Naples city guide · TripCatholic

Naples is the city of San Gennaro, Saint Januarius, the bishop of Benevento beheaded near Pozzuoli under Diocletian. His bones lie in the crypt under the high altar of the cathedral, and his blood is kept in two glass ampoules in the Treasure Chapel, the Cappella del Tesoro. It is shown three times a year: on the Saturday before the first Sunday of May, on September 19 and on December 16. The Church calls the liquefaction a prodigy and asks no one to believe it. The catacombs on the Capodimonte hill, his second grave, hold the oldest known portrait of him. The Angevin kings filled the old Greek street grid with friars' churches: San Domenico Maggiore, where Saint Thomas Aquinas taught, Santa Chiara and San Lorenzo Maggiore. The Spanish viceroys brought the Theatines and the Jesuits, and seven nobles founded the Pio Monte della Misericordia, whose Caravaggio still hangs over its altar. Saint Giuseppe Moscati, the doctor saint, lies in the Gesù Nuovo. Mass is in Italian: no regular Catholic Mass in English could be confirmed.

Fly over Naples in 3DA tour of the city of San GennaroStart the tour

HistoryA Catholic History of NaplesNaples's Catholic story begins with Christian graves in the Capodimonte hill and the martyr Januarius, whose body was brought into the catacomb in the fifth century, stolen in 831 and brought home in 1497. The Angevin kings built the cathedral and the friars' churches, Saint Thomas Aquinas taught at San Domenico, and the blood was first recorded liquefying in 1389. Under the Spanish viceroys the city vowed San Gennaro a chapel, welcomed the new orders and founded the Pio Monte. Plague and Vesuvius multiplied its patrons, the Bourbon capital gave the Church Saint Alphonsus, and the nineteenth and twentieth centuries brought Bartolo Longo, Ludovico of Casoria and Giuseppe Moscati. Popes have come five times since 1979, most lately Leo XIV in 2026.Read the full history

Top sites

Cattedrale di Maria Santissima AssuntaNaples, ItalyCathedral of Naples and seat of the Archbishop, built in Angevin Gothic style over paleo-Christian foundations, housing the body of San Gennaro, his blood relic, and the Cappella del Tesoro di San Gennaro.

Reale Cappella del Tesoro di San GennaroNaples, ItalyChapel inside Naples Cathedral housing the skull and blood relics of Saint Januarius, renowned for the thrice-yearly liquefaction miracle and governed by a lay civic body independent of the Archdiocese.

Battistero di San Giovanni in FonteNaples, ItalyOne of the oldest baptisteries in the Christian West, built in Naples during the 4th century, housing fragmentary 5th-century mosaics depicting baptismal theology beneath a domed Chi-Rho.

Catacombe di San GennaroNaples, ItalyUnderground burial complex beneath Naples housing the tomb to which San Gennaro's remains were moved in the 5th century, featuring the earliest known portrait of Naples' patron saint and frescoes spanning nine centuries of Christian veneration.

Chiesa del Gesù NuovoNaples, ItalyJesuit church in Naples built within a 15th-century palace, housing the tomb and shrine of Saint Giuseppe Moscati and featuring one of the richest Baroque interiors in the city.

Basilica di Santa ChiaraNaples, ItalyAngevin royal basilica and Clarissan mother church in Naples, housing the tomb of Blessed Maria Cristina of Savoy and the celebrated majolica cloister.

Basilica di San Domenico MaggioreNaples, ItalyGothic Angevin basilica in Naples, founded 1283, housing the cell and talking crucifix of Saint Thomas Aquinas and the relics of Blessed Raymond of Capua.

Pio Monte della MisericordiaNaples, ItalyLay confraternity, church, and picture gallery in Naples, housing Caravaggio's Seven Works of Mercy, the only Caravaggio altarpiece still in the exact location for which it was painted.

