My Hotel In Genoa
I’d booked a cheap hotel in Genoa, because the Alexander Hotel looked to be close to the main railway station at Principe. It was very close!
The Alexander Hotel taken From The Metro Station
The hotel was clean, in an excellent location and the staff were friendly and helpful, even if they didn’t know about the metro.
Checking on the Internet, Genoa doesn’t seem to be too well served with hotels close to the main station. So if you’re going to Genoa, I’d do your research thoroughly.
The Metro In Genoa
The Metro in Genoa is only small, but it got me out of trouble. There had been a lineside fire and everybody was taken off the train from Rome at the Brignole station, rather than the main one at Principe. There was no information at the station and I eventually found a friendly concierge in a hotel, who told me to take three stops on the Metro.
It is only a small system, but it covers the main parts of the city centre and goes to the sites I wanted to see on my overnight visit.
I actually could have used it more, as it also ran from my hotel to the restaurant I found on the Internet. But the hotel concierge felt it best I took a taxi, despite the station being about thirty metres away.
Compared to some metros I’ve used throughout Europe and the world, the Genoa metro sets a standard that others could emulate.
Two Trains To Genoa
I took two trains to Genoa.
The first was one of the new high speed trains called Frecciarossa, that got me to Rome in just over two hours and the second was a Frecciabianca that got me to Genoa around six in the evening. I didn’t write the exact times down and can’t find them from the Trenitalia web site.
On the trip to Rome, I had an aisle seat, which explains the lack of pictures. Especially as the train was crowded!
When I booked the trip, I didn’t realise that the Rome to Genoa leg runs for a long time up the coast and has spectacular sea views.
Both trains were 2+2 seating and despite the bigger loading gauge in Italy compared to the UK, I think that the seating was rather cramped compared to some First Class I’ve sampled in the UK, in France and on Eurostar.
The stops on the Rome to Genoa leg are also quite important cities including Pisa, which is a major rail junction, so don’t necessarily do the leg in one as I did.
Would I Visit Naples Again?
Naples keeps drawing me back and of course I’d go again.
The Excellent Italian Rail Ticket Machines
Buying rail tickets in Italy is easy and it is true to say, I’ve never failed to buy a ticket, when I needed one.
They are very easy to read and navigate and work in several languages. Here’s a picture of a machine working in English.
The Excellent Italian Ticket Machine
One big difference between Italian machines and those in say Germany or Sweden, is that when you change the language, they change the destination names. Note how Genoa in this screen is shown as the English spelling.
I suppose it helps that Italian is a language which uses a pure Roman alphabet like we do, with no accents, umlauts or cedillas.
Ticket machines should use plain characters to help tourists.
Exploring Naples In The Morning
As i said here, I got back into Naples without difficulty on the free bus and explored the city in the few hours I had before my train left for Rome and Genoa, where I would spend the night.
I didn’t have to carry my bag, as there was a good left luggage office in the station. It was probably best, as last time, I visited the city I was mugged. The story is here. Two pictures refer to this incident.
the only problem I had was getting back to the station, as the Metro had stopped. I even got an honest taxi driver, who said it would be much cheaper to take the Metro as it was only a short journey. As it was it cost me only a few euros, but I made the train with a few minutes to spare.
If I go back to Naples, I’ll explore the city differently by taking the Metro to Cavour and then walking down the hill to the station. That way the Metro won’t be able to let you down.
A Big Mistake In Naples
I know Naples well and I like the city a lot, but I still made a big mistake, by not getting a hotel right in the middle and preferably by the station.
I choose to stay at the Holiday Inn and it all went well getting there as the taxi was just ten euros.
I then needed to get back into the city to have something to eat. I wanted to get to Umberto’s restaurant, which is one I’ve used before that is very celiachia-friendly.
I thought there would be a bus, as coming in, I’d noticed the stop on the other side. But the guy at reception said that the only way to get back to the city centre was to take a taxi and he would call one. Like an idiot I believed him.
The taxi driver appeared about twenty minutes later and insisted I wanted to go to Pompeii. I ignored him and felt that perhaps the best thing to do was take an early night. He then called the receptionist and as I was hungry, I negotiated a trip to Umberto. I didn’t get the direct route and it cost me twenty euros to return.
But at least the meal was worth eating, even if I was a bit stressed. I finished the meal off with this ice cream.
Ice Cream at Umberto’s
It tasted as good as it looked. But then I trust Umberto’s, as everything gluten-free is clearly marked GF. And they even do gluten-free pizza!
Coming back, they sorted the taxi for me and I got back to the hotel for fourteen euros. As they said, I should have got a hotel in the centre.
The room in the Holiday Inn was actually quite comfortable and good value.
In the morning though, when asking another receptionist (female) how to get to the city centre, she gave me the timetable of their free shuttle bus. And of course, one would have been convenient to have used in the evening.
I don’t think I’ll be going anywhere near a Holiday Inn again. Especially in Italy!
Up The Coast To Naples
This wasn’t the most interesting of train rides. I can’t even find a picture worth putting in this post. The train didn’t even stop at a station, that was worth an overnight stay until Salerno.
The journey was enlivened though by two things.
I shared the compartment with a Dutch couple and we discussed a lot of things about our lives.
There was also an Italian gentleman of a certain age, who I think had a hearing problem. He had the speaker on his mobile phone switched on and pointed to his ear, whilst he shouted into the other end. If I’d known some Italian, it might have been a better experience.
The Dutch couple got out at Salerno, as they were going to Pompeii and Herculaneum, before carrying on to Naples after a couple of days.
On the other hand, except for a banana kindly given by the Dutch couple, I was hungry by the time I got to Naples.
Crossing The Strait Of Messina
The Strait of Messina is the strip of water between Sicily and the Italian mainland. you don’t change trains, but they shunted it into a ferry for the crossing.
Unlike the crossing from Denmark to Germany, I took in my return from Stockholm, you can stay in the train if you like.
Along The Coast To Messina
The train didn’t get up great speed as it made its way to the port of Messina, where it would cross to the Italian mainland.
I was surprised that we could actually see the Aeolian Islands and at one point, I thought I made out the distinctive double-peaked shape of Salina, where the salt for my supper came from.
The Anonymous Widower 