Visit Bacoli and Capo Miseno
Among beaches and ancient Rome ruins
© Francesca Sciarra / Shutterstock.com
In the Bacoli area, overlooking the gulf of Pozzuoli, there are many ruins of the ancient Roman domination, besides the promontory of Capo Miseno, a charming strip of land, with its beaches and the famous Faro (lighthouse).
To reach either Bacoli or Miseno, take the L1 underground train leaving from the Napoli central train station and get off at Montesanto; from here, walk up to the terminus of the Cumana train line and take the train towards Torregaveta and get off at the Torregaveta terminus. Then take the local bus towards either Bacoli or Miseno.
The local bus stops not far from the municipal villa of Bacoli, where the De Giovanni coffee bar is. Here, there are some steps that lead to the Piscina Mirabilis, the most ancient cistern dating back to the Augustan era, a great engineering work that guaranteed the water supply to the ancient town of Misenum and to the imperial fleet as well. The tour of the Piscina Mirabilis is available only by advance reservation. You have to call the keepers at the following phone numbers: +39 3336853278/3335730225; there is no entrance fee, you just have to make a donation.
From the pool walk along via Pennata, that is the road that leads to the beach named spiaggia dello Schiacchetello. Here you can enjoy the view of the isola pennata, an island that houses an ancient Roman residential complex that once belonged to Lucio Lucullo.
The Municipal villa of Bacoli overlooks the Lago Miseno. The strip of land that goes from the villa to the famous Faro is named after this lake. On the other side of the villa there is the litorale di Miseno (Miseno coast), with its free beaches and beach resorts, such as the popular spiaggia di Miliscola, a beach that used to be the location of the ancient praetorian fleet of the Roman emperors.
In the middle of Lake Fusaro in Bacoli stands the Real Casino di Caccia, which was designed by the Vanvitelli brothers and commissioned by the Bourbon family, at the time in charge of Naples and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.
The evocative eighteenth-century Baroque-style structure, known as Casina Vanvitelliana, has been immortalised by several directors in their films and today – after a recent renovation both inside and out – is chosen as a photographic set by several newly-weds or show business personalities who want a particularly choreographic backdrop for their presentation book.
Capo Miseno is the promontory at the end of the sandy coast. Walking through the tunnel in via Faro you will reach the Terrazza Panoramica di Capo Miseno, a panoramic terrace overlooking the Gulf of Napoli.
From here, you can walk the Lighthouse path, a short hiking path that climbs the Capo Miseno promontory, rich in wild nature, offering a breathtaking view of the lighthouse.
Not far from Bacoli there are the Casina Vanvitelliana (Vanvitellian Casina) and the Parco Sommerso di Baia (Baia’s Underwater Park).