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12 free things to do in Naples
Our list of great free things to do in Naples will take you through palaces, parks, markets and much more.
There’s Italy – and then there’s Naples.
No other city in the bel paese is as intense, complex and unapologetically bonkers as this heartbreakingly beautiful renegade. Older than Rome (it’s true!), Italy’s third-largest city serves up an embarrassment of riches – from ancient ruins and opulent palazzi to intoxicating street life and majestic panoramas.
Yet even amid all this splendor, Naples remains one of the country’s most affordable cities, from coffee and dinners to accommodations. What’s more, some of its finest assets are gloriously free of charge.
If you want to save those euros for pizza, gelato and other epicurean treats, here are 12 ways to see the rest of the best of Naples for free.
1. Enjoy the living museum that is Naples’ centro storico
Who needs to buy a museum ticket when you’ve got the plein-air galleries of Naples’ centro storico (historic center)? This living, breathing time machine – one of Europe’s largest historic areas – offers thousands of years of art and architecture to admire, all for free. Ponder Greek ruins on bar-flanked Piazza Bellini, medieval architecture at the Basilica di San Lorenzo Maggiore and stirring baroque artistry at the Chiesa del Gesù Nuovo. While the frescoed, majolica-tiled cloister of Santa Chiara is well worth the price of admission, one hidden oasis awaits for no cost: the Giardino di San Marcellino, a lush, secluded cloister tucked within the Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II on Via Bartolomeo Capasso.
2. Ponder miracles at the Duomo
Each May, June and September, the faithful pack into Naples’ epic cathedral to witness the city’s most reliable miracle: the liquefaction of San Gennaro’s blood. If the usually dried blood returns to its original, liquid state, Neapolitans breathe a collective sigh of relief; if it doesn’t, the city’s luck is said to run dry. Believer or not, you sure won’t dispute one truth: the chapel where this miracle unfolds – the Cappella di San Gennaro – is simply dazzling. Pull up a pew and lose yourself in Giovanni Lanfranco’s intoxicating baroque fresco Paradiso, so alive you can almost hear it.
Planning tip: Encrusted in Byzantine mosaics, the Duomo’s unmissable Battistero di San Giovanni in Fonte is the oldest baptistry in Western Europe.
3. Check out the planet’s most beautiful metro station
One €1.80 (US$2.01) metro ticket grants you entry to what might be the world’s most beautiful underground station: the Òscar Tusquets Blanca–designed Toledo. It’s the crown jewel of Naples’ “art stations,” dreamed up by some of the world’s top architects and artists. Your journey begins with Neapolitan-themed murals by conceptual heavyweight William Kentridge. As you descend, a monumental porthole – aglow with Robert Wilson’s mesmerizing light installation – looms above, spilling light into the sea-blue cavern below. Hop on the next train to explore candy-hued Università, another standout stop.
4. Muse on modern art
Hankering for world-class modern art but not keen on splashing out for a ticket to MADRE? Head to the Chiaia neighborhood instead to explore two of Naples’ most compelling private galleries, both housed in grand old palazzi. The Lia Rumma Gallery, founded in 1971 and occupying the gallerist’s former home, is renowned for discovering emerging talent. Further west, London’s Thomas Dane Gallery brings international clout, showcasing the work of renowned creatives like Steve McQueen, Amy Sillman and Bice Lazzari – all framed by views of Naples’ fabled bay.
Planning tip: You'll find up-to-date gallery and exhibition listings at Itinerari nell’Arte.
5. Fawn over art nouveau architecture and fine fashion in Chiaia
In Chiaia, Napoli reveals its elegant side – chic boutiques, bourgeois manners and some of Southern Italy’s flounciest Liberty (Italian art nouveau) architecture. Take it all in with a stroll from Piazza Amedeo to Piazza dei Martiri, passing along Via Vittorio Colonna, Via dei Mille and Via Filangieri. Peer into galleries, window-shop Italian high fashion, and politely ask the porter for a peek at Palazzo Mannajuolo’s magnificent elliptical staircase at Via Filangieri 35–37. Just off Piazza dei Martiri, buzzing La Feltrinelli is perfect for browsing books…and eavesdropping.
Planning tip: Chiaia is famous for its aperitivo bars, so consider exploring in the late afternoon for a post-walk tipple.
