Naples has five castles and a royal palace facing the same bay, and the wrong way to tackle them is to buy tickets at random. Two are closed or halved, two cost less than a coffee and a pastry, and the best piece of all — the three kilometres of seafront from piazza del Plebiscito to Mergellina — has no ticket office. This page puts what you pay and what you don’t into a table, with prices and hours from the official sites, and then gives you the walk along the water hour by hour.
Free or paid: the table
| Place | Cost | Hours | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seafront: via Partenope, via Caracciolo | Free | Always | — |
| Piazza del Plebiscito and the colonnade | Free | Always | — |
| Borgo Marinari and the Megaride islet | Free | Always | — |
| Giardini del Molosiglio | Free | Daylight hours | — |
| Giardino Romantico, Royal Palace | Free | 9:00–19:00, last entry 18:00 | — |
| Galleria Umberto I | Free | Public passage | — |
| Castel dell’Ovo | Closed for works | — | Until further notice |
| Royal Palace, Appartamento di Etichetta | €15 · reduced €2 · free under 18 | 9:00–20:00, last entry 19:00 | Wednesday, 1 January, 25 December |
| Royal Palace, Hanging Garden | €2 on top of the ticket | With the museum | As above |
| Castel Nuovo, Museo Civico | €10 · residents €6 · Artecard €5 · free under 18 | Monday–Saturday 9:00–18:00, last entry 17:30 | Sunday and public holidays |
| Castel Sant’Elmo | €5 · reduced €2 | Castle 8:30–19:30; Museo del Novecento 9:30–17:00, last entry 16:00 | Museum closed Tuesday |
| Certosa e Museo di San Martino | €6 · reduced €2 · free under 18 | 8:30–17:00, last entry 16:00 | Wednesday |
| Museum of the Treasure of San Gennaro | €15 with audio guide included · reduced €11 · free under 12 | 9:30–18:00, last entry 17:00 | — |
Prices and hours from palazzorealedinapoli.org, comune.napoli.it, cultura.gov.it and tesorosangennaro.it.
Two warnings that change the plan. Castel dell’Ovo, the castle everyone puts on the cover, is closed to the public until further notice for restoration: you can walk right round it and through Borgo Marinari, but you cannot go inside. And at the Certosa di San Martino the gardens are closed for works, while the naval section and the Gothic undercrofts are excluded from the ticket; some sections open only between 9:40 and 13:00 or 13:20 and 17:00.
Royal Palace: one hour, not three
The Appartamento di Etichetta is the reason you pay for a ticket: thirty rooms in a row, the marble staircase of honour, the Teatrino di Corte, the Cappella Reale. The visit averages an hour, says the museum, and that figure is realistic: this is not a country palace with grounds to cross, it is a piano nobile in the middle of town.
The €15 ticket also covers the Museo Caruso (9:00–14:00) and the Museo della Fabbrica (9:00–19:00, last entry 18:30). The Hanging Garden costs €2 more. The Giardino Romantico, on the other hand, is free: walk in from the courtyard and take ten minutes of shade before you drop down to the sea.
Tickets are bought online or straight at the desk, with no reservation: unlike the Cappella Sansevero, there is no timed-slot system here that sells out. The one thing to watch is the Wednesday closure.
Same product, platforms compared
Prices refreshed from the GetYourGuide, Tiqets and Headout feeds.
| Platform | Price | Rating | Duration | Cancellation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HeadoutCombo: Royal Palace of Naples + Villa Pignatelli Skip-The-Line Tickets | €19 Lowest price | ★ 4.3 (3,199) | — | — | Book on Headout |
| GetYourGuideNaples: Royal Palace Entry Ticket with Digital Audio Guide | €23.50 | ★ 4.2 (225) | — | Free | Book on GetYourGuide |
The Headout combo with Villa Pignatelli costs €19 against €17 for the official joint ticket: two euros for skip-the-line access at two sites, and Villa Pignatelli in Chiaia is exactly on the route of the walk described below.