The Saints of Naples

Saint Januarius (San Gennaro)
Bishop of Benevento, martyred near Pozzuoli under Diocletian, and the patron of Naples. His bones lie in the cathedral's crypt, his blood is kept in the Treasure Chapel and shown three times a year, and his second grave is the catacomb that bears his name. His feast is September 19.
Cattedrale di Maria Santissima Assunta Reale Cappella del Tesoro di San Gennaro Catacombe di San Gennaro
Saint Thomas Aquinas
He studied at the university of Naples, took the Dominican habit here in 1244 and came back in 1272 to teach theology at San Domenico Maggiore, where his cell and the crucifix that spoke to him are kept. He became a co-patron of the city in 1605.
Basilica di San Domenico Maggiore
Saint Cajetan
Cofounder of the Theatines, he came to Naples in 1533, was given San Paolo Maggiore in 1538, guided the Incurabili and Blessed Maria Lorenza Longo, and died here in 1547. He lies in the basilica's crypt.
Basilica di San Paolo Maggiore
Saint Andrew Avellino
A Naples lawyer who left the courts after a lie, joined the Theatines at San Paolo Maggiore in 1556 and died in the city in 1608. His relics are at San Paolo Maggiore, and he is invoked against sudden death.
Basilica di San Paolo Maggiore
Saint Alphonsus Liguori
Born at Marianella in 1696, a Naples lawyer who became a priest, founded the Redemptorists and was made a Doctor of the Church. He is buried at Pagani, forty kilometers south of the city.
Basilica Pontificia di Sant'Alfonso Maria de' Liguori
Saint Clare of Assisi
The basilica of Santa Chiara, founded in 1310 by Robert of Anjou and Sancia of Majorca, is a house of her Poor Clares, and the Capuchin Poor Clares were founded in Naples in the 1530s.
Basilica di Santa Chiara
Saint Ignatius of Loyola
His Jesuits opened the Gesù Vecchio in 1554 and the Gesù Nuovo in a palace bought in 1584. He is one of the city's co-patrons.
Chiesa del Gesù Nuovo Basilica Santuario del Gesù Vecchio dell'Immacolata di Don Placido
Immaculate Conception
Made the principal patroness of Naples in 1734. She is honored at the Gesù Vecchio, the shrine of Don Placido Baccher, and on December 8 at the column of the Immaculate in Piazza del Gesù.
Basilica Santuario del Gesù Vecchio dell'Immacolata di Don Placido Chiesa del Gesù Nuovo
Our Lady of Mount Carmel
The Carmine keeps the Madonna Bruna, the Carmelites' icon, and her feast on July 16 is one of the city's great days, with fireworks from the bell tower on the eve.
Basilica Santuario di Santa Maria del Carmine Maggiore
Our Lady of the Holy Rosary
Saint Bartolo Longo built the shrine of Our Lady of the Rosary at Pompei around a painting he brought there in 1875, and its Supplica, his prayer of petition, is said at noon on May 8 and the first Sunday of October.
Pontificio Santuario della Beata Vergine del Santo Rosario di Pompei

Beyond the churches

Views, walks and the town between the churches.

San Martino, Castel Sant'Elmo and the Pedamentina
The Vomero hill gives the widest view of the bay, the old city and Vesuvius. Castel Sant'Elmo, the star shaped fort beside the charterhouse of San Martino, has ramparts open to visitors, and the priors' loggia and gardens inside the San Martino museum look over the whole city. Go up by the Funicolare Centrale from Via Toledo, which runs every 10 minutes from 07:00 (ANM, checked on October 29, 2026), and come down on foot by the Pedamentina, a stepped path of 414 steps laid out in the fourteenth century, with the old city opening below. It is uneven and not for limited mobility.
Certosa e Museo Nazionale di San Martino

Itineraries

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In Naples

1 day · 5 sitesHalf a Day in Catholic NaplesCaravaggio's works of mercy, San Gennaro's chapel, the Veiled Christ and Moscati's tomb in one afternoon

1 day · 5 sitesOne Day in Catholic NaplesMass beside San Gennaro's relics, the works of mercy, Moscati, the Veiled Christ and the catacombs at dusk

Collections

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5 sitesChurches of the Amalfi Coast and SalernoFive pilgrim churches between Salerno and the Amalfi Coast, with their saints and relics

5 sitesThe Angevin Gothic Churches of NaplesThe Gothic churches Naples' French Angevin kings built between 1270 and 1368

8 sitesGreat Art in Naples Churches: Caravaggio, the Veiled Christ and MorePaintings, sculpture and mosaics made for Naples' churches and still in place

7 sitesNaples: The Living and the DeadChurches, catacombs and bone chambers where Naples prays for its dead and asks their help

5 sitesMarian Shrines of NaplesThe venerated images of Our Lady in Naples, and the Rosary shrine at Pompei

