Things to Do in Naples: The 20 Best Sights, in Order

Things to do in Naples: how to use this list

The 20 things to do are ranked by priority, not by neighbourhood: with one day do the first five, with two days you’ll get to number twelve, with three you can do them all. Prices are the official ones, checked regularly; partner tours are mentioned where they add something (a compulsory guide, a queue avoided). Closing days matter: the MANN and the Sansevero Chapel close on Tuesdays, the Catacombs on Wednesdays.

History below and above the street

1. Sansevero Chapel and the Veiled Christ

Giuseppe Sanmartino’s Veiled Christ (1753) is the most booked-up sight in Naples. Standard ticket €12 according to museosansevero.it, open 9 am–7 pm with last entry at 6:30 pm, closed on Tuesdays, timed entry and no photos. In season the slots sell out days ahead: book as soon as you have your dates. The guided tour with entry starts at €14 and is mainly useful once the official slots have gone. Details in Sansevero Chapel and the Veiled Christ.

2. Naples Underground

The Greek-Roman aqueduct 40 metres beneath Piazza San Gaetano, with tunnels, cisterns and the wartime shelters. Guided visits every hour from 10 am to 6 pm according to napolisotterranea.org, tours with entry at €18. Don’t confuse it with the Bourbon Tunnel (via Morelli) or with the underground Spanish Quarter: they are three different routes, compared in Naples Underground.

3. National Archaeological Museum (MANN)

The mosaics and frescoes from Pompeii and Herculaneum are here: the Alexander Mosaic, the Farnese Bull, the Secret Cabinet. Full-price ticket €20 according to museoarcheologiconapoli.it, open 9 am–7:30 pm, closed on Tuesdays, free on the first Sunday of the month. Metro Line 1 to Museo or Line 2 to Cavour. Worth more than half a day; do it before Pompeii, not after. See National Archaeological Museum.

4. Catacombs of San Gennaro

In Capodimonte, above the Rione Sanità: the burial places of the first Christians, with 5th-century frescoes, open to guided visits only. Full-price ticket €13 according to catacombedinapoli.it, booking compulsory, visits every hour, closed on Wednesdays and on 25 December. The partner ticket costs the same and takes two minutes to book. Guide in Catacombs of San Gennaro.

5. San Lorenzo Maggiore and buried Neapolis

Beneath the Gothic basilica lie the Roman macellum and the streets of the Greek city: a dry, uncrowded alternative to Naples Underground, ticket with audio guide from €9. It’s 50 metres from Piazza San Gaetano, so it combines easily with number 2.

The historic centre on foot

6. Spaccanapoli and the Decumani

The straight street that slices through the historic centre from Piazza del Gesù to Forcella, with Santa Chiara, San Domenico Maggiore and the Duomo a few metres away. Free, best early in the morning or after 6 pm once the groups have gone. The guided walking tour (2–3 hours) starts at €16 and makes sense on your first day: after that you’ll find your own way around.

7. San Gregorio Armeno

The street of the nativity scenes, open all year: shepherds, figures from the news and Maradona statuettes. In December it’s impassable at weekends; the rest of the year it’s a ten-minute stroll past the workshops.

8. Duomo and the Treasure of San Gennaro

The nave and the Chapel of the Treasure are free to enter; the Museum of the Treasure, with the gold given to the saint, is charged separately (ticket with audio guide from €15). The vials of blood can be seen in the chapel; the miracle is celebrated in May, on 19 September and on 16 December.

9. Cloister of Santa Chiara

The 18th-century majolica cloister, silent even when Spaccanapoli outside is heaving. Entry €7 (reduced €5), open Monday–Saturday 9:30 am–5 pm and Sunday 10 am–2 pm according to monasterodisantachiara.it; the basilica is free. Details in Palaces, castles and churches.

10. Spanish Quarter and the Maradona mural

The mural in via Emanuele De Deo and Largo Maradona are free and always open; the grid of alleys around them is the most photographed neighbourhood in the city. Climb up from via Toledo, come back down for lunch. For the underground of the Quartieri (tours from €18) and the stories of the neighbourhood see Spanish Quarter and Maradona.

Squares, castles and views

11. Piazza del Plebiscito and the Royal Palace

The largest square in the city, with the basilica of San Francesco di Paola and the Royal Palace on the opposite side. The square is free; the Royal Palace with audio guide costs from €19 through our partners and shows the Bourbon apartments and the grand staircase. Next door, the Teatro San Carlo and the Galleria Umberto I.

12. Seafront and Castel dell’Ovo

From Piazza del Plebiscito to Mergellina along via Caracciolo, with Vesuvius in front of you and Castel dell’Ovo on the Borgo Marinari. Free, best at sunset. It’s also the Chiaia aperitivo area: see Naples at night.

