On the first evening, a marinara and a margherita in the middle of the table, to share. The rim is raised, the centre thin, and a slice soon crosses from one plate to the other. In Naples, a trip for two can take shape just like this, around a few tables chosen together.
For a gourmet weekend in Naples as a couple, three nights give you three evenings at the table and two full days: check-in between 15:00 and 20:00, departure by 10:00 in the morning. From Follaky Secret Garden, in Chiaia, Piazza dei Martiri is about a 3-minute walk away and the Via Caracciolo seafront about 7.
Neapolitan pizza has written rules
The Art of Neapolitan Pizzaiuoli was inscribed in 2017, for Italy, on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, at the Committee's twelfth session.
The dish itself has a reference text too: the STG «Pizza Napoletana» specification, published in the Gazzetta Ufficiale on 9 March 2010. It calls for baking only in a wood-fired oven, at 485°C, and a round pizza: maximum diameter of 35 centimetres, centre 0.4 centimetres thick, rim raised by 1–2 centimetres.
The historical section of the specification names the two most famous Neapolitan pizzas: the marinara, from 1734, and the margherita, between 1796 and 1810, offered to the Queen of Italy on her visit to Naples in 1889. Ordering one of each, on the first evening, is a simple way to begin.
Three dinners with the Follaky restaurant guide
The Follaky restaurant guide brings together the restaurants we recommend, each listed with area, type of cuisine and price band, from € to €€€. The areas: Chiaia, the seafront, Vomero, Posillipo and the Campi Flegrei. With the filters, you can choose your evenings before you even set off, to suit your taste and budget.
The first dinner can be in Chiaia, after leaving your luggage in the suite; the second on the seafront. For an evening in Vomero, the Funicolare Centrale sets off from Augusteo station, about 8 minutes' walk from Follaky: do check the return times. Posillipo and the Campi Flegrei are further away and fit more easily with a fourth night.
Before you go, check opening times, availability and the current menu. Dinners are booked separately, directly with each restaurant, which is also where to flag any dietary requirements.
What to do between lunch and dinner?
The two full days leave time for sightseeing. The historic centre of Naples has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1995 and still follows the Greek street layout of the city, founded around 470 BC. In the old centre, the Complesso Monumentale di Santa Chiara is about 24 minutes' walk from Follaky: a morning among the Decumani leaves the evening free for Chiaia.
The other day can stay close by: Piazza dei Martiri, the streets of Chiaia, the seafront as far as Castel dell'Ovo, about 17 minutes' walk from Follaky. For the itinerary, see what to see in Naples, our itineraries and, with the days split by area, Naples without a car.
How many nights for a gourmet weekend in Naples?
With three nights, arriving on Thursday and leaving on Sunday, you have Friday and Saturday in full, plus three dinners. On Sunday, check-out is from Vico Monteroduni 16, by 10:00. Four nights add an extra day, and one more evening for whichever area was left out. The comparison is in Three or four nights in Naples, and the choice of base in Staying in Chiaia as a couple.
Two suites in Chiaia to come back to after dinner
Follaky Secret Garden is a boutique B&B in the private residential grounds of Palazzo Giovagnoni. The pedestrian entrance is from Via Chiaia 149F, with the grounds' private lift; for taxis and luggage, the address is Vico Monteroduni 16. The route is described in how to reach us, and check-in is done in person with Monica or Fabio.
Each suite sleeps two guests, with a queen bed (160×200), and has its own independent, private entrance; beyond the door, a corridor is shared between the suites. The Suite Chiaia Deluxe Garden View is the more intimate of the two, in olive green, wood and maiolica tiles, with a window looking onto two neighbouring private gardens. The Suite Toledo Deluxe Private Patio is larger and brighter, in white and turquoise maiolica, with a private patio. Follaky Breakfast is included, with quality products. If you're travelling with another couple, Double Suites – Exclusive Use reserves both for you, for up to four guests.
The three evenings could go like this: pizza for the first, the seafront for the second, the third left to chance. From the first two, you walk back to whichever suite you've chosen: the more intimate one, with the garden view, or the larger one, with the private patio. Compare the suites and check your dates.