7 sitesThe Nativity Scenes of Naples: Where to See the PresepeWhere Naples keeps Christmas, from the crib makers' street to the January feasts

8 sitesThe Religious Orders That Built NaplesFirst churches and mother houses of the orders that shaped Catholic Naples

7 sitesTombs and Relics of the Saints of NaplesChurches that keep the bodies, rooms and relics of Naples' own saints

6 sitesSanctuaries of Vesuvius and the Bay of NaplesShrines around the volcano and the bay, tied to eruptions, the sea and their saints

8 sitesHidden Gems of Naples: Churches Most Visitors MissEight churches off the usual route, each worth the detour

Featured Events

Good to know

The blood is shown three times a year: on the Saturday before the first Sunday of May, on September 19 and on December 16. The next dates are Wednesday, December 16, 2026, Saturday, May 1, 2027 and Sunday, September 19, 2027. In December the rite is a morning Mass in the Treasure Chapel, with the time posted in early December. In May the relics go in procession at about 17:00 from the cathedral to Santa Chiara for Mass at 18:00, and on September 19 the cathedral opens at 07:30 and the archbishop carries the relics to the high altar at about 10:00 (2026 programs on the Archdiocese of Naples site, checked on October 29, 2026). There are no tickets: come early, expect a crush, or watch live on Canale 21 and the Archdiocese's YouTube channel.

Article · 6 minSeeing the Liquefaction of San Gennaro's Blood in NaplesRead

The Church calls the liquefaction a prodigio, a prodigy, and has never defined it as a miracle: the devotion is approved and no Catholic is obliged to believe it. The blood was first recorded liquefying in 1389, and science has not explained it. Neapolitans read a failure as a bad omen; in recent years it did not liquefy in December 2020 and 2021. On September 19, 2026 the Archdiocese announced at 10:04 that the blood had been found already liquid.

Article · 7 minThe Miracle of San Gennaro: What Happens and What the Church SaysRead

The cathedral is free and open every day 08:30 to 19:30, with Mass every day at 09:00 and 18:30. A free guided visit of Santa Restituta and the Baptistery runs from 09:30 to 17:00 from the infopoint in the left aisle; ask there for the next departure, and groups over 25 book (duomonapoli.it, checked on October 29, 2026). The Treasure Chapel, off the right aisle, is run by the Deputazione, the lay deputation of the city, which lists timed entry at 3.50 euros, free on the liquefaction days; the Treasure Museum's page calls chapel entry free, so the fee may or may not be asked. The Treasure Museum under the portico to the right of the cathedral door is a separate ticket of 15 euros with audioguide.

Article · 6 minVisiting the Naples Cathedral and the Treasury ChapelRead

A few Traditional Latin Masses are said in Naples, among them those of the Institute of Christ the King and, one Sunday a month, a Mass at Santa Maria delle Grazie alle Due Porte in the Arenella, according to the Naples Latin Mass group's own site in July 2026. The Mass at San Paolo Maggiore remains suspended. Times change, so ask locally for the current church and hour.

Article · 4 minLatin Mass, Chant and Adoration in NaplesRead

For the Catholic story choose the catacombs of San Gennaro on Capodimonte, his second grave, with the oldest portrait of him, and San Gaudioso under the basilica of Santa Maria della Sanità; one ticket covers both within a year. Both run guided tours only, every hour from 10:00 to 17:00, booking always required, closed on Wednesdays (catacombedinapoli.it, checked on October 29, 2026). The Fontanelle Cemetery is also booked ahead and closed on Wednesdays. Napoli Sotterranea, Underground Naples, is Greek and Roman cisterns and a wartime shelter, not a Christian site.

Article · 7 minCatacombs of Naples: San Gennaro, San Gaudioso and the UndergroundRead

Easter 2027 is March 28: Palm Sunday March 21, Holy Thursday March 25, Good Friday March 26. On Holy Thursday evening Neapolitans visit the altars of repose, the sepolcri, traditionally in seven churches, and walk the struscio, the slow evening stroll along Via Toledo. The diocese announces the Good Friday Way of the Cross a few weeks before, and the place changes each year. On Easter Monday, March 29, 2027, the fujenti, as the pilgrims are called, meaning the runners, go to the Madonna dell'Arco shrine at Sant'Anastasia, whose doors opened at 03:00 in 2026.

