Discover
Photographers’ Procida
The amphitheatre of pastel houses at the Corricella, the pink light at the Lingua, the ridge of Terra Murata: where to go and at what time, which is the part that counts.
Monuments & sites
Abbey of San Michele Arcangelo
The church at the top of Terra Murata: monastic presence documented from 1026, sixteenth-century architecture, free entry and a guided explanation offered by the volunteers.
Casale Vascello
A seventeenth-century fortified courtyard settlement, the first nucleus to grow up outside the walls of Terra Murata: houses built up against each other around a large court, still lived in.
Palazzo d’Avalos
The sixteenth-century d’Avalos palace turned into a prison by the Bourbons and closed in 1988: today you visit it only with a guide, by booking, at the top of Terra Murata.
Punta Pizzaco
A rocky headland on the south-eastern coast, above the Chiaia bay: you reach it on foot from Piazza Olmo and it gives the classic view over Corricella and Terra Murata.
Santa Margherita Nuova
Sixteenth-century church and former Dominican convent on the ridge between Corricella and Terra Murata, today a venue for exhibitions, with terraces looking over the fishermen’s village.
Vivara Island
A State Nature Reserve on an uninhabited volcanic islet, linked to Procida by a footbridge: you get in only on a guided visit booked online.
Museums
Chiaia Beach
Dark sand, shallow water, the most sheltered bay on the island. You get there only on foot, down about 180 steps, or on the little boat from the Corricella.
Ciraccio Beach
Long, open, windy. Direct road access and far more room than the Chiaiolella, but in the afternoon the mistral makes itself felt.
Lingua Beach
Tiny, pebbly, next to a working harbour. A bottom that drops away at once and a pink light at sunset that pays back the inconvenience.
Pozzo Vecchio Beach
The bay where Troisi recited Neruda: small, horseshoe-shaped, in the middle of open country. A short but steep descent and almost no shade.
Neighbourhoods
Marina Corricella
The oldest fishing village on the island, an amphitheatre of pastel houses on the water: no cars, four stairways to come down and the tables on the quay.
Marina Grande
Procida’s harbour front: ferries, Via Roma, the church of Santa Maria della Pietà, the bus terminus and two small beaches a few minutes from the quay.
Terra Murata
The island’s fortified acropolis, at about 91 metres: the abbey of San Michele, the former prison of Palazzo d’Avalos, two historic gates and the view over the Corricella.
Restaurants
Assