Naples is a totally unique place, an extreme one at that, and is probably one of those cities that you are either going to love or hate. You may hate it because it is noisy, chaotic, dirty and sometimes downright dangerous. You will hopefully love it because it also happens to be one of the most magical places in Europe, if not the world. This is an old fashioned city which globalisation has passed by – you’re more likely to see a monkey playing the barrel organ or a four piece swing band performing on the metro than you are a branch of Starbucks in this strange, wonderful town.

Founded by the ancient Greeks and further developed by the Romans, Naples reached its peak in the 17th and 18th Centuries when it was a flourishing port, attracting exotic goods (and untold riches) from around the world. The historic centre of the city, with its maze of winding streets and alleyways, is a testament to this historic glamour, a glamour which is now most decidedly faded. The huge palaces are dilapidated, converted into flats, with peeling plaster and grass filled gutters. There are Baroque churches on just about every corner, some of them still glowing with gilded altars and adorned with fabulous frescoes, many of them boarded up and almost ruinous.

The best way to start a tour of Naples is with a stroll down the Via Tribunali. Look out for the kids on mopeds who slow down for nobody, but take a bit of time to peruse the selection of little shops offering local delicacies and bric-a-brac along the way. You’ll also find one of the city’s artistic highlights here in the rather unassuming church of Pio Monte della Miseracordia. ‘The Seven Acts of Mercy’ is regarded as one of Caravaggio’s greatest works, and has been right here since he painted it over four hundred years ago. The fact that you can enjoy it in relative peace and quiet is an added bonus, because Naples’ notorious reputation means that it doesn’t attract the overwhelming number of tourist that swamp Rome or Florence.

If art is what you are after then your next stop should be the Capodimonte Museum, which sits on a hilltop above the city. The incredible collection on show here includes another fabulous Caravaggio, as well as works by many of the other great Italian masters, and the view over the Bay of Naples from up there is pretty stunning too.

The Archaeological Museum is another must for history lovers, presenting finds from the nearby sites of Pompeii and Herculaneum, with stunning mosaics, statues and wall paintings among the highlights. The remains of the ancient cities are also well worth a visit, easily accessible by the Circumvesuviana rail line, but be warned, there is a lot to see here. Even a quick tour of the ‘best bits’ of Pompeii will take you the best part of a day, but it’s well worth the time – just be sure to take sensible shoes and wear a sun hat if you visit in the baking summer months.

When it comes to food, Naples is all about pizza. And why not – they claim to have invented it, and the pizzas that you’re going to eat here are probably the best in the world. They are big, doughy, and covered in the sweetest tomatoes and creamiest mozzarella you’ll ever hope to find. All washed down with some local wine and followed by a stodgy Baba pudding, well who could ask for more?

Gay Italians are want to muse wistfully on the days when Neapolitan men were famously relaxed about their sexuality, willing to experiment a bit and keep an open mind. Be warned though, those days are definitely in the past, and nowadays the gay scene is pretty low profile (which is a shame, as the locals are generally more than a little bit gorgeous). The good news is that things are definitely changing, and June 2010 saw the celebration of Naples’ first gay pride festival (www.napolipride.com).

The main hang out for gay men is the beautiful Piazza Bellini with its selection of relaxed bars – on a summer evening there can be few things nicer than people-watching with a chilled beer in this buzzing square. For something more hardcore you will have to do a bit of research, because clubs in Naples tend to move around a lot. Napoli Gay Press (www.napoligaypress.it) is a good place to start, with up to date listings of bars and clubs, plus a sauna and a couple of sex cinemas thrown in for good measure, although the fact that it is in Italian makes things a bit more difficult. Overall the choice is more limited than other Italian cities like Bologna or Milan, but there is a scene to be found if you’re determined to have a gay night out.

You have to be ready for Naples. It is not the easiest place to visit – the locals are feisty and noisy and the atmosphere sometimes overwhelming, but look past that and you will find a charm that is difficult to define. So be brave, keep your valuables well hidden, learn a couple of words of Italian and get stuck in – once you fall in love with the place, you’ll stay that way for a very long time.

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