©Lonely Planet Publications Pty Ltd Southern Italy Naples & Campania p64 Puglia, Basilicata & Calabria p137 Sicily p196 Cristian Bonetto, Brett Atkinson, Gregor Clark, Duncan Garwood, Brendan Sainsbury, Nicola Williams PLAN YOUR TRIP ON THE ROAD Welcome to NAPLES & Ravello . 129 Southern Italy . 4 CAMPANIA . 64 Salerno & the Cilento . 130 Southern Italy’s Top 11 . 8 Naples . 65 Salerno . 130 Need to Know . 16 South of Naples . 94 Cilento Coast . 133 First Time Herculaneum (Ercolano) . 94 Parco Nazionale del Southern Italy . 18 Mt Vesuvius . 96 Cilento e Vallo di Diano . 134 What’s New . 20 Pompeii . 97 Accommodation . 22 Sorrento . .. 104 PUGLIA, Getting Around . 24 The Islands . 108 BASILICATA If You Like . 26 Capri . 108 & CALABRIA . 137 Month by Month . 29 Ischia . 115 Puglia . 140 Itineraries . 32 Procida . 118 Bari . 140 Activities . 42 The Amalfi Coast . 120 Around Bari . 144 Eat & Drink Positano . 120 Promontorio del Like a Local . 48 Nocelle . 124 Gargano . 146 Family Travel . 58 Praiano . 124 Isole Tremiti . 151 Regions at a Glance . 61 Amalfi . 126 Valle d’Itria . 152 D.SERRA1/SHUTTERSTOCK © D.SERRA1/SHUTTERSTOCK © IMAGES LIEBANO/GETTY RICKSON CAPPELLA PALATINA P201 BAHDANOVICH ALENA/SHUTTERSTOCK © ALENA/SHUTTERSTOCK BAHDANOVICH STREET STALL, AMALFI P126 Contents UNDERSTAND Salento . 157 SICILY . 196 History . 264 Basilicata . 170 Palermo & Around . 200 The Southern Way of Life . 277 Matera . 170 Palermo . 200 Appennino Lucano . 177 The Mafia . 283 Tyrrhenian Coast . 213 Maratea . 178 Cefalù . 213 Art & Architecture . 285 Calabria . 183 Aeolian Islands . 215 Northern Tyrrhenian Coast . 183 Lipari . 216 SURVIVAL Cosenza . 184 Vulcano . 219 GUIDE Parco Nazionale Salina . 220 della Sila . 185 Stromboli . 222 Directory A–Z . 294 Ionian Coast . 186 Ionian Coast . 224 Transport . 301 Parco Nazionale Taormina . 224 Language . 308 dell’Aspromonte . 189 Catania . 228 Index . 314 Reggio Calabria . 189 Mt Etna . 234 Map Legend . 318 Southern Southeastern Sicily . 236 Tyrrhenian Coast . 192 Syracuse . 236 Noto . 245 Modica . 247 Ragusa . 251 Central Sicily & the Mediterranean Coast . 253 Agrigento . 253 Western Sicily . 257 Marsala . 257 Selinunte . 259 Trapani . 259 Erice . 260 Segesta . 262 SPECIAL FEATURES An Architectural Saunter A Graeco–Roman Walking Tour . 80 Legacy . 240 Historical Riches . 92 Driving Tour: Baroque Towns . 248 Tragedy in Pompeii . 100 Valley of the Temples Surprises of Walking Tour . 255 the South . 180 Delightful Desserts . 208 PROCIDA P118 ©Lonely Planet Publications Pty Ltd 32 GLENN VAN DER KNIJFF/GETTY IMAGES © IMAGES KNIJFF/GETTY DER VAN GLENN Plan Your Trip Itineraries A D R I A T I C S E A CAMPANIA Alberobello •# É Naples É •# É É Pompeii •# •# PUGLIA Matera Positano •# •# Amalfi BASILICATA •# Lecce T Y R R H E N I A N S E A CALABRIA I O N I A N S E A 10 DAYS Southern Highlights and the Galleria d’Italia – Palazzo Zeval- An easy introduction to some of los Stigliano, as well as stirring baroque southern Italy’s must-see wonders, this frescoes in churches such as the Duomo 10-day overview covers everything from and Chiesa del Gesù Nuovo. The city’s cosmopolitan city culture to ancient Cappella Sansevero is home to the Cristo ruins, superlative coastal scenery and velato (Veiled Christ), widely considered World Heritage–listed architecture. one of Italy’s finest sculptures. Pique your appetite with two heady days in Spend day three roaming the time- Naples, an urban wild child bursting with warped ruins of Pompeii, among them glorious art, architecture, street life and communal baths, private residences, shops flavours. You’ll be kept busy exploring its and even a brothel etched with ancient bounty of cultural treasures, which include graffiti. Leap back into the present and Caravaggio masterpieces at Pio Monte della continue to Positano, the Amalfi Coast’s Misericordia, Palazzo di Capodimonte undisputed pinup town. Lap up two days 33 PLAN YOUR TRIP IT I NERAR I ES Cattedrale di Sant’Andrea (p126), Amalfi here, hiring a boat for a spot of coastal lauded sassi (former cave dwellings). cruising or hiking the breathtaking Senti- Swap sassi for World Heritage-listed trulli ero degli Dei (Path of the Gods). (conical-roofed abodes) in Alberobello the following day. Late evening is the best On day six, continue east along the time to experience the town’s historic Amalfi Coast, stopping briefly in atmos- Rione Monti quarter, home to more than pheric Amalfi to view its iconic Sicilian 1000 trulli. Spend the night, then hit the Arab–Norman cathedral, the oldest part road one last time to the university city of dating from the early 10th century. Con- Lecce, dubbed the ‘Florence of the South’. tinue on your way to the city of Matera in It’s quixotic baroque buildings make for time for dinner, then spend the following an extravagant epilogue to your southern day exploring its one-of-a-kind, Unesco– overview. 