One of the main problems for wheelchair users is the insecurity of not knowing where to go without come across an obstacle. This is because, unfortunately, we often forget to break down the barriers that represent a great limitation for some of us, making the occasion of the trip a privilege and not a moment of enrichment available for everyone.

Naples is one of the cities that aims to break down architectural barriers and increase as much as possible the accessibility for the wonderful tourist attractions. Of course, the road is still long but you can visit some areas of the city thanks to the presence of various initiatives aimed at the inclusion of all.  As regards the accessibility of the main attractions and monuments of the city of Naples, it is necessary to make a differentiation between the places partially accessible and those totally without barriers.

Naples is a city rich in cultural resources, food and wine and environmental resources, that has a great innate tourist value. Many of these riches have been made accessible to all tourists who want to visit the city. The accessible attractions are located in the most disparate areas of the great metropolis. Here are the itineraries and walks without barriers

The Naples seafront

The Naples seafront and the nearby Villa Comunale are the best choice for a typical walk along the coast of the city, where the scent and the pleasant music of the sea waves, alternates with the green and peaceful environment of the Villa. Behind the Villa Comunale, practically on the Riviera di Chiaia, you can visit the fascinating Villa Pignatelliwith its spectacular exhibition of carriages.

On the blue sea of the wonderful Via Partenope, stands the magnificent Castel dell’Ovo (Ovo Castle), which can only be visited in part but offers an unmissable view, especially in the hours of sunset.

The Hill of Capodimonte

For lovers of the most wooded environment, however, just move on the Hill of Capodimonte where the park of the same name extends with its long paths (all accessible), completely surrounded by greenery. A multi-sensory experience where the silence typical of the forest is interrupted only by the birds chirping, and the fresh smell of plants, transports you to a world seemingly isolated and far from the city. Inside the park, there is also the Museo di Capodimonte where you can count on the presence of services for all needs.

The overview Posillipo

On the highest point of Naples, then, you can also opt for a pleasant walk with breathtaking panoramic views that offers the beautiful Parco Virgiliano of Posillipo. Here there are absolutely no architectural barriers, indeed a beautiful road runs along the long meadows and the many panoramic points, where you can enjoy beauty and relaxation at 360 degrees. If you are more interested in a walk to discover research and scientific experimentation, we recommend visiting the fantastic Città della Scienza (City of Science), a suitable place for adults but also for the little ones to whom is dedicated an area where they can learn new things while having fun, all without barriers and with paths accessible to all.

Places of major interest in the city: from partial to total accessibility

Starting from the top, we can recommend the Certosa di San Martino (Charterhouse of St. Martin) that stands out from the Vomero district and that is visible until the Mergellina area. Here too you can enjoy one of the most beautiful views that the city has to offer. The Charterhouse is accessible only partially.

Always in the area there is the beautiful and green Villa Floridiana which houses inside an accessible and interesting museum, the Duca di Martina National Ceramic Museum, where one of the largest and most important collections of the art of ceramics is exhibited.

The Historical Center of Naples

The Botanical Garden of Naples of Via Foria is another unmissable pearl of the city of Naples. The grandiose and majestic staircase of the main entrance is not a real problem, because the park is also accessed by a more comfortable side entrance, often used by the elders and visually impaired. In addition to the wonder of the place itself, within the park, precisely near the experimental section of medicinal plants, there is the “tactile and olfactory museum”. This kind of small sensory garden is set up inside and around a chalet accessible to all, but especially designed for the blind. In the area called “del Castello” (of the Castle) is also accessible the Museum of Palaeobotany and Ethnobotany, to discover the oldest origins of the botanical species as well as its uses (food, tissue and many others) in the various civilizations and ancient and modern tribes, of the world.

In the Museo area that is practically at the beginning of Via Foria, then, you can visit the main museum complex of the city, represented by the Naples National Archaeological Museum.

Accessible places in the area Mezzocannone and San Marcellino

In Via Mezzocannone, where the complex of the University of Naples Federico II is located, there is one of the most “complete” museum centers for nature lovers. It is, in fact, the set of museums located within university buildings that include: the Royal Mineralogical Museum, that of Zoological Museum, and the Museum of Anthropology, hosted in the complex of Mezzocannone. In this building you can cross a courtyard that leads to the complex behind Via San Marcellino, where you will also expect the Paleontological Museum.  A few steps from Via Mezzocannone, finally stands the Chapel Sansevero, with its main attraction, as well as suggestive work of art: the Veiled Christ.

The surroundings of the historic Via Duomo

Finally, moving more towards the most central area of the oldest part of Naples, there are monuments ready to welcome everyone without any limit. And that’s how you can easily organize a tour that includes the magnificent Naples Cathedral, with the nearby Museum of the Treasure of San Gennaro. In the area, practically at the end of Via Duomo you can also visit the infamous Madre Museum, the Donnaregina Contemporary Art Museum.

To the other pole of this area, there is also the St. Clare Monastery with its unmissable Majolica Cloister.

The symbolic Square of the city

Around the beautiful Piazza del Plebiscito, one of the most important squares in Naples, there are several buildings of great importance. Among these you can visit the Royal Palace, the adjacent Biblioteca Nazionale Vittorio Emanuele III and the magnificent San Carlo Theatre.

Finally, we recommend to visit the imposing Maschio Angioino or New Castle, that will amaze you with its incredible beauty.

Neapolitan transportation and events

In support of the accessible tourism of the city of Naples, that meets all the needs of its tourists, there are also infrastructure such as transport. A good part of the road service in Naples, in fact, is equipped for the access and transport of wheelchairs for disabled people, while the entire service of the metro network provides for the presence of lifts in the stations, as well as lifting facilities, tactile maps and routes designed exclusively for breaking down barriers. Many voluntary and private associations also provide services and means for the elimination of any limits that hinder the use of the city property.

There are also a lot of events and projects. Among these the event “Games without barriers” which is held continuously in Naples in interesting locations such as the Mostra d’Oltremare and in 2016 also in the Catacombs of San Gennaro. An event with sports, music, shows and entertainment, designed for all children but also represents an important opportunity to meet representatives of institutions and artists of great fame, as well as of course an event of fundamental social and recreational importance.