Via Toledo and its Art Metro Station.

About this activity

The main artery of the historic center of Naples is the beautiful Via Toledo. The long street runs for 1.2 kilometers, and is one of Naples' shopping stops as well as a tourist destination. Clothing stores, bars and fast food outlets dot the street on which stand hotels, monuments and churches such as the Basilica dello Spirito Santo and the lush Palazzo Zevallos. Parallel to this historic Neapolitan street, then, are the ancient Spanish Quarters where the famous Naples Underground finds its entrance.

Why visit Via Toledo

At any hour of the day the beautiful Via Toledo is bustling with people. Nose-up tourists walk along it peering at the ancient buildings and rediscovering all the wonder of Neapolitan art and history. The street crosses the full downtown of the city, and around it, therefore, rise numerous monuments, churches and sites of tourist interest. From Dante Square, with its imposing Port'Alba, to the Quartieri Spagnoli with the ancient Pignasecca Market and Napoli Sotterranea. On the other side, the ancient street runs along cardi and decumani where the Church of St. Clare And its charming cloister, Venice Palace, the Chapel of St. Severus and the University Museums.

Then in the middle of Via Toledo sprouts the subway station of the same name, which is also a tourist destination. Not surprisingly, it is considered by many to be the most beautiful metro station in the world! You can also visit the Basilica of the Holy Spirit, which stands along the way, while a little further on is the artistic Palazzo Zevallos. Right on Via Toledo, opens one of the four entrances to the majestic Galleria Umberto I, behind which, dominates the most important historical theater in Naples: the San Carlo Theater. A few steps away we find the harbor overlooked by the tall silhouette of the Angevin Male which is practically at the end of Lungomare Caracciolo with all its beauties. Via Toledo ends in Trieste and Trento Square, near the gardens of the Royal Palace and of the National Library, which welcome visitors from their main entrance overlooking the widening of the vast Plebiscite Square.

Not only tourists are fascinated by the richness of Via Toledo. In fact, many Neapolitans love this street so much that they choose to walk along it on their way to work as well. At all hours there are those who instead meet on Via Toledo to spend some free time between shopping and bars, or simply to take a nice walk, even in the evening, to the sea.

Via Toledo: the Art Metro Station

The subway station of Toledo Street is one of the most beautiful subway stations in the world. Also named for its beauty as the Station of theArt, was inaugurated on September 17, 2012. The project was created by designer Óscar Tusquets Blanca.

Outside the station, there are three distinctive pyramids with hexagonal bases, covered with ochre and blue panels. These provide natural light on the first level. In addition, at the entrance from Diaz Street, visitors are greeted by the steel statue of William Kentridge, the knight of Toledo. At the entrance, the environment is dominated by black. Floor and walls, recall with this color, the asphalt of civilization. On the lower floors, one can descend either by escalator or by elevator, which is covered with glass panels and located right next to the first escalator. We recommend using the escalators to fully enjoy the beauty of the station. The staircase is adorned with an undulating roof. Passing from the lobby to the first levels, one immediately realizes that one is immersed in a true work of art in which the motif of the sea dominates. In the upper levels, in fact, the ochre of the walls brings to mind the sand, while further down the blue and blue of the sea lead to an evocative underground promenade. On the platform level, on the other hand, there is a monumental underground environment, in which the ovoid mouth of the Crater de luz opens, a large cone that runs through all the floors of the station. Looking inside, one glimpses sunlight enhanced by a play of LED lights.

These installations are the work of Robert Wilson, a multifaceted artist engaged in various fields of expression to whom we owe, among other things, the installation in the corridor leading to the dock level of panels using lenticular technology, reproducing the movement of waves. An engaging work entitled "By the sea...you and me."

Historical background and interesting facts about Via Toledo

Wanted by the viceroy Pedro Álvarez de Toledo in 1536, Via Toledo was designed and conceived by architects Ferdinando Manlio and Giovanni Benincasa.

The road originally ran along the old western wall of the Aragonese era. This, however, due to the defensive expansions ordered by Don Pedro himself, was made obsolete and thus eliminated. Of the old city wall, only the gate of the ancient city wall remains: Port'Alba.

On May 15, 1848, the street witnessed the terrible repression carried out by King Ferdinand II against Neapolitan liberals defending the recently obtained Constitution. Barricades and fights caused numerous deaths. Between the 1930s and the mid-20th century, the area where the imperious Galleria Umberto I stands today was changed by the massive land reclamation work for the "redevelopment" of several districts including the historic Rione Carità, which saw the construction of modern buildings in place of the old ones. From October 18, 1870, to 1980, the street was named Via Roma in honor of the newly established capital of the Kingdom of Italy, while in 2012 the eponymous station subway.

Over the centuries, the fame of the wonderful Via Toledo has been enhanced by the travels of the Grand Tour, as we read among the annotations of Stendhal, who described his experience in Naples thus, "I leave. will forget neither the Via Toledo nor all the other districts of Naples; in my eyes it is, without any comparison, the most beautiful city in the universe." Fame that is also found in ancient Neapolitan songs. First of all in "Reginella" from 1917. In its lyrics, written by Libero Bovio, Via Toledo is the setting for a love encounter: "Fuje ll'autriero ca t'aggio 'ncuntrata? Fuje ll'autriero, a Tuledo, gnorsì..." (It was the other day that I met you, it was the other day in Toledo, yes sir).

Via Toledo also appears in another of the famous Neapolitan songs, Renato Carosone's 1956 "Tu vuò fà l'americano." In the lyric by lyricist Nisa, the character is narrated as follows: "passa scampaniann' pe' Tulet' comm'a nu guapp p' se fa' guardà" (he walks strutting noisily down Via Toledo to be looked at).

Via Toledo or Via Roma?

Originally named Via Toledo after the viceroy who commissioned its construction, it is known to many and has always been known, even (or only) by the name of Rome Street.

About 300 years later, in fact, following theUnification of Italy, the city administration decided to dedicate the name of the most important city street, to the capital of the new Kingdom. To accommodate those who rejected that idea, the incumbent council renamed the street "Via Roma formerly Via Toledo." From then on, however, every Neapolitan called it only one of two ways. Depending on how he preferred, he used the name with which he most sympathized. And so it was for almost a century, until 1980. This was the year when the leftist city council, led by Mayor Maurizio Valenzi, decided to return the street to its original name, thus leaving only that of Toledo Street.

So, despite the fact that it is now about 40 years since Via Toledo regained its original name, still many have remained attached to the name traditionally given to it. And that is why, commonly, this street that connects Piazza Dante to Piazza del Plebiscito is now called Via Toledo, now Via Roma.