Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
DON'T MISS
CATACOMBA DI SAN GENNARO
An evocative other-world of tombs, corridors and broad vestibules, the
Catacomba di San Gennaro
(
081 744 37 14;
www.catacombedinapoli.it
; Via Tondo di Capodimonte 13; adult/reduced €8/5;
1hr tours every hour 10am-5pm Mon-Sat, to 1pm Sun) is Naples' oldest and most sacred catacomb.
Not only home to 2nd-century Christian frescoes and 5th-century mosaics, it harbours the oldest
known image of San Gennaro as the protector of Naples. Indeed, it was the interment of the saint's
body here in the 5th century that turned this city of the dead into a Christian pilgrimage site.
Tours of the catacomb are run by the
Cooperativa Sociale Onlus 'La Paranza'
( 081 744 37
14;
www.catacombedinapoli.it
; Via Tondo di Capodimonte 13; info point 10am-5pm; R4 to
Via Capodimonte) , the ticket office of which is to the left of the
Chiesa di Madre di Buon Consiglio
( 081 741 00 06; Via Tondo di Capodimonte 13; 8am-12.30pm & 5-7pm Mon-Sat, 9am-1pm
& 5-7pm Sun) , a snack-sized replica of St Peter's in Rome completed in 1960. The co-operative also
runs a fascinating walking tour called Il Miglio Sacro (The Holy Mile), which explores the neighbour-
ing Sanità district. See its website for details.
Tours
Tunnel Borbonico walking
( 366 2484151, 081 764 58 08;
www.tunnelborbonico.info
;
Vico del Grottone 4; 75min standard tour
adult/reduced €10/5; standard tour 10am, noon, 3.30pm & 5.30pm Fri-Sun; R2 to Via San Carlo)
Traverse five centuries of history along Naples' engrossing Bourbon Tunnel. Conceived
by Ferdinand II in 1853 to link the Palazzo Reale to the barracks and the sea, the never-
completed escape route is part of the 17th-century Carmignano Aqueduct system, itself in-
corporating 16th-century cisterns. An air-raid shelter and military hospital during WWII,
this underground labyrinth rekindles the past with wartime artefacts.
Beyond the standard tour are an Adventure Tour (80 minutes,; adult/reduced €15/10)
and an adults-only Speleo Tour (2½ hours; €40), both of which require pre-booking.
There is a second Tunnel Borbonico entrance, through the
Parcheggio Morelli
(Via Domen-
ico Morelli 40)
parking complex in Chiaia.
TOUR
Napoli Sotterranea
WALKING TOUR
(Underground Naples; 081 29 69 44;
www.napolisotterranea.org
;
Piazza San Gaetano 68; tours €9;
English tours 10am, noon, 2pm, 4pm & 6pm;
C55 to Via Duomo)
This evocative 80-minute tour
