Naples - Go or Avoid?

YoungBaker

Hey
Me and my fiance are considering going to Italy to see a few different places for our honeymoon - one of which was Naples. We mainly want to go to Pompeii for a day trip and had planned to just stay over in Naples for base really.

However, searching on here I have heard really mixed reviews about it - with the majority of them saying it's not worth going.

Would it be better going to Sorrento instead and travelling to Pompeii rather than Naples? Have any of you been to Naples and if so would you recommend going as part of our trip and reasons why/why not?

Thanks

Stephen_Leak

Stay in Sorrento and visit both Pompeii (that's a given, but don't forget Herculaneum) and Naples. Naples may be dirty, crowded and noisy, but it's the real urban Italy - warts and all.

zagfles

Well I'm in the minority who liked Naples, you've probably read the previous threads, but even I'd say Sorrento is a better base for seeing the area. Easy to get to Pompeii, Herculaneum, Vesuvious etc from Sorrento, plus the Amalfi coast, Capri, etc.

exel1966

Naples is a truly manic city, the traffic is absolutely horrendous, driving is an experience, the city is filthy, commercial waste is piled high on street corners, it's a real mess, crime is high, the water contaminated, but it's still worth a visit just to see it for yourself and taste a REAL pizza !

The surrounding areas/attractions as already mentioned are worth it, the Amalfi coastline area is very nice (probably the best in Italy, maybe even Europe), but a very popular place to visit and should be visited if possible.

YoungBaker

I see, I didn't realise there was such a problem with the garbage (have just google imaged it though

Might be a bit of a stupid question but is it easy enough to arrange trips to Vesuvius, Pompeii etc? Would you advise arranging before, or is it best to just travel from Sorrento to these places independantly?

zagfles

Allan_r_123 wrote: »

I see, I didn't realise there was such a problem with the garbage (have just google imaged it though

Might be a bit of a stupid question but is it easy enough to arrange trips to Vesuvius, Pompeii etc? Would you advise arranging before, or is it best to just travel from Sorrento to these places independantly?

You don't need to arrange anything - it's easy, there a "circumvesuviana" train which goes to Pompeii & Herculaneum (Ercolano), and just buy a ticket there. You can get a 3-site ticket which includes the Villa di Poppea which is well worth seeing (less crowded and better preserved than much of Pompeii), also on the train line. You can get a guided tour in Pompeii which is worth it if there are a few of you, or if not ask the guide to wait for some more people to share the cost, otherwise it'll be expensive. They'll probably approach you after you've bought the ticket.

For Vesuvius you can get a bus from Ercolano IIRC outside the train station. There are buses going to Positano and Amalfi along the coast raod, and you can get a boat there from Sorrento (but would recommend the bus one way at least, great views), and a boat to Capri. Boat or train to Naples - well worth a day trip I think (but others will disagree).

YoungBaker

Brilliant, great advice so far.

Also wondering, I have noticed loads of people have said there isn't really much to do in Pisa it's more of a day trip than anything else.

Would it be wise to then maybe stay in Florence instead, and go to Pisa as a day out rather than a main place to stay?

zagfles

Was a very long time ago I went to Pisa but from what I remember there's not a lot there other than the main square with the leaning tower and a few other interesting buildings. When I went (late 80's) you could go up the tower and walk around the walkway at each level but there was no barrier at all :eek: but things may have changed since then...

YoungBaker

Yeh zagfles that seems to be the consensus of opinion I have gathered about Pisa - good for a sightseeing day out but not really a place to go stay.

Mr_Wang

Avoid.

However, if you do go - Reputedly the best pizzeria on earth is there and I can confirm it is gorgeous. Da Michelle.

SaveTheEuro

Naples gets the thumbs down from me. It's easy enough to do Pompei by train in a day trip from Rome. Pisa is okay for one night.