Article · 7 minHoly Week and Easter in NaplesRead

The workshops of Via San Gregorio Armeno make figures for the presepe, the Neapolitan crib, all year. In 2026 the Christmas fair is reported to open on November 1, two weeks earlier than usual, and it traditionally runs to Epiphany; December weekends are the most crowded, with foot traffic one way. For Christmas Eve Mass at the cathedral, check the time on duomonapoli.it in December, since no 2026 program has been published.

Article · 7 minChristmas in Naples: Midnight Mass and the Crib StreetRead

Take the Circumvesuviana, the suburban railway around Vesuvius, from Porta Nolana or Garibaldi: the Sorrento line stops at Pompei Villa dei Misteri, by the ruins, and the Poggiomarino line at Pompei Santuario, by the shrine; Trenitalia trains stop at Pompei station too (shrine's site, checked on October 29, 2026). EAV's new timetable of October 17, 2026 runs a train every 30 minutes to Sorrento. The Campania Express tourist train is not running; it was suspended from October 1, 2026.

Article · 3 minGetting to Pompei From Naples on the CircumvesuvianaRead

No. The airport company GESAC says Naples Capodichino is closed for the whole of November 2026 for runway works, and many flights move to Salerno Costa d'Amalfi airport, code QSR, run by the same company. Check whether your ticket says NAP or QSR. From November 1 the Alibus airport bus runs only from 06:00 to 09:00 and 15:00 to 18:00 (ANM site, checked on October 29, 2026). In normal months the Alibus costs 5 euros and the fixed taxi fare from the airport to the old town is 21 euros (Comune di Napoli tariff).

Article · 7 minGetting from the Airport and Stations to NaplesRead

San Giovanni Rotondo, where Saint Padre Pio's body lies, is across the Apennines in Puglia, too far for a comfortable day trip, so plan at least one night there. Pietrelcina, his birthplace near Benevento, is a stop on the way. The San Giovanni Rotondo guide covers the shrine itself.

Article · 3 minPadre Pio From Naples: Pietrelcina and San Giovanni RotondoRead

Stay in the old city, the centro storico, for the cathedral's morning Mass and the churches within a few minutes' walk, or near Piazza Municipio and Via Toledo for the ferries and the metro. Avoid the area around the Central Station at night, and do not base a Naples pilgrimage in Sorrento, which is over an hour away by train. Hotels and guesthouses charge a tourist tax of 4 to 6 euros a person a night (Comune di Napoli, checked on October 29, 2026).

Article · 6 minWhere to Stay in NaplesRead

The UK Foreign Office says crime in Italy is generally low but that bag snatching and pickpocketing are higher in city centers and at major sights. In Naples watch your bag in crowds, on the metro and the Circumvesuviana, and around Piazza Garibaldi, keep phones away from the curb where scooters pass, and take only licensed taxis from a rank, an app or a call, asking for the fixed fare before you set off.

Article · 6 minIs Naples Safe? Common Scams and Honest AdviceRead

The Sansevero Chapel is closed on Tuesdays, the catacombs and the Fontanelle on Wednesdays, the Archaeological Museum on Tuesdays, Capodimonte and the Royal Palace on Wednesdays (official sites, checked on October 29, 2026). So Monday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday are the easiest full days. December 16, 2026, the San Gennaro day, is a Wednesday, when the catacombs and the Fontanelle are closed.

Article · 7 minWhat Is Open on Sundays, Mondays and Holidays in NaplesRead

Catholic stays

Naples has fewer religious guesthouses than Rome or Florence, so book early. The Casa Regina Coeli, a casa per ferie, meaning a holiday house, fills a floor of the old Regina Coeli monastery at Vico San Gaudioso 2 in the old city, run by a charitable foundation since 2025: 42 beds in single and double rooms with private bathrooms, a chapel on the guest floor that groups can use for their own Mass, a seventeenth century cloister, and a front door that closes around midnight. It is booked only on its own site. On the Vomero, the Casa Sant'Anna on Viale Sant'Anna is run by the Sisters of Saint John the Baptist, with 8 rooms for 16 guests and a kitchen. We checked on October 29, 2026 against each house's own site. Ask about curfew, chapel and meals when you book, and expect the city's tourist tax of 5.50 euros a person a night.