With a guide
The monumental area — Royal Palace, Teatro San Carlo from the outside, the Galleria, the Plebiscito — holds up well to a two-and-a-half-hour guided visit, because the thread is political rather than artistic: this is where it was decided who ran Naples.
Same product, platforms compared
Prices refreshed from the GetYourGuide, Tiqets and Headout feeds.
| Platform | Price | Rating | Duration | Cancellation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GetYourGuideNaples: Royal Palace and Monumental Area Small Group Tour | €31.50 Lowest price | ★ 4.8 (1,329) | 2 h 30 min | Free | Book on GetYourGuide |
| TiqetsNaples: Royal Palace & Monumental Area Guided Tour | €31.50 | ★ 4.8 (44) | 02:30 | — | Book on Tiqets |
What the day costs
By public transport
- Metro Line 1 (Municipio, Toledo) and Funicolare Centrale, two ridesunicocampania.it
- €2.80 · €1.50 metro, €1.30 funicular
- Royal Palace, Appartamento di Etichettapalazzorealedinapoli.org
- €15 full · Hanging Garden +€2
- Castel Nuovo, Museo Civicocomune.napoli.it
- €10 full · €5 with Artecard · free under 18
- Castel Sant'Elmo and Certosa di San Martinocultura.gov.it
- €5 + €6
- Total per person
- €38.80 for all four · 6 full hours
With a tour
Nobody does all four in one day, and nobody should: the opening hours fight each other. The Headout combo for the Royal Palace plus Villa Pignatelli costs €19 against €17 for the official joint ticket, but it gives you skip-the-line entry at two sites; the small-group tour of the Royal Palace and the monumental area starts at €31.50. Prices verified regularly.
The seafront walk, hour by hour
Three kilometres from piazza del Plebiscito to the Mergellina marina, fifty minutes if you walk without stopping, two and a half hours done properly. Do it in the late afternoon and heading west: the sun is in front of you and Vesuvius behind, which is the right orientation for photographs and the wrong one for a headache.
The day, hour by hour
Piazza del Plebiscito: the colonnade of San Francesco di Paola, then 200 m of Galleria Umberto I, both free
Royal Palace, Giardino Romantico: free entry, last admission 18:00
Via Nazario Sauro: the sea starts here, Santa Lucia on your right and Vesuvius straight ahead
Via Partenope and Borgo Marinari: a loop of the Megaride islet under Castel dell’Ovo, closed for works but the borgo is open
Piazza Vittoria: the end of via Partenope, gates of the Villa Comunale
Via Francesco Caracciolo: 1.5 km on the sea, no traffic lights, Vesuvius behind you
Rotonda Diaz: halfway, the one spot with toilets and kiosks open into the evening
Largo Sermoneta and the Mergellina marina: boats, Posillipo climbing away to the right
Getting back: metro Line 2 from Mergellina, or bus 140 along the whole coast to Santa Lucia
The practical notes. The via Partenope–via Caracciolo stretch is pedestrian or almost traffic-free and it is flat: fine with a pushchair, a bike or a wheelchair. The awkward point is the descent from piazza del Plebiscito towards Santa Lucia, and the bridge across to Borgo Marinari, which has a slope and cobbles.
For the way back there is ANM bus 140, which runs Santa Lucia – Riviera di Chiaia – Mergellina – via Posillipo as far as Coroglio, every 19–20 minutes, in service from 5:30 to 22:50 on weekdays. If you finish after dinner, metro Line 2 from Mergellina is quicker; the N1 night line runs along the Riviera di Chiaia. The full transport picture is on getting around.
Three stops worth building in, and one that isn’t. At Borgo Marinari you can walk the pier in twenty minutes and eat expensively: if you are hungry, climb back up to Santa Lucia. The Rotonda Diaz is the only point halfway along with toilets and kiosks open late. The Villa Comunale, between piazza Vittoria and the Rotonda, is the park that separates via Caracciolo from the Riviera di Chiaia and holds the Stazione Zoologica with its aquarium: useful with children, pointless if you only have an hour. The one to skip is the detour onto via Chiatamone, which runs parallel one street up: no view, just traffic.
You don’t swim along this stretch: the city beaches start further west, beyond Posillipo, and you’ll find them on beaches in Naples and the bay. In summer the seafront doubles as the city’s evening promenade, with bars, ice cream and strolling until midnight.
The Vomero: eleven euros for the view
Castel Sant’Elmo and the Certosa di San Martino stand a hundred metres apart on the hill, and together they cost €11. It is the best value for money and panorama in the city: the castle terrace is 250 metres above the sea and turns a full 360 degrees, while the charterhouse has the cloisters, the picture gallery and the Cuciniello nativity scene.
Watch the hours, because they are the most awkward in Naples: the Certosa closes at 17:00 with last entry at 16:00 and is shut on Wednesday; the Museo del Novecento inside Sant’Elmo closes at 17:00 and is shut on Tuesday, while the castle ramparts stay open until 19:30. In bad weather the castle can close: it is an open-air bastion.
You go up on the Funicolare Centrale from via Toledo to Piazzetta Fuga, which starts at 7:00 and closes between 22:30 and 2:00 depending on the day, or on metro Line 1 to Vanvitelli. The Funicolare di Montesanto is currently closed for overhaul, until further notice. From the upper station it is five minutes uphill along via Domenico Cimarosa and via Tito Angelini, which brings you to the castle entrance; the Certosa is a hundred metres beyond, on largo San Martino.
The Certosa ticket does not cover the whole complex: gardens closed for works, naval section and Gothic undercrofts excluded, and some sections open only between 9:40 and 13:00 or 13:20 and 17:00. Turn up at 15:00 and you risk finding half the museum already shut. The Cuciniello nativity scene, which is the thing people come for, is on the standard route.
Who should pick what
Castel Nuovo and the Treasure of San Gennaro
The Maschio Angioino stands on piazza Municipio, above the metro station of the same name on lines 1 and 6 and ten minutes on foot from Molo Beverello: it is the castle for cruise passengers and anyone short of time. The Museo Civico costs €10, €6 for residents of the metropolitan area, €5 with Artecard, free under 18. It opens Monday to Saturday from 9:00 to 18:00 with last entry at 17:30 and is closed on Sunday and public holidays — a closure that catches out weekend arrivals. The Aragonese triumphal arch, the most photographed part, is visible from outside without a ticket.
The Museum of the Treasure of San Gennaro is not a castle but belongs on this list because it is the city’s other great gilded interior: votive goldsmithing and silverware piled up over seven centuries, next to the Duomo. €15 with the audio guide included, €11 reduced, free under 12, open 9:30–18:00. Geographically it belongs to the old centre, so it pairs with the underground rather than with the sea.
How to fit it all into one day
If you want castles, palace and seafront on the same day, the order that works is: 9:00 Castel Nuovo, 10:30 Royal Palace, 12:30 lunch in the centre, 14:00 funicular up to the Vomero for Sant’Elmo and San Martino, 16:00 back down, 16:30 start of the walk along the sea. Six and a half hours, €36 of tickets, about €3 of transport. It works on a Thursday, Friday or Saturday; Monday and Tuesday you lose the Museo del Novecento, Wednesday you lose the Royal Palace and San Martino, Sunday you lose Castel Nuovo.
If you only have half a day, the right cut is the Royal Palace plus the seafront: one ticket, three kilometres of water and no running. Add the Spanish Quarter in the morning and you have a full day starting from the Toledo metro station. For the museum that explains all the rest — statues, portraits, Farnese marbles you won’t find in the castles — there is still the MANN. If you would rather have the façades explained without walking, weigh up the hop-on hop-off or a walking tour of the monumental centre.
