Travel To Campania

Naples is its regional capital and the third largest city of Italy after Rome and Milan. The city was the capital of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies and a great European capital up until the unification of Italy. Today it is still an important artistic and cultural centre and a very dynamic city filled with palaces, churches, convents, monasteries and museums. Its rich history is visible in the urban structure, which shows the sign of a city built over many centuries that embraces cultures from the Greek-Roman era to the Baroque period, passing through the influences of the Medieval, Angevins, Shavians, Spanish and French dominations. Other important cities in the region are Amalfi, Sorrento, Caserta, Salerno, Avellino. Capri, Sorrento, Pompei, Paestum, Caserta are world-famous destinations.

The region has a rich and varied nature, it is famous for the two beautiful gulfs of Naples and Salerno, separated by the Sorrento peninsula, which have a variety of high cliffs, sandy bays, grottoes and islands. The Costiera Amalfitana and the islands, Ischia, Procida and Capri, are the pearls of the coast and the main tourist attractions. The rest of the territory is mostly gentle hills, apart from the Matese mountains and the rugged Irpinia area, and the Vesuvius, on the Gulf of Naples, is one of the very few still active volcanoes in Europe.

Tourism clearly plays an important part in the regional economy but craftsmanship is also important especially for coral and mother of pearl jewellery, wood carving, painted ceramics and precious textiles, as well as the traditionally made classic Neapolitan nativity scene. Agriculture is mostly intensive, although cattle breeding and fishing are declining. Some interesting technological hubs include the aeronautics and aerospace technological centres which have developed in that area in and around Caserta, cybernetics in Pozzuoli, and genetics, biophysics and biotechnology in Naples.

Very often the food of Campania is also a symbol of Italian cuisine at large. One just has to think of the ubiquitous pizza, the buffalo mozzarella and other cheeses, and spaghetti with tomato sauce and basil. Famous are also the sweets of the region, the “pastiera” (traditional Easter cake), “sfogliatelle” (ricotta-filled pastry) and “baba” are some of the best loved local dishes.

As for the wine, traditionally the wines of Campania are intended for immediate pleasure and consumption, however, things have changed over the past decade and the overall quality of the product is increasing. For example, in the Taurasi DOCG area, a handful of winemakers have been pro-actively producing notable reds and whites that have acquired national respect. Traditionally, the best-known Campania wine is the Lacrima Christi or, “Tears of Christ”.