Naples : Visites et expériences

Greek settlers founded Neapolis, the "new city", here more than two and a half thousand years ago, and the grid they laid out still shapes the historic centre, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1995. Its spine is Spaccanapoli, the long straight street that splits the old town in two. Beneath the streets runs Napoli Sotterranea, a maze of Greek quarries, Roman aqueducts and wartime air-raid shelters cut into the soft volcanic rock. Nearby, the Sansevero Chapel holds the Veiled Christ, a marble figure whose thin "veil" is carved from the same block. Naples is also where pizza as the world knows it was born, and the craft of the Neapolitan pizzaiuolo is on UNESCO's list of intangible heritage.

Across the bay stands Mount Vesuvius. Its eruption in AD 79 buried Pompeii and Herculaneum under ash and mud, preserving their streets, houses, frescoes and bakeries almost as they were. Many of the finest finds are now in Naples' National Archaeological Museum. To the south, the Amalfi Coast drops in terraces of lemon groves to the sea at Positano, Amalfi and Ravello. Offshore lies Capri, with its Faraglioni sea stacks, the Blue Grotto and the quieter upper town of Anacapri. Inland, the Royal Palace of Caserta, built for the Bourbon kings, is one of the largest royal residences ever built.

Most visits to Naples mix two kinds of day:

• The city itself: walks through the historic centre and along Spaccanapoli, the underground city, the great churches and museums, and of course its food, from pizza and street snacks to coffee and sfogliatella.
• Day trips around the bay: the ruins of Pompeii and Herculaneum, the walk up to the crater of Vesuvius, the drive or boat ride along the Amalfi Coast, a crossing to Capri, or the Royal Palace of Caserta. Naples is also a major cruise port, so many trips are timed around a day ashore.

Each tour page lists its exact meeting point, what is included and the languages available on each date.

April to June and September to October are the best months: warm enough for the sea and the coast, but without the fierce heat of midsummer. July and August are hot and busy. Pompeii has very little shade, so start early and carry water. Boats to Capri and along the Amalfi Coast run most often from spring to autumn and can be cancelled in rough seas, which happens more in winter. Winter is mild and quiet in the city, a good time for museums, churches and the underground sites.