In two lines
The castles and palaces of Naples are chosen by day of the week, not by taste: four different authorities, four different closing days, and Castel dell’Ovo out of play for works. Pay €15 for the Royal Palace if you have an afternoon, €11 for Sant’Elmo and San Martino if you want the panorama, and give yourself the three kilometres of seafront that cost nothing and remain the finest thing on this list.
Questions people ask
Can you visit Castel dell'Ovo?
No. The City of Naples lists it as closed to the public until further notice for restoration works. Borgo Marinari, the pier and the Megaride islet around the castle are still open and free: the loop outside is worth twenty minutes anyway.
How much is the Royal Palace of Naples?
Full €15, reduced €2 for EU citizens aged between 18 and 25, free under 18. The ticket covers the Appartamento di Etichetta, the Museo Caruso, the Museo della Fabbrica and the temporary exhibitions. The Hanging Garden costs €2 more, the joint ticket with Villa Pignatelli €17 and special evening openings €5.
Which days are they closed?
The Royal Palace closes on Wednesday, Castel Nuovo on Sunday and public holidays, the Certosa di San Martino on Wednesday, and the Museo del Novecento inside Castel Sant’Elmo on Tuesday. If you only have one day, Tuesday and Wednesday are the worst: plan for a Thursday or a Friday.
How long is the Naples seafront and how long does it take?
From piazza del Plebiscito to the Mergellina marina is roughly 3 km, fifty minutes of level walking without stopping. With stops at Borgo Marinari and the Rotonda Diaz it becomes two and a half hours. The via Partenope and via Caracciolo stretch is pedestrian or almost traffic-free.
How do you get to Castel Sant'Elmo and San Martino?
Both are up in the Vomero, a hundred metres apart. You get there on the Funicolare Centrale from via Toledo to Piazzetta Fuga, on metro Line 1 (Vanvitelli) or on the Chiaia funicular. The funiculars start at 7:00: the Centrale runs its last trip at 22:30 on Monday and Tuesday, 00:30 on Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday, 2:00 on Friday and Saturday; the Chiaia closes at 22:30 on Wednesday and Thursday, 00:30 from Sunday to Tuesday and 2:00 on Friday and Saturday. The Funicolare di Montesanto is currently closed for overhaul, until further notice. The ANM bus-and-funicular ticket costs €1.30.
Is the Museum of the Treasure of San Gennaro worth it?
Yes if goldsmithing and silverware interest you: the collection of votive gifts to the saint has survived seven centuries intact and was never plundered. €15 with the audio guide included, €11 reduced, free under 12, open 9:30–18:00 with last entry at 17:00. It stands next to the Duomo, so it pairs with the old centre and not with the seafront.
Is there a joint ticket for the castles?
Not one that covers them all: they are run by different bodies, namely the Ministry of Culture for the Royal Palace, Sant’Elmo and San Martino, the City of Naples for Castel Nuovo and the diocese for the Treasure of San Gennaro. The Campania Artecard is the only thing that puts them together; the arithmetic is on tickets and passes.
Can you do the seafront with a pushchair or a wheelchair?
Yes, the stretch from piazza Vittoria to Mergellina is flat and paved, with wide pavements. Via Partenope is level too. The awkward bits are the climb from Santa Lucia up to piazza del Plebiscito and the drop down to Borgo Marinari, which has a sloping bridge and cobbles.
Official sources
- Royal Palace of Naples – Visitor information
- City of Naples – Castel Nuovo (Maschio Angioino)
- City of Naples – Castel dell'Ovo
- Ministry of Culture – Castel Sant'Elmo and Museo del Novecento
- Ministry of Culture – Certosa e Museo di San Martino
- Museum of the Treasure of San Gennaro – Info and prices
- Unico Campania – Fare finder
- ANM – Line 140
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