Tips for Traveling to Naples Laura Maish        December, 2006   Hi there world travelers and aficionados of antiquities! I’ve got some travel tips for you that will demystify Naples and make getting around this ancient city even easier than wrestling a minotaur.

The Alta Vitezza

First of all, if you are traveling on the train from Rome and can get on the AV – Alta Vitezza, Naples, do it.  Travel time is condensed to just over an hour, rather than almost two hours on the Eurostar or InterCity.  This train is cool.  Traveling at 300 kph at its peak, you’ll feel the rush as it accelerates into high gear.  The operators add to the drama by announcing over the speaker when the maximum speed has been reached.   

Seating in the cars is in pods of four facing each other.  Most Europeans seem to manage nicely; larger Germans and Americans will feel the pinch in leg room.   The seats are comfortable, however, and the train, including toilets, is immaculate and amply air conditioned.  

The Dining Car is the real treat – decked out in striped velvet seats, you’ll have plenty of leg room there and a friendly wait staff.  Menu choices are limited and prepackaged, but we thought they were decent.  The best part was we had it to ourselves.   

The Naples Train Station - Garibaldi

If you’ve been here in the past, you’ll do a double take when you leave the train.  The platforms are now nearly spotless, the riff-raff gone, and police patrol the station on two-wheeled, Segue-like vehicles built by Ferrari (a nice touch).   Soon a shopping mall will grace the station, much like Termini in Rome.   If you are spending the day in Naples, you can drop your bags at the Depositi Bagaglio to your right, but be prepared for a wait.  The lads behind the counter are sometimes in no hurry, so remember to build in extra time to pick up your bags on the return.    

I encourage all travelers who have a negative experience with this service to register a complaint with the Customer Service Desk to the right of the Deposito Bagaglio.  They understand enough English to get the point and, and have a genuine interest in improving operations.  

ArteCard

My most valuable tip for navigating Naples is the ArteCard.  You can buy it at the train station, the Capodichino Airport, major hotels, and at the museums and archaeological sites. If you arrive by train, go to the center of the train station and locate the small booth that sells the card – they speak excellent English.  This is a must for traveling in Naples.  The card, priced at 25 Euro, gets free entry into two principal sites of your choice, such as the Archeological Museum in Naples, Pompeii, Herculaneum, etc., and 50% off on any other sites you chose to visit.  You also get a transportation card good for three days on public transportation within Naples, and on the Cicurmvesuviana, the train that runs south from Naples along the coast to the Herculaneum, Pompeii, Stabiae and Oplontis sites, ending at the city of Sorrento (note that their is also a Napoli-Poggiomarino line). It even gets you a 20% discount on the ferries and hydrofoils.  It’s a fabulous deal.  

Ask the person at the ArteCard booth at Garibaldi for a transportation map of Naples (GiraNapoli) with the bus and metro routes.  We couldn’t resist the free ride and took buses everywhere. If you don’t mind mingling with crowds, the buses are otherwise quite decent.  We managed with our suitcases on the #1 Bus, which starts at the train station, but had to leave our good manners behind to make it off the bus with the bags.   

We used the ArteCard for entry and transportation to the following sites.   

The National Archaeological Museum (Museo Archeologico Nazionale Napoli) - Take the Linea 2 Metro on the ground floor of the train station to Cavour.   It’s a 2 block walk from the station to the museum.  As always, watch pockets and purses.  At the Museum, present your card at the turnstile.  

Pompeii - Pick up the Circumvesuviana train at Garibaldi or even better at the Terminal on Corso Garibaldi, where you’ll beat the crowds for a guaranteed seat.   Get off the Cimcumvesuviana Napoli-Sorrento line at Pompei Scavi, or the Napoli-Poggiomarino line at Pompei Santuario, and walk a very short jaunt to a entrance of the ruins. Go to the ticket window marked ‘ArteCard’ and present your card.  They will give you another ticket allowing you into the site.   