34 PLAN YOUR TRIP IT I NERAR I ES A D R I A T I C S E A Bari •# É Polignano •# a Mare Grotte di Castellana •# Alberobello •# Ostuni •# •# Locorotondo •# Martina Franca É Lecce •# É Galatina •# •# Otranto Gallipoli •# É Golfo di É Taranto •# Santa Maria di Leuca 35 GIMAS/SHUTTERSTOCK © GIMAS/SHUTTERSTOCK 2 WEEKS Perfect Puglia Puglia is one of Italy’s most seductive PLAN YOUR TRIP regions, its abundance of history and one-of- a-kind architecture melded with an enviable coastline and one of Italy’s simplest, healthiest cuisines. Start your explorations in dynamic Bari, roaming its ancient historic centre and huge IT Romanesque basilica; the latter is a pilgrimage I site for both Catholic and Orthodox Christians. NERAR Strike out south, via Polignano a Mare, to the jaw-dropping limestone Grotte di Castellana. I Italy’s longest network of subterranean caves, ES its most famous feature is the Grotta Bianca (White Grotto), Mother Nature’s alabaster take on Gothic architecture. From here, a two- to three-day drive south will take you through some of the finest towns in the celebrated Valle d’Itria. Among these is Alberobello, with its hobbit-like, World Heritage–listed trulli, wine-producing Locoro- tondo, beautiful baroque Martina Franca and chic, whitewashed Ostuni, the latter home to some particularly outstanding restaurants. Next up is inimitable Lecce, dubbed the ‘Florence of the South’ for its operatic architec- tural ensembles and scholarly bent. Hire a bike and spend at least three or four days exploring RAMON SENENT/SHUTTERSTOCK © SENENT/SHUTTERSTOCK RAMON its wealth of cultural assets. Among these is the obsessively detailed Basilica di Santa Croce and the Museo Faggiano, the latter a veritable layer cake of archaeology stretching back to the 5th century BC. From Lecce, move on to Galatina, its 14th- century basilica awash with astounding fres- coes. Head east to the fortified port of Otranto, whose own 11th-century cathedral stands out for its extraordinary 12th-century floor mosaic. If the weather is warm, enjoy a little downtime on the inviting beaches of the Baia dei Turchi, then push south along the wild, vertiginous coastline to Santa Maria di Leuca, the very tip of the Italian stiletto. Finally, conclude your adventure in the walled island city of Gallipoli, feasting on raw sea urchin and octopus in its elegant town centre. Top: Basilica di Santa Caterina d’Alessandria (p163), Galatina Bottom: Locorotondo (p153) 36 LEONORI/SHUTTERSTOCK © LEONORI/SHUTTERSTOCK 15 DAYS Sicily to Calabria PLAN YOUR TRIP Ancient cultures and natural beauty collide in this two-week adventure. From Greek temples and Norman cathedrals to rugged mountains and coveted coastal resorts, strike out on a gripping journey through Italy’s southern extremes. Fly into and take two days to savour IT Palermo I the city’s cross-cultural food, markets and NERAR architecture. Soak up the glittering, 12th-century Cappella Palatina, snoop around the revamped archaeological museum, and detour to nearby I ES Monreale to marvel at its mosaic-encrusted Norman cathedral. On day three, day trip west to the 5th-century-BC ruins of Segesta, one of Italy’s most remarkable ancient sites. From Palermo, head east to eye-candy Cefalù on day four. Spend a night – just enough time to admire its commanding Arab–Norman cathedral and crystalline sea. Come day five, shoot through to Taormina, a long-time haunt of poets, painters and hopeless romantics. The town was once Sicily’s Byzantine capital and its sweeping ancient Greek theatre is the island’s second largest. Allow two nights and consider hiking up nearby Mt Etna on one of your days. Day seven sees you catching a ferry from Messina to Reggio Calabria in time to see © CANNATELLA/SHUTTERSTOCK GANDOLFO the Bronzi di Riace at the Museo Nazionale di Reggio Calabria. The finest examples of ancient Greek sculpture in existence, the bronze sculptures are southern Italy’s answer to Florence’s David. Rest your head in tiny Gambarie, using the town as your base as you explore the wild beauty of the Parco Nazionale dell’Aspromonte over the next two days. Come day 10, head back down to the Tyrrhenian coast. Lunch on fresh swordfish in castle-capped Scilla, continuing through to dazzling Tropea, Calabria’s coastal darling. Spend two nights recharging your weary bones, lazily ambling its labyrinthine streets and catching some of the south’s finest sunsets. Restored, continue north to the gritty yet erudite city of Cosenza on day 12. After taking in its impressively preserved medieval core on day 13, hit Camigliatello Silano for two nights, concluding your adventure with soul-lifting hikes through the alpine