Good morning!n No “Five on Friday” for you today, but I think you’ll like this post! Now that the wedding recaps are complete, I can blog about our honeymoon! To sum it up, it was the most amazingly wonderful two weeks we could’ve ever asked for. It was our third time to Italy (2nd together), and I swear- it gets more and more special every time I visit.  We especially loved this trip because we got to explore the Amalfi Coast, which is even more beautiful in person than it is in pictures. Our itinerary was: Naples for 2 nights, Ischia for 4 nights, Sorrento for 3 nights, Positano for 4 nights and then 1 more night in Naples to be closer to the airport for our flight home. I’ll break the recap posts into each area that we visited, making sure to share what we did, where we stayed, what we ate (and where we ate where I can remember!), suggestions, etc.

Where We Stayed:

For the first Naples stop, we stayed at the Renassaince Naples, which we really loved. It was a nice, clean hotel with decent size rooms, it had a great breakfast with beautiful views and most importantly, it was SUPER close to everything you’d want or need. We could literally walk out and be in various piazza’s in just a short walk. We were also surprised by a Luna di Miele gift (we assume it was organized by our travel agent: Coleen at Simply Honeymoons), which was a great way to be welcomed to the city!

The hotel also had a small gym, which I used just once.

For our last night in Naples at the end of our trip, our travel agent opted to put us at Grand Hotel Parker’s, and while it was a BEAUTIFUL hotel (very luxurious) with amazing views, we felt as though it was a bit too far out of the way for our liking. When we got there on Sunday afternoon, we were starving so we headed out to find food and had to walk and walk and walk in order to find anything. Granted, it was a Sunday and a lot of things are closed on Sundays, but still. It didn’t seem like it was a highly populated area of nearby piazza’s, cafes, etc., which was not the case with the Renaissance that we first stayed in. So, if your thing is views moreso than proximity to the action, then this is certainly the hotel for you because it was really, really nice and had wonderful views. Plus, our room was so great- it was 2 floors with 2 bathrooms! It was almost like a little apartment 🙂

What We Ate

I sent my parents a copy of the itinerary I created and they were laughing when they saw “eat pizza” on the list of “things to do” in Naples 😉 But the pizza in Napoli really is unlike anything we’ve ever had before. It was simply unbelievable. So basic, but so delicious! And cheap! 3 euros for a pizza- can’t get much better than that.

• Aperol Spritz- These are the best thing ever! Paired with the “snacks” that cafes give you when you order drinks, it made for a perfect afternoon pickmeup.

• Cafe & Sfogliatelle at Gran Caffe Gambrinus, which is a well-known, very historic cafe in Naples. The sfogliatelle there were amazing!! If you don’t know what they are- google it, find an Italian bakery and get one. You won’t regret it!

• Pizza at Di Matteo. Tribunali Street is THE street to get pizza if you’re in Naples. If the line at Di Matteo is too long, there are at least a handful of other well-known, delicious places to choose from. We grabbed beers at the store next door, ordered a pizza and found a stoop to eat it on. It was amazing- and the pizza was only 3 euros- heck of a cheap date 😉

• Lunch at Attori & Spettatori– We had been walking and walking and walking and finally stumbled upon this restaurant, which had everything we were looking for: drinks, food, outdoor seating, quiet area. We opted to get a piazza fritta, which is a “fried pizza”, a staple Naples is known for. It’s basically a calzone that’s been fried and while it’s good, we preferred the traditional pizza. This restaurant was great, though!

• Dinner at II Garum Ristorante– this was suggested by the hotel and it did not disappoint! We didn’t make reservations so we couldn’t eat outside, but the inside was warm and charming so it was great. We shared a few apps, but the star was the special of the night, which was a lobster tail pasta dish. SO good!

• Gelato- duh! I don’t remember the exact places, but everywhere we got one was great.

What We Did

• LOTS of walking around, checking out the various piazzas.
• Tour “Naples Underground”- this was a really interesting part of our trip because we didn’t know that it even existed! From their site: Forty meters below the characteristic and lively streets of the Historic Center of Naples, you find a different world, unexplored, isolated by time, but deeply connected with the world above. It’s the heart of Naples, and the place from which the city was born. To visit it is to travel to the past, a world 2400 years old.Every historic epic, from the foundation of Neopolis, to the bombs of WWII, has left it’s mark on the walls of the yellow tufa stone, the soul of Naples, and the stone with which the city was built. Naples Underground is the most famous and fascinating guided tour underneath the city of Naples. Our guides will take you on a journey through 2,400 years of history, from the ancient Greeks to modern times, unveiling the “womb” of Naples from an archaeological, historical, anthropological and geological point of view.. Head on over to their site to learn more- I know my explanation won’t do it justice!
• Walk around & explore small streets & churches- Italy is FULL of both of these things and we really enjoyed just wandering and stumbling upon both.

• Archaeological Museum- We didn’t get a chance to visit this, but I would’ve liked to have because it sounded amazing. They had lots of original pieces from Pompeii which would’ve been cool to see.
• Eat pizza 😉 And mozzarella… no, seriously. Throughout the whole trip we couldn’t stop raving about how GOOD the mozzarella was. It was so creamy and fresh and flavorful- unlike anything we’ve ever had in the states!

Would we go back?

Absolutely!! While we had received words of caution before going (ie: hold your bag tight, leave your ring in the safe, etc.), we didn’t feel nervous or in danger at any point during our trip. Sure, there were a few homeless people asking for money and the city felt a little dirty, but nothing you wouldn’t get from any other city. Overall, we really loved Napoli and would totally go back!

Questions for you: Have you ever been to Napoli? What’s your favorite “big city”? Do you prefer fancy/loaded pizzas or more basic? What’s your favorite vacation drink?