Excursions
Positano
One of Italy’s most well known and picturesque tourist towns, Positano is also famous for its highly original fashion clothing in distinctive fabrics sold in many of the charming boutiques. You need to visit the little town on foot to appreciate its pretty narrow streets, pastel-coloured houses and endless steps carved out of the rock.
Ravello
Ravello was an important town of the Maritime Republic of Amalfi, an important trading power in the Mediterranean between 839 and around 1200.
Places to visit:
- Villa Rufolo (1270), built by Nicola Rufolo, one of the richest men of Ravello, on a ledge and it has become a famous attraction for thousands of visitors. The villa was mentioned by Giovanni Boccaccio in his Decameron and it is the place where Richard Wagner in 1880 was inspired for the stage design of his opera Parsifal.
- Villa Cimbrone, famous for its "Terrace of the Infinite".
- The church of San Giovanni del Toro (Saint John of the Bull) dating to before the year 1000.
Amalfi
The Amalfi Drive is one of the most spectacular coastal roads in Europe and passes through some absolutely stunning scenery. Starting from Sorrento, it winds its way along the cliff edge offering breathtaking views until it reaches Amalfi, one of the four Maritime Republics and birthplace of Flavio Gioia, inventor of the magnetic compass. In the centre of Amalfi stands the imposing IX-century cathedral with its famous striking façade decorated with gilded XIX-century mosaics.
Royal Palace in Caserta
Caserta is known as the "Versailles of Naples" because of the fabulous royal palace built here by Charles of Bourbon in the XVIII century. The palace is one of the most sumptuous in Italy with 1,200 rooms full of rich furnishings, frescoes, fabrics and works of art. However, the real highlight of a visit here is the park, with its magnificent gardens flanking a 75-metre-long series of fountains and cascades.
Pompeii
Pompeii is one of the most famous archaeological sites in the world. Every year millions of visitors come to see the spectacular ruins of this ancient Roman town destroyed by the eruption of Vesuvius in A.D. 79. Excavation work only began in the XVIII century but since then has gradually brought to light the splendours of an ancient civilization, including magnificent frescoed villas and an imposing amphitheatre.
MT. Vesuvius
Mt Vesuvius is one of Naples’ most well-known landmarks, and one of the largest active volcanoes in the world. The mighty mountain standing forebodingly over the city and the bay is accessible by bus up to a height of 1,000 m. From there on the visit continues on foot with licensed guides to the edge of the crater.
Naples
A unique and very special city, famous the world over for its warm and friendly people. Naples is one of the oldest cities in Europe, founded in the VII century B.C. by the Greeks and later conquered by the Romans. From the XI century onwards it was ruled by the Normans, Swabians, Angevins, Aragonese, Spanish and the Bourbons. Each of these foreign dominations left their mark on the city’s art, architecture and culinary traditions. You can feel the history most of all in the old town, a Unesco World Heritage Site and a treasure trove of unparalleled wonders.
Herculaneum
Herculaneum, said to have been founded by Hercules, is a remarkably well-preserved Roman town. Built some time between 80 and 70 B.C., it was destroyed by the eruption of Vesuvius in A.D. 79. Unlike Pompeii, however, Herculaneum was not buried by lava and lapilli (burning fragments of pumice stone), but was submerged by thick mud which then solidified into soft tufa rock, thus preserving the many frescoes and artefacts you can still admire today. The town was discovered in 1709 and excavation work since has brought to light sumptuous villas, baths, theatres and even a villa thought to have belonged to the father-in-law of Julius Caesar.
Paestum
Paestum is one of the most important archaeological sites in Italy. The Greek city of Poseidonia was founded here in the VII century B.C. and developed into a rich and flourishing centre of trade. You can visit the Temple of Poseidon, the Temple of Ceres, the so-called Basilica dating from the VI century B.C. (in actual fact a temple dedicated to the goddess Hera, the main divinity of Poseidonia), and the small museum housing the famous Tomb of the Diver.
Rome
The “Eternal City” is one of Europe’s greatest capitals and the centre of the Catholic Church. Rome is a cosmopolitan, dynamic city full of fabulous shops. Despite the hectic nature of modern life, it is still able to enchant visitors with its monuments and historic buildings such as Villa Borghese, Palazzo di Giustizia, Castel Sant’Angelo, the Colosseum, Piazza di Spagna, the Trevi Fountain, Saint Peter’s Basilica, Saint Peter’s Square and the Papal apartments, where every Sunday morning the Pope greets crowds of worshipers.