Herculaneum - At Herculaneum, present your ArteCard at the ticket window. Also, be sure to ask for the free site booklet and map.  If they don’t have the booklet at the main window, you can get it at the information office directly behind you. If you use the Circumvesuviana (either line, Napoli-Sorrento or Napoli - Poggiomarino) to get to Herculaneum, you'll use the Ercolano Scavi station, and then walk 1/2 km down Via 4 Novembre to its end at the entrance to the ruins.

Oplontis -  (Via Sepolcri, Torre Annunziata). Use the Torre Annunziata stop. Exiting on the south side of the tracks, turn left on Via Vittoria Veneto and walk 1/2 block to Via Sepulcri. Turn right and walk one block. The entrance to the ruins are on your left, just after Via Margherita di Savoia.

Stabiae - (two small sites, both on Via Passeggiata Archeologica, Castellammare di Stabia). Use the Via Nocera stop on the Napoil-Sorrento Circumvesuviana train. Then look/ask for the "1 Rosso" bus, which will take you to the ruins. The bus seems to run irregularly and its stops seem to be in constant flux. You can also walk the 1 and 2 km to the two sites, however, Via Passeggiata Archeologica is not pedestrian-friendly at all.

Boscoreale - The ArteCard also admits you to this small site, which, in summer months, is allegedly reachable by the "Via Regina" bus from the Boscotrecase stop of the Napoli-Sorrento train. We were their in the winter, and asked the very helpful people at the Pompeii info booth how to get there. We were told that it was a walkable distance, but not to even think about that option, for reasons of bad neighborhood. They also said apologetically that using a cab was not a viable option.

Some links:

Staying in Naples

The #1 Bus takes you to Chiaia (Key-eye-ya), the most fashionable district of Naples with fabulous shopping and the Palazzo Alabadieri Hotel where we stayed. 

We stayed at the elegant Palazzo Alabadieri (http://www.palazzoalabardieri.it/eng/index.asp) I can highly recommend it a stay in Naples, particularly if you can take advantage of their discount offers.  The hotel has recently been remodeled, creating a plush and inviting atmosphere.  The hotel staff speaks superb English and is very polite.  I would not, however, trust them with restaurant recommendations; they will send you to tourist traps serving over-salted food.  Best to do your research on the Internet beforehand.  Speaking of which, the hotel provides free Internet access on the ground floor. 

Our room was very quiet, well appointed and comfortable.  Only the non-adjustable air-conditioning was problematic. The room was too warm by US standards. Plush towels and robes were provided in the marble bathroom along with Rance bath products.  I found the beds firm but comfortable, my husband thought they were way too hard. 

Situated in the heart of a chic, cobbled pedestrian zone, there are plenty of shops and restaurants within walking distance.  Most noteworthy were a couple of the upscale bakeries.  I don't recall the names but they were behind the hotel and open late, a perfect stop on an after dinner stroll.

We heard from several people that the Hotel Paradiso (Via Catullo 11) has a fabulous view, but had other problems including rude and unfriendly service. We heard very favorable comments about the staff and rooms at  Space Hotel Nesis. Hotel booking sites like Venere.com have fairly complete listings for Naples.
 

Restaurants

Naples is reported to have good food. None of the restaurants where we dined, however, were worth mentioning - at least not in any positive way. After we left, we heard that the Trianon a Forcella (Via P. Colletta 46) was authentic and good.

We were very unhappy with the RossoPomodoro restaurant.  The food was grossly over-salted. I’d guess we also got an unhealthy dose of msg; we were up all night with upset stomachs after eating here.  One of the worst meals we have ever eaten - anywhere. We also got really bad food and service at the first restaurant immediately right of the Hotel Palazzo Alabadieri.  I don’t recall the name, but nothing on the menu posted outside was available, and the food and service were below average. I challenged the waiter about the soulless salad with iceberg lettuce as to whether this was the type of salad he was used to eating himself. He assured me it was. Strangely, the grocery stores offer a host of beautiful local varieties of dark lettuce and greens.

Shopping in Naples

One of the best kept secrets about Naples is the shopping.  There you’ll find the same fashionable boutiques as in Rome but with lower prices.  Venture up the Via Filangieri, a pleasant cobblestone pedestrian zone, and any of the narrow streets around the hotel for some excellent boutique shopping.