 |
 |
 |
|
'INSIDER TIPS' | |
|
Go underground in Naples Naples is a fabulous but frenetic city so take more care than you would elsewhere in Italy. Try the glossy underground line from Piazza Dante to Vomero even if you don't need to travel by train. Each station displays bold contemporary artworks on the walls. Apart from this, you're best walking everywhere as the city is so compact. Look confident: the more 'lost-tourist' you look, the more of a target you'll be for thieves whizzing past on mopeds. Buses are over-crowded and taxis may rip you off unless you insist they switch their meters on. Dine with Don Alfonso If you're staying near Sorrento, do dine at Don Alfonso's or even stay in his tiny hotel at Sant'Agata. Don Alfonso 1890 is arguably Italy's top restaurant, and certainly the one run by the most genuine celebrity chef. The legendary Don Alfonso Iaccarino was a pioneer of healthy eating and Slow Food long before the term was invented and still champions organic produce -much grown on the family's own farm and orchards. The cuisine, prepared by Don Alfonso and his son, is outstanding. Make time to visit the labyrinthine wine cellar and stock up on Don Alfonso's pasta, oil and bottled vegetables, which are not over-priced. Visit Vesuvius Vesuvius may be an active volcano, but you can still visit the rim of the crater's mouth, and gaze down into its smouldering core. The approach is dramatic, passing vineyards that produce the amber-hued Lacrimae Christi (Tears of Christ) a wine favoured by the ancient Etruscans. The puce-tinged summit induces a feeling of foreboding but when gazing into the volcano's core, spare a thought for Spartacus, who, a century before the eruption that buried Pompeii, hid in the hollow of the crater, which was then covered with vines.
|
|
 |
|
 |
Holidays in Campania
|
|
Campania is, with Tuscany, Italy's tourism mecca, at least in terms of visitor numbers. Campania has everything in abundance: a sun-kissed climate, Classical architecture, bijou islands and Italy's most dramatic coastline. The legendary names trip off the tongue: Amalfi, Capri, Naples, Pompeii, Positano, Ravello, Sorrento. The crescent-shaped Bay of Naples contains unspoilt Capri and volcanic Ischia, two of Italy's loveliest islands. On the Amalfi Coast, buildings are cantilevered above rock-studded cliffs and overlook the country's most romantic coastal drive. The Cilento national park is a patchwork of wheat fields and olive groves, though wolves and wild cats survive in remote corners. If that weren't enough, Naples is not just the birthplace of pizza but home to a population with more personality than the rest of Italy put together.
Campania's natural wonders are as wild as Italy gets, from a smouldering volcano to belching, sulphurous springs and eerie lakes that ancient myths refer to as the gateway to Hades. The Classical sites of Pompeii and Herculaneum hark back to the days of the Grand Tour, when Greek and Roman civilisations were all the rage. Pompeii is an intense experience beyond the heat and crowds. Here, the vivid frescoes in Villa dei Misteri tell the story of the cult of Dionysus www.pompeiisites.org. Herculaneum encompasses the Thermae (Roman Baths) where you can espy the pools' original mosaics and even Roman lockers.
The rugged coastline of the Amalfi Coast is reason enough to come to Campania, as are the gorgeous hotels and villas dotted along the coast and on the islands. As for beaches, the Neapolitan Riviera boasts superb scenery around the Sorrentine Peninsula and Amalfi (though very few sandy beaches), with other beaches around Paestum, and on the islands of Capri and Ischia. Capri is decidedly chic but has even more cliff-side walks than celebrity sightings. Ischia is more low-key in terms of glamour but delights spa-babes with its superb thermal spa gardens where you can spend the day dipping in and out of thermal pools in between swimming in the sea. Ischia also has many dark sandy beaches. The islands have ferry and hydrofoil services from Naples and Sorrento running frequently during the long Summer season, less so in Winter.
Taking a car to the islands is inadvisable (Ischia) and often impossible (Capri) but see the following for details: www.capritourism.com and www.infoischiaprocida.it
Amalfi, once a seafaring republic, retains its grand cathedral as a testament to its medieval status. Positano, Campania's answer to Portofino, is a picturesque fishing village dotted with exquisite restaurants and boutiques, best reached by boat for maximum impact. Sorrento has sold its soul to tourism in the nicest possible way. This is a 'soft sell': ice cream-coloured facades, cliff-top hotels with sweeping views, seductive boutiques, Mediterranean cuisine - and lashings of Limoncello, the local liqueur, made from the zingiest lemons. Ravello, also a 'must', is a delightful village perched high into the cliffs which celebrates one of the country's pre-eminent summer festivals of chamber music, dance and art www.ravellofestival.com
Naples remains a glorious assault on your senses, as explosive as Vesuvius. As Italy's most superstitious city, Naples mixes the sacred and the profane and is riddled with weird sites that reveal its superstitious soul. 'Underground Naples' is a chance to explore hidden shrines and catacombs that interconnect with modern Naples. Spaccanapoli, the old city's central axis, propels you into a magical but sense-numbing immersion into the Neapolitan maelstrom. If all this is too overpowering, browse the calm-inducing collection of Old Masters at the Capodimonte gallery.
Sample pizza in the city where the world's favourite fast food was invented. In Naples, you can eat well incredibly cheaply. For fine dining, drive to Sant'Agata, near Sorrento, for dinner at Don Alfonso 1890 with Italy's least pretentious celebrity chef. Forget 'see Naples and die': see Naples and eat.