paul neighborhood.

Here's what we enjoyed in Naples:

One whole day in the archeological museum.

Visited Castel Sant’Elmo and San Martino (funicular from Via Toledo).

There was an opera one evening.

The presepi street with its incredible supplies for making nativity scenes was lots of fun so close to Christmas-time, even for non-Christians like us.

Cappella Caraffa and other chapels in the Duomo.

Via Toledo street market.

Via Caracciolo and Via Partenope for walks by the sea.

Caravaggio’s “The Martyrdom of Saint Ursula” and “The Seven Works of Mercy.”

Museo Cappella Sansevero's marble sculpture of Christ under a sheet, plus other rather bizarre sculptures and things.

Galleria Umberto vintage shopping mall.

Castel dell’Ovo.

We did not visit the Capodimonte museum, but would have with more time.

The Ospedale delle Bambole on Via San Biagio dei Librai was closed but looked cool.

Great food and street food. Lots of energy. Amusing sights. Like just about everywhere we go in Italy.

To the OP: are you going there alone, or with other people in a group or as a couple?

We didn’t like it. I think there are enough bad reviews or thoughts that it’s a good idea to investigate, just like you are doing. Also decide what type of vacation you are after and the time you have. It’s graffiti ridden everywhere it seems and very chaotic. I suppose if you have the time to check things out, then only you can decide if you want to do it. But many of us only have a small amount of time and I now think there are just too many beautiful places to see in Italy and Naples wasn’t it for us.

Tim I went easy on Naples. 90% of Italians would have been much more harsher with my grandparents' hometown.
And this leads me to another mumbling. If one wants to make/keep friends in Italy, he should refrain from saying things like

Italy was "in" Naples

I am not saying it's like using the infamous N-word with a black American, but for many Italians it's "in the same ballpark" (credits to Mr Q. Tarantino and Mrs Wallace). If one stumbles upon the wrong Italian while saying so, the response could be quite unpleasant.

If you want to see where Italy is "in", take Sicily out of the equation and find the barycentric point with respect to where most Italians live. Not surprisingly it's a middle sized city on the Aemilia Road, surrounded by small factories and farms, that's not too far from Florence. A place you may have never heard about: Piacenza.

Yes, the quintessential Italian town is not mentioned in any guide. Even those living in Salerno would feel more at home in Piacenza than in Naples.

The cab ride from the train station to our hotel was the most exciting trip I have ever take in an automobile. The food is fantastic; the energy of the city is intoxicating. People were friendly, gregarious, and loud, and I loved every moment of time I spent in Naples. I didn't want to leave. I will go back.

We were in Naples for 3 days in November 2018. We loved it more than we expected and hope to return. We stayed in the very busy central area that is more pedestrian focussed and it was very lively. Folks out shopping and socializing until late evening and the garbage trucks came at 4 am….maybe because that is the time they can manoeuvre on these narrow crowded streets? We were particularly struck by the passion of the Napoli locals about their history, culture and food. Everyone we encountered was gracious, helpful, and welcoming. We did not feel unsafe at any time while exploring various neighbourhoods. If you like cities and Italy, it is a very worthwhile destination.

I just finished booking flights and hotels to visit Italy in October. Flying into FCO and going straight to Naples for the first 10 days. I'm assuming (just starting research) that train is viable to get me there from Rome early afternoon . . . any suggestions are appreciated!!

I did a fair amount of "stuff to see and do" research pre-COVID for a short stay in Naples, and am staring that over for a longer time there. I'm happy to consider anyone's "don't miss it" suggestions!

We love visiting cities and prepare ourselves before arriving. Cities have pluses and minuses just as the countryside does. You need to realize what being in each city entails before you head there, especially in a foreign country. . Study up, bring a good map and enjoy exploring. We had a wonderful ( and delicious) time in Naples, one of Europe’s oldest cities. The history of the city alone is enough of a reason to visit.