How to take a day trip from Rome to Naples: how to get there, what to see, what you need to know

Practical tips to take a day trip to Rome to Naples by train: how to get there, what to see, why you may love it

Naples is only one hour south of Rome and a fantastic destination for a day trip.

Beautiful, vibrant and different from anywhere else in Italy, Naples is a large city and it deserves more than a day to be enjoyed and experienced.

However, it is also a city that many find overwhelming, so a day here can be a good way to see how you feel about it, see some of its unique areas and see if it may be a place to come back in the future.

In the last year, I have found myself in Naples from Rome several times.

It had been a good few years since my last visit to the city, and while the thought of going back had often crossed my mind before, laziness about the whole thing had been stopping me.

However, one day recently, I felt in the mood for Naples’ bustling atmosphere, roped a friend into my plan got a train ticket and went. I am so happy I did!

What a fantastic, exciting, life-affirming city!

The sensory abundance I remembered is still there in spades.

However, Naples is better equipped for visitors now than years ago, the center feels less daunting and is easier to navigate even as a newcomer.

So, this time, I didn’t feel any of that previous overwhelm and found myself falling in love with the city to a much larger extent than ever before.

So, today, I thought I would share exactly how I went about this day trip this time, hoping my experience comes in handy to you and helps you have a similarly positive experience!

I hope you enjoy it!

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Need to know: Naples is a polarizing city. It’s a large, busy center with a lot of traffic, street art, scooters zooming around and has, in most parts, a rather gritty appearance. This means that many love it with a passion but many really do no. Many also perceive Naples as less safe than it actually is, due to this gritty appearance. I recommend this day trips to people who thrive in big centers and especially. I do not recommend it to people who look for a mellow, small town experience.

Getting to Naples from Rome by train

The easiest and fastest way to get to Naples from Rome is by high speed train. The stretch is served by both high street train providers, Trenitalia Frecciarossa and Italo and they are equivalent.

I usually travel with Frecciarossa and, for day trip, I often find they have a ‘same day return’ offer, which makes it very affordable.

Getting train tickets

If you are not familiar with the booking process, I have an overview here but it is very easy: On the main page:

• Select Roma Termini as departure station
• Select Napoli Centrale as arrival station
• Select number of people and toggle the ‘direct trains’ option
• Select the train at the most convenient time for you
• Select the fare you prefer: ALL the offers that appear are applicable to you and you can choose any. The differences are usually level of comfort (even the most basic one is safe and nice) and if the ticket is changeable
• Follow check out instructions and you’ll get the ticket on your phone. You’re now done and ready to travel!

The train we picked

We booked a train that left Rome right before 9 am and took one that got us back into the city by 6pm.

This worked great for us: it gave us time to explore Naples’ Spanish Quarters, have a nice lunch, walk back to the station via Spaccanapoli and Via dei Tribunali and be back home with still energy left for dinner and ‘real life’ chores.

With this time, we could see all I had planned for the day except the veiled Christ which we could have included, had I booked it in advance (more about it later).

Our day wasn’t geared towards children but it didn’t need to be, to be enjoyable for the whole family.

The colors of the street art, the flags celebrating the scudetto (soccer cup, Naples is 4 times champion), the mouthwatering, decadent Neapolitan food and the buzz of the city is all it takes to make the experience exciting for kids too!

Arriving in Naples and getting the metro to Toledo station

The train journey from Rome to Naples is swift and comfortable, so short, I felt it took less time to get to Naples than to move within Rome at rush hour.

The station is well organized but huge, so the first impact can be overwhelming.

It is effectively a large hub with several floors, and you need a minute to find your bearings.

The feeling is not dissimilar to that of a very large airport: the signs are there, but there are so many that you need a moment to identify them.

I was glad not to be under time pressure to get anywhere: after a moment taking it all in, the station very quickly started to make sense to me

Our aim was the metro, and we quickly found it.

It is quite a walk from the main train area so do not be surprised if you walk more than expected: follow the metro signs for line 1 and trust they’ll get you there. You’ll go downstairs, walk corridors, walk across an inner yard with shops… but it is the right way and you will get there!

Eventually, you get to the metro station entrance where you will find a manned kiosk for tickets. We got a ticket at the manned ticket kiosk (cash and cards accepted) and boarded the first train to Toledo Station, the starting point of our itinerary.

The metro had blissfully semi-empty carriages, lovely clean seats and refreshing air conditioning. This was off-peak hour so our timing probably helped with lack of crowding.

The metro swiftly got us to Toledo, and our day in Naples truly began. First stop: Toledo station itself! Then, off we went to Explore Quartieri Spagnoli.

Toledo station – Napoli metro stop

Toledo station is often described as one of the most beautiful metro stations in Europe and is indeed unique and a work of art.

The station is most commonly known for the artworks ‘Crater de Luz’ by Oscar Tusquez Blanca and ‘Relative Light’ by Rober Wilson, which have transformed the main hall into a vision of blue mosaics and sparkling lights.

The installation is wonderful and the fact that it is part of a utilitarian space such as a metro hallway means you experience it as an immersive, enveloping experience.

However, the photo appeal of the place is not lost on Instagrammers & Co.

Make sure you don’t trip onto the tripods of the influencers who almost camp here in the hope of a social media-friendly shot…

Quartieri Spagnoli

Re-emerging from Toledo station, you find yourself in elegant and bustling Via Toledo, full of shops and easy to walk along. From here, you have easy access to ‘Quartieri Spagnoli’, among the most characteristics in Naples.

