DK Travel : Naples & the Amalfi Coast

From one perspective, this area is an anomaly, at once one of the earth’s most beautiful and yet most accursed places. It has been the choice of the great and wealthy as their playground, while also being the scene of some of the greatest natural disasters and the grittiest human misery. Perhaps these irreconcilable twists of fate are at the root of the Neapolitans’ famously optimistic cynicism. The city of Naples itself is a vibrant urban setting, almost non-European in its intensity, while the beauty of the surrounding coast has been known to make grown men weep.

Capasso

An economical choice near the major central sights. Delicious pizza.
Capo Posillipo

The ancient Greeks called the area Pausilypon (“respite from pain”) due to the great beauty of the place. Down through the ages, it retained its appeal through a succession of inhabitants and visitors, from religious communities in medieval times to holiday resorts for the Spanish aristocracy in the 17th century. The spartan years of the 1950s, however, finally put an end to that famous beauty in large swaths with the unregulated spread of ugly apartment buildings. Fortunately, parts of the area down by the water still retain considerable charm, mainly the 17th-century Villa Volpicelli, appearing like a floating castle at the water’s edge.
Capodanno

New Year’s Eve involves merrymaking in Piazza del Plebiscito and fireworks over Castel dell’Ovo.
Capodimonte

This impressive royal palace is home to important works by some of the greatest masters of all time, including Botticelli, Filippino Lippi, Mantegna, Bellini, Fra’ Bartolomeo, Michelangelo, Raphael, Titian, Rembrandt and Dürer, as well as by every great painter working in Naples during the 17th and 18th centuries, including Caravaggio and Ribera.
Capodimonte

What started out as an unassuming hunting lodge soon grew to become a vast royal palace. It is now a museum housing one of Italy’s finest collections of art.
Capodimonte, Naples

This world-class museum also owes its main masterpieces to the Farnese Collection. Paintings run the gamut from medieval to contemporary; the porcelain collection also shouldn’t be missed.
Capodimonte, Naples

Established by Charles III, this park has numerous ancient trees.
Capri

There’s very little in the way of sandy beaches here, although there is a small one just up from Marina Grande. A popular pebbly choice is Marina Piccola, where there are full facilities including some good restaurants. The more adventurous should head down to the bottom of Via Krupp, where huge flat stones lie along the shore.
Capri

Remains of imperial villas that once enjoyed vantage points atop the cliffs can be seen here.
Capri

This small island has had a fabled history of glamour and decadence yet it still remains essentially a simple place.

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Restaurant price categories

For a three-course meal for one with half a bottle of wine (or equivalent meal), taxes and extra charges.
- under €20
- €20–30
- €30–40
- €40–50
- over €50