13. Castel Sant’Elmo and the Certosa di San Martino

Take the Centrale funicular from via Toledo or the Montesanto one up to Vomero, then the 360-degree view from the castle (ticket with audio guide from €13.50) and the Certosa with its historic nativity scenes. The funicular costs the same as an ANM ticket for buses and funiculars (€1.30 for a single ride according to Unico Campania; €1.50 on metro Line 1) and is an attraction in itself.

14. Castel Nuovo (Maschio Angioino)

The castle facing the port, with the Aragonese triumphal arch and the Hall of the Barons. You can see it in an hour, handy before a hydrofoil from Molo Beverello or while waiting for the Alibus to the airport. From the courtyard you climb to the terraces overlooking the port and Vesuvius; the ticket costs €10 according to comune.napoli.it (free under 18), open Monday–Saturday 9 am–6 pm with last entry at 5:30 pm, closed on Sundays; the square in front with the fountain and Palazzo San Giacomo is free.

15. Capodimonte

The museum in the Bourbon palace, with Caravaggio, Titian and the Farnese collection, and the park around it: the city outing that visitors skip and Neapolitans don’t. It combines well with the Catacombs of San Gennaro, 10 minutes downhill on foot. Get there by bus from Piazza Museo or on the tourist shuttle; allow half a day and bring food for the park, as there are few kiosks. Free on the first Sunday of the month like all state museums.

Eating and living the city

16. Neapolitan pizza (and where to eat it)

You don’t need a ranking: the historic pizzerias of the centre (via dei Tribunali, Forcella) have queues, those in Chiaia and Vomero don’t, and the pizza comes from the same school. Practical rule: lunch at 12:30 or after 2:30 pm, never at 1:30 pm. Pizza and tiramisù classes from €22 in Food tours and pizza.

17. Street food tours

Folded pizza, frittatina di pasta, cuoppo, sfogliatella and babà in 2–3 hours with someone who knows where to go: from €25 with six stops, from €39 with a spritz. It’s the tour we recommend if you only have one evening.

18. Porta Nolana market and the Pignasecca

The two liveliest food markets: Porta Nolana for fish in the morning (next to the Circumvesuviana station, handy before Pompeii), the Pignasecca for fruit, cured meats and fried snacks two minutes from via Toledo. Free, closed on Sunday afternoons.

19. Posillipo and the Gaiola

The Gaiola park is a protected marine area with free entry by reservation and limited places; the Parco Virgiliano has the lookout over the gulf. Get there by bus from Mergellina, or on a panoramic tour. For the beaches see Beaches in Naples.

20. Art metro stations and funiculars

Toledo station on Line 1 and the other art stations can be seen with an ordinary ticket. The four funiculars (Centrale, Montesanto, Chiaia, Mergellina) climb to Vomero and Posillipo and are worth a ride even without a destination: the Centrale leaves from via Toledo and reaches Piazza Fuga in four minutes, the Chiaia runs from Parco Margherita to via Cimarosa. Fares, day ticket and map in Transport: ferries, trains, airport.

What to do in Naples in 1, 2 or 3 days

With four or more days, day four goes to Pompeii by train and day five to Capri or the Amalfi Coast: the table with journey times and costs is in Day trips from Naples. Hour-by-hour plans, with the bookings to make beforehand, are in 1, 2 and 3-day itineraries.

Free things to do in Naples

• Spaccanapoli, the Decumani and San Gregorio Armeno.
• Piazza del Plebiscito, Galleria Umberto I, the nave of the Duomo with the Chapel of the Treasure.
• Lungomare Caracciolo, Borgo Marinari and the outside of Castel dell’Ovo.
• The Maradona mural and Largo Maradona in the Spanish Quarter.
• Gaiola park (reservation, limited places) and Parco Virgiliano in Posillipo.
• The Porta Nolana and Pignasecca markets.
• State museums (MANN, Capodimonte, Certosa di San Martino) on the first Sunday of the month: no advance sales, you collect your ticket at the desk.
• The art stations of the metro, for the price of a ticket.

When to book and when not to

Book: the Sansevero Chapel (days ahead in season), the Catacombs of San Gennaro (compulsory), the evening tours of Naples Underground and pizza classes at weekends. No need to book: the MANN, Castel Sant’Elmo, the Royal Palace, churches and markets. If you’re planning three or more paid museums in three days, do the sums on the Campania Artecard before buying individual tickets.

What to see in Naples depends on how much time you have, not on how much you spend: the first five things cost about €70 in total between official tickets and tours, the next ten almost nothing. Start with the Sansevero Chapel, and the rest takes care of itself.