European Ports Of Call – Do We Overlook Them ?

How often when booking a cruise do we completely overlook many of the actual cruise ship ports? Probably not Barcelona, one of the most beautiful cities in Europe, but how about Genoa, Civitavecchia, Piraeus, Livorno or Naples.

So I thought I would take a look at some of them and see what they have to offer apart from being a place to get on a coach and head off on an excursion, or just a grubby industrial area only necessary to get onto your ship.

“See Naples and Die” is an Italian proverb of unknown origin but is taken to mean that after you have seen Naples there is nothing else worth seeing! Well that might not quite be true but there is definitely more to Naples than a not very attractive port area.

Head back from the port into the narrow, winding colourful streets to see completely different city. The capital of the Campagnia region of Italy, it sits in the Bay of Naples and is overlooked by Mount Vesuvius behind. It is the largest city in Southern Italy and is often called an open air museum because of the abundance of historical sites and monuments in and around.

Naples has a beautiful long promenade where families stroll in the warm evening sunshine. Take a walk round the narrow alleyways of the Spanish Quarter and see life as Neapolitans see it every day. Of course you can`t see the city properly in one day, but on a cruise that is likely to be all the time you will have. So take in the Museum and try to visit the one of the markets. Set in one of the most picturesque parts of the city, the Antiques Market runs along the road that separates Villa Comunale Park from the promenade.

You must stop and have a coffee or maybe a pizza. Naples is world famous for its pizza and is the place where Pizza Margherita,  made of mozzarella, tomato and basil, was invented  in 1889.

I don`t think you`ll be disappointed by this very different city that I s more than just a gateway for Pompeii, Capri and Sorrento