Naples, Italy May 2025
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| Old Town Naples, Italy May 2025 |
Itinerary for Naples May 2025:
PHOTOS: Coming Soon
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| Day 1 & 2 of our Italy trip itinerary |
Traveling to parts of Italy? See Amalfi Coast, Florence or Milan
NAPLES (NAP) AIRPORT:
- Customs: be sure to go through the E-Passport lines and it's a very quick process! They scan your passport, take your picture & then get a stamp!
- We flew American Airlines and had no issues with a slightly oversized carryon.
- HIGHLY RECOMMEND only bringing a carryon size luggage as it is difficult to drag luggage anywhere in Italy.
- Highly recommend putting an Air Tag or Samsung Tracker in your suitcases/backpacks to ensure your luggage is with you
- Note: To help with jet lag, highly recommend downloading Time Shifter App. With a mix of coffee & melatonin (optional), you'll be guided a week in advance on how to prevent jet lag
TRANSPORTATION: - Private Taxi: We were recommended not to get taxis without pre-booking through hotel or from reputable sources (they're notorious for ripping off tourists). We did coordinate a private taxi from Naples airport to hotel for € 35 euros
- Public Transport: Note: For trains, the timing is the time they leave, not arrive.
- 1. Trains: Napoli Centrale
- We used a lot of "The Man in Seat 61" blog to figure out the train stations.
- To get to Sorrento, there are 2 options:
- (1) Commuter train - € 2 euros - Our commuter train broke down going from Sorrento to Naples
- (2) Circumvensa train - €15 euros. We elected for this one due to guaranteed seating. However, we do not recommend either option as they were very difficult. Highly recommend paying for private transport from Naples to Sorrento / Amalfi Coast
- 2. Metro: We stayed off the Metro stops to easily get around - € 2 euros. You can buy several paper tickets for one way metro rides at once or you can just use credit card instead of paper tickets directly at the entrance of metro.
- We did not utilize other systems including the bus or tram
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| Naples Metro |
HOTEL: We were recommended anywhere in old town Naples (Centro Storico). However, we ended up staying at IHG Holiday Inn Naples due to a good deal. It was a 5 minute walk to the metro station. We did prefer hotels versus the airbnb/ bed & breakfast.
PAYMENT METHODS:
- CASH: Recommend bringing $100+ euros per person for:
- (1) tipping tour guides
- (2) Bring 1€ euro coins for public/private bathrooms
- (3) Any bill that is under $10 euros - the expectation is that it will be paid in cash (however, we did use credit card because we didn't have cash on us)
- CREDIT CARDS: Accepted everywhere
- Only use credit cards with 0% foreign transaction fee
- Always charge your credit card in euros instead of USD (better conversion rate)
SAFETY:
- We felt very safe as long as you use typical precautions.
- We were warned several times about pickpockets. Keep your valuables in front pocket and carry a crossbody purse. We carried a colored copy of our passport as a precaution.
WHAT TO BRING:
- Good Excellent walking shoes - be expected to walk 15-25k steps/daily
- Plug converter is needed coming from the USA
- Sunblock, hat, scarf, & rain jacket more useful than umbrella due to wind
LANGUAGE:
- Download Google Translate App to help communicate
- Some Italian phrases to know:
- Buon Giorno - Good Morning
- Grazie - Thank you
- Prego - "You're welcome" or "Ready" or "Come this way"
- Per Favore - Please
- Scusi - Excuse me
- Bagno - Bathroom
- Il Conto, per favore - The bill, please
- Para Inglese? - Do you speak English?
RANDOM TIPS:
- Download WhatsApp to communicate with tour guide/groups
- If possible, avoid visiting any major tourist attraction on weekends/holidays due to heavy crowds. Morning & weekdays are much better to visit. Avoid "Free Sundays" for locals as crowds are heavy
- Note: In restaurants in Italy, they have a "coperto" cost which covers cost of the utensils, tablecloth etc. that you will see on the menu & being added to your meal. This is non-negotiable and per person
- Do not tip unless it is excellent or above & beyond
- Download google maps offline of the areas you're visiting just in case
VEGETARIAN/VEGAN FOOD: - If you sit down at any restaurant, cafe, bar etc. You will be required to pay an additional fee called a "Coperto" per person. This covers the cost of the table/tablecloth/silverware etc. If you stand at the bar to drink your coffee - no additional charge will be present.