6. Get a bird’s-eye view from Vomero
Funiculars lead up to the hilltop neighborhood of Vomero, home to hulking Castel Sant’Elmo and the equally art-filled Certosa di San Martino. While both charge admission, neighboring piazza Largo San Martino serves up a spectacular panorama of the city and its menacing volcano – at no cost at all. Play spot-the-landmark, then follow nearby Via Annibale Caccavello to the Gradini del Petraio, a network of stairways, ramps and alleys that winds down toward Corso Vittorio Emanuele and Chiaia, with gorgeous views along the way.
Planning tip: For the most memorable ride to Vomero, hop on a funicular. One of the easiest city-center stops is Augusteo on Via Toledo.
7. Find your Zen at Villa Floridiana
Vomero is also home to the 19th-century Villa Floridiana, a rather generous gift from King Ferdinand I to his second wife, the Duchess of Floridia. Today, it houses the Museo Duca di Martina and its exquisite collection of European and Asian ceramics. While the museum charges an entry fee, the villa’s sprawling, verdant gardens are free to access – and well worth your time. Pack a book, grab some dirt-cheap Neapolitan street food from nearby Friggitoria Vomero (Via Domenico Cimarosa 44), and while away an hour under a cooling canopy of oaks, cypresses, palms and pines. Did we mention the romantic terrace views over Naples and the azure sea?
8. Perfect your passeggiata on Via Toledo
Like brazen double parking, the passeggiata (early-evening stroll) is a quintessential part of life in Naples. More than a mere saunter, this daily ritual is an anthropological study in Neapolitan flirtation, family pride and fashion, played out daily on its thoroughfares and piazze. Hit Via Toledo, a favorite route for the stroll, heading south from Piazza Dante to Piazza del Plebiscito, the city’s elegant drawing room. En route, dip into one of Italy’s grandest old shopping arcades, Galleria Umberto I, and pause at storied Gran Caffè Gambrinus, where a fortifying espresso will cost you less than €2 (US$2.25) if ordered and sipped at the counter like a local.
9. Explore a treasure-filled palace library
Admission to the opulent Palazzo Reale and its collections will cost you – unless you access the wing that houses the atmospheric reading rooms of the Biblioteca Nazionale di Napoli, where access doesn’t cost a cent. This one of Italy’s largest libraries, housing ancient manuscripts, rare books and Herculaneum papyri quietly resting beneath frescoed ceilings. Head in before 3pm to lay eyes on these ancient texts, along with the exquisite Biblioteca Lucchesi Palli, a library-within-a-library crafted by some of the most accomplished artisans of 19th-century Naples.
Planning tip: Don’t forget to bring a valid photo ID, which you’ll need to get into the library.
10. Explore a hyperactive street market
You could spend €60 (US$67) to see Verdi at the lustrous Teatro San Carlo – or you could dive into a gritty Neapolitan marketplace. For both are electrifying, high-octane spectacles where desire, cunning and bellowing protagonists collide, to gripping effect. Two of the best markets in the city are La Pignasecca and Mercato di Porta Nolana – both central, chaotic and awash with fresh local produce, color and well-rehearsed roles. Look out for the shrewd, hawk-eyed nonne; booming fishmongers playing to the crowd; and dubious figures dwelling in the shadows. Yelling “bravo!” is optional.
Planning tip: Head to the stalls before 10am for the full, mouthwatering effect.
11. Get a glimpse of Naples’ mystical side
Ghoulish sites like the Complesso Museale Purgatorio ad Arco shed light on the often macabre directions in which Neopolitans take their religious devotion. For a similarly bewitching – and free – glimpse into the city’s intense strain of Catholicism, slip inside the Santuario Santa Maria Francesca delle Cinque Piaghe, which incorporates the preserved 18th-century home of a revered mystic and stigmatic. The saint’s bloodied garments and self-flagellation cords remain on show, but it’s her miraculous wooden chair – said to bless infertile women – that draws queues of pilgrims.
12. Take a sunset seaside stroll
Naples’ Lungomare instantly lifts anyone’s mood. Where else can you stroll a major city seafront with prime-time views of Capri, Mt Vesuvius and storybook fortress Castel dell’Ovo (which Roman poet Virgil asserted sat atop a magic egg)? Stroll it, jog it or bike it – whatever your pace, you’ll be smiling the whole way. For peak enchantment, head here an hour before sunset and cross the seafront west to east, starting at Chalet Ciro 1952 (ideal for a wallet-friendly gelato) and ending at Castel dell’Ovo, glowing gold in the setting sun.
