VIA DEL MARE

Naples is an open-air show, the right mix of colors, art, beauty and culture. It's worth to participate in this tour which starts on top of the city, where you can enjoy the breathtaking view from the hills of Vomero and Posillipo. For example the San Martino Belvedere, where you can sip a drink outside or visit Castel Sant'Elmo, a medieval castle which now hosts a permanent museum collection and temporary exhibitions, fairs and events.
Via Orazio and Via Petrarca give you a great view on the beautiful bay of Naples, one of the best bays in the world, and close to them are many interesting places, like the Submerged Archeological Park of Gaiola, the shores of Marechiaro, the Imperial Villa of Pausylipon and Villa Rosebery.
After having seen the heights of Posillipo, the tour comes down to the promenade of via Caracciolo, reaching Mergellina. From here to the area of Piazza Plebiscito and the Basilica of Saint Francesco di Paola, one of the greatest examples of Italian neoclassical architecture. The basilica has a circular shape, reminiscent of Rome's Pantheon. In the portico seven statues depict the four cardinal virtues and the three theological virtues. On the sides of the staircase two statues representing Piety and Constance where supposed to placed but they ended being replaced by two equestrian statues representing King Ferdinand, sculpted by Antonio Canova and Charles III of Spain, sculpted by Antonio Calì.
The walk ends by reaching Castel dell'Ovo, on the islet Megaride, a natural offshoot of Mount Echia, which was connected to the mainland by a thin isthmus of rock. This was the original place where the cuman settlement Parthenope was founded in the VIII BC.

Photo Credits: Danilo D'Agostino.