- Note: TAP WATER NOT SERVED IN RESTAURANTS. FILL UP BOTTLE BEFOREHAND IN PUBLIC WATER FOUNTAINS OR BUY BOTTLED WATER
- Cheeses from Italy (Mozzarella, ricotta etc) are made with calf rennet and are not truly vegetarian. However, we still tried pizzas with mozzarella / ate ricotta desserts
- Coffee: All espresso drinks are excellent! They only use one shot of espresso, so recommend getting a cappuccino with two shots. They do not do iced drinks unless it's a very touristy place. They do charge more money to drink inside the shop vs "take away"
- Vegetarian-ish Napoli food items to try:
- (1) Neapolitan Pizza - there are strict standards to be considered a Neapolitan pizza with their own certification. These were the restaurants that were recommended:
- L'Antica Pizzeria da Michele - Eat Pray Love with Julia Roberts
- First, give your name to the the attendant and wait to be called on the speaker. Once seated (and you might have to wait for up to 90 minutes), you can order your choice of Marinara or Margherita. There's only 3 or 4 choices
- Gina e Toto Sorbillo - Several options available for pizza, gets crowded!
- Starita Pizzeria
- Pizzeria Da Attilio
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| Note: Look for this sign outside of restaurants to authenticate that true Neapolitan pizza is inside! |
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| Pizza from Pizzeria da Michele |
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| Pizza from Gina e Toto Sorbillo |
- 2) Sfogliatella - DESSERT: Sfogliatella is a mix of a croissant, cannoli, and absolute deliciousness in one pastry. It’s essentially a crispy croissant textured pastry stuffed with ricotta cheese with powdered sugar sprinkled on it
- Sfogliatelle Attanasio - if you like sweets, try the Sfofliatella Santa Rosa dessert! Yum. Take a number & they'll call you. You'll order, pay and collect your dessert.
- We also had pistachio filled Sfogliatella from other pastry shops and it was excellent
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| Sfogliatella dessert |
- (3) Buffalo Mozzarella - Yes, it is made with calf rennet and thus not vegetarian. However, if not very strict, highly recommend trying on pizza! It's delicious.
- (4) Ragu - We did not have time to try, but this came recommended
- (5) Pocket pizzas - street food
- Sorbillo Piccolina - there's several places on Via Toledo (Naples main shopping/eating street) to get pocket pizzas. This is where we ended up!
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| Pocket Pizza street food from Sorbillo Piccolina |
NAPLES RECOMMENDATIONS:
- 1) Day Trip to Pompeii and Herculaneum - You can take public transportation if do not want to go as a tour. We wanted a tour & guides without any hassle. Highly recommend! (Use code EXCURSION10 for 10% off)
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| Pompeii Ruins with Mt Vesuvius Volcano |
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Herculaneum Ruins with Mt Vesuvius Volcano
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- 2) Archeological Museum - This was awesome to do in addition to Pompeii & Herculaneum. This museum holds all the artifacts from the ruins.
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| Naples Archeological Museum |
- 3) Old Town Naples Walking Tour - Walking tour that showed us downtown area. There's not a ton to see but this was a good tour to get an idea of the city. The main shopping street is Via Toledo
- 4) Other parts of Naples we were recommended to see: Optional if don't have time
- Piazza del Plebiscito: an expansive public square that encapsulates the city's regal atmosphere.
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| Piazza del Plebiscito |
- Galleria Umberto I: Beautiful mall to walk through
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| Galleria Umberto I Mall built in late 1880s |
- Castel dell’Ovo: Good viewpoint
- Naples Duomo (main cathedral)
- Toledo metro station in Naples - this Metro station is considered to be one of the most beautiful in the world
- Spaccanapoli street - divides "Old town Naples" from "New town Naples"
- Via Toledo - Famous shopping street in Naples
- On this street, you will find several shops selling Neapolitan red horn is the amulet on which Neapolitans rely most to fight bad luck, evil eye and negativity. This is similar to the "evil eye" from Greece
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| Red Horn Amulet in Naples, Italy |
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