Any must dos for teens and parents (mine) in Naples for three days please?

[purplepandas]

Morning,

We are off to Naples soon (teens and my parents) for three days. Pompeii and Herculaneum is one of the three days. Any particular must dos or suggestions please? Would be so grateful!

Thanks 💐

Bumping in case anyone has any thoughts.

DH and I are going to Naples and have booked a pizza making experience.
Also staying in sorrento and booked a boat trip down the coast.
But haven't been yet so don't know if any good

We went to the catacombs which were amazing! Highly recommend!

We also went on a day trip to Capri which was lovely :)

Climb Vesuvius (can get transport to half way up).
Do the cable car near Sorrento.
Funicular in Naples centre.
Spanish Quarter mooch.
Google the underground, some of the stations are out of this world!
Boat to Capri or Amalfi coast.
Pizza making.
Eat lots of Napoli pizza.
Ditto gelato.

Naples gets a bad press from people who barely leave the dodgy area the train station is in, but we all absolutely loved exploring it and can’t wait to go back!

You could get the b train to Rome for the day.

We're going for three nights, two whole days. We've booked a private walking tour which includes some tastings. No idea what we're going to do on the other day. Probably Pompeii.

Very useful thank you - have screenshotted 😊

I was at the dock where you can book a ticket for a boat trip to Capri and got seriously harassed, I'm quite well travelled but this was scary, a couple of locals came to my rescue.
Not very helpful but I'd keep my wits about me if I were you.
There's always mixed reviews about Naples and from pps it sounds like a good time can be had.

I wouldn't do both on the same day. Trip to Ischia perhaps , archaeological museum.

Go to Capri!!

So much to do in Naples! I loved it, have been a few times. I just like to wander, go up the funicular, see the castle and the amazing views, eat tasty seafood in the marina…

We went to Naples for a week over Easter last year. Pompeii can easily fill a full day, the weather was poor when we went, torrential rain and we were still there for most of the day. Herculaneum took us about 4 hours, would be a stretch to do both on the same day. Vesuvius was great, need to pre-book tickets for national park entry in advance otherwise you would have to want do an organised tour from Naples or Ercolano. There are murals including a huge one of Maradona in the Spanish quarter if the tweens are into football. The Archaeology museum is good and we also went to the San Gennaro catacombs at the top of the hill. On another day we did underground Napoli, cathedral and Cappella Sansevero which were also enjoyable.

I really liked the underground tour and wandering round the spanish quarter. We got the funicular to the top of the hill and wibbled our way back down. Did a free walking tour of historic quarter that was really interesting. Herculaneum was fascinating. Didn't do Vesuvius and Pompeii from Naples as we'd been before. Day trip to Ischia or Procida - much less bling than Capri. I really wouldn't do Herculaneum and Pompeii in one day - that would be totally exhausting. If time was limited i would pick one only. i probably preferred Herculaneum - it's more compact and better preserved. All the treasures are in the museum in Naples anyway. I would recommend a guided tour to get the most from it.

My ventures to that area have revolved around ruins.

Herculaneum is more compact and easier to "do" than pompei, but I prefer pompeii. I wouldn't do both in one day.

Also on the circumvesuviana (the suburban railway that takes you to pompei) at Torre Annunziata is a fabulous hidden archaeological gem, Oplontis Villla Di Poppea. Highly, highly recommend and it's less tourist than pompeii/herculaneum.

Herculaneum and Villa Di Poppea would be a nice full day. Pompeii one day of its own.

If you're going to Pompeii I'd get the Trenitalia service from Napoli Centrale to Pompei rather than the circumvesuviana, then go through the modern town which is lovely and has a lovely church at the centre. It's a short and pleasant stroll to the ruins, and there are lovely less touristy restaurants and cafes on the way.

Capri is nice but alarmingly expensive, I wouldn't say it's a must do. If you do go, walk up to Villa Jovis (ruins of the home of Tiberius). Sit down before you order an ice cream to save you from falling over when you get the bill 😆

Sorrento I'd not bother with on a short trip, it's basically tourist central.

A fabulous and little known place to go is the temples at Paestum - simply stunning. Good little museum and a lovely local area.

Vesuvius is a great trip too - get on the Public Bus of Terror for added flavour to your holiday! You'll be planning your funeral as you are flung round the mountain road bends 😂

In Naples itself we love the Zoo Di Napoli. it's been beautifully and lovingly restored over recent years. We've visited from its darkest days when it reopened around 2015, it's a lovely place now and well worth a visit.

I'd be interested to know if the lifts at Naples station have been fixed, they appear to have been out of order for about 15 years 😂

Yes me too, I love Naples for the same reasons- food , old buildings, atmosphere and life! Base yourself around Spaccanapoli and explore, with pit stops for snacks/ spritz/ pizza. Enjoy!

Capri - don’t bother- visit ischia or procida island instead (nearer and far superior)

Underground tour is fun and plenty of sights/landmarks in surrounding streets

Yes the funicular up to the castle with its views is well worth doing (you can see Spaccanapoli - google it)

Besides Pompeii and Herculaneum, which are must-sees, take a stroll in Naples, try authentic Neapolitan pizza, visit the Naples National Archaeological Museum, hike Mount Vesuvius for stunning views, and consider a day trip to Capri for relaxation.

I wrongly assumed that in Pompeii itself, I would see frescoes and those plaster cast statues laying about everywhere. I was wrong! There were actually none on site and everything is in the museum in Naples! Allow time to go to museum

There is a garden of the plaster casts and you can see some of the collection of artefacts on site. The area has become more joined up with one ticket for multiple sites around the Pompeii park including bus links iirc.

@LIZS I must have completely missed that plaster cast garden when were there .

The subterranean tour was fun - right under the city, you just enter via a random doorway in a street. When we went you took candles with you and at one point blow them all out. They might use more modern tech these days!

A tour of the Campa di Flegri is interesting - they are due to blow one of these days! And you can go up Vesuvius and see the streaming crater, smells of sulphur!

The train along the coast to Pompei/Sorrento is fun too.

pompeiisites.org/en/archaeological-site/garden-of-the-fugitives/

When we visited in 2017 there was another area behind a gate above the forum which had others and multiple pots etc.

If you can visit Herculaneum on the right day you can prebook a tour of the theatre which lies underground below the modern street level.

In Italy traffic lights mean different things.
In Milan they're instructions.
In Rome they're invitations.
In Naples they're decorations.

A lovely view from this castle - and it's in a lovely part of Naples too...https://www.coopculture.it/en/poi/castel-santelmo/ Castel Sant'Elmo