When you see photos of Naples with laundry hanging out of the windows and larger-than-life images of Maradona, there is a good chance you are looking at photos from this area!

The atmosphere in this area is unique, with a slightly gritty yet not threatening vibe.

As you walk along the narrow alleys of the Spanish Quarters, you find all around you hole-in-the-wall eateries, football banners, murals, images of Maradona depicted as a soccer player, Jesus, and anything in between, restaurants and of course all the local homes of people who call this neighborhood home (and whose laundry is drying in the sun)!

We spent some time in the area, taking in the atmosphere.

We didn’t feel we needed a tour to enjoy this area.

However, I believe this was largely due to the fact that we were familiar with many of the iconography (Maradona, Toto’ and many more) which I appreciate is not always the case if you are not from Italy.

So, if you are reading this as a foreign visitor, I feel like recommending looking into a this guided tour as it would get you an insight into the cultural references of street art and displays.

While strolling and while on a quest for a restroom, we also stumbled upon a local project for the urban regeneration of this area, which we found interesting to read about (they have info panels explaining what they are doing).

Overseas visitors with no Italian may not gain much from a quick visit here but for us, it was interesting as it gave a quick insight into the real life of the area. The cafe and facilities of the place also came in handy for a break!

Chiostro Santa Chiara (cloister)

The cloister of Santa Chiara is a stunning cloister I highly recommend you seek out.

Attached, as the name suggests, to the Church of Santa Chiara, the cloister is a peaceful, welcoming and stunningly decorated courtyard that feels like a little oasis of peace.

As you get in (ticket at the door), you can stroll around the garden, admire the tiled mosaics and breathe in the quiet of this secluded space.

The monumental complex of Santa Chiara dates from the 1300s; the cloister as we see it today, however, acquired a new appearance in the XVIII century, when the central area underwent a complete redesign.

Worth noticing are the depictions on the tiles on the columns and seats in the central part of the garden and the detailing of walls and ceilings under the main colonnade.

This was an excellent stop and one of the highlights of my visit.

Lunch in Naples city center and San Gregorio Armeno

You will never go hungry in Naples and we sure didn’t!

Quartieri Spagnoli and the city center have an almost endless row of places to eat, and we found pizza, cuoppo (a cone of fried food), sit-down restaurants, sandwich shops, takeout places, and anything in between everywhere.

We picked based on hunger and landed in a cuoppo place just in front of the entrance of Napoli Sotteranea/ Underground Naples which hit the right hunger spot (the spritz wasn’t great at all but the cuoppo quite nice!).

A nice reason to come here was that it allowed us to stroll along Via di San Gregorio Armeno and its famous nativity scene artisan shops, which tap into the significant and fascinating tradition of Presepe

if you preferred a proper sit down meal, we previously had a lovely one on the same piazza where you have Madonna di Banksy, which is also cool to see.

Sansevero Chapel and the Veiled Christ

Within this same area, there is the Veiled Christ, which we had hoped to be able to see, even briefly.

However, our ‘go with the flow’ plan didn’t allow us is, out of a major planning mistake: the now mandatory online booking of a spot. We didn’t find any last minute on the official site for quite a few days; we later discovered GetYourGuide has them and often has additional availability so that’s hopefully a solution, should you find yourself in our situation.

The Veiled Christ is a breathtaking marble statue of Jesus, represented after his death and covered by a veil chiseled with such mastery to look as if it was see-through rather than sculpted.

If you want to see it, learn from our mistake and book online. Tickets come out 60 days ahead.

Pastry shop stop for sfogliatella e nuvoletta

Naples is famous for its coffee and pastries so, after lunch and the letdown of not being able to see the Christ, we headed for a coffee fix.

While you find coffee absolutely anywhere in Naples, we decided to treat ourselves to a specialty pastry (or two!) and bee-lined to a place called Leopoldo, on Via dei Tribunali.

Leopoldo is a coffee at the bar and pasty shops with two delicious specialties: sfogliatella and nuvoletta.

Sfogliatella is a small pastry that comes in two varieties ‘riccia’ (lit. curly) and ‘liscia’ (smooth, in the photo below). While different from one another, they share being made with a buttery sugar and ricotta, the fact that they are sinfully good and that go amazing with coffee.

Which one is ‘best’ is one of those things that can divide families so I recommend you taste both!

Nuvoletta or Fiocco di Neve is a very soft, fluffy pasty filled with ricotta, which makes you feel like you are biting into a cloud (hence the name: nuvoletta means small cloud in Italian)

Duomo

Our last stop before heading home was the Duomo.

Naples’ Duomo is one of the most significant religious buildings in the city and and comprises of the acnient Basilica of Santa Restituta and San Gennaro’s Treasury with the Saint’s relics.

San Gennaro is the patron saint of Naples and beloved by Neapolitans.

You don’t need a specific religious background to enjoy this church’s beautiful architecture but dress appropriately to visit: modest attire is considered respectful and required from all.

The Duomo was the last stop of our day and, after all the walking and eating, we were suitably tired.

A short walk to the train station allowed us to notice the Museum of Illusions (I’ll bring the kids next time!), one more Maradona mural and regain Rome via a comfortable and efficient train ride.

It was the end of a wonderful travel day and a lovely way to enjoy a beautiful part of Naples in an organic, let’s get lost in the city type of way.

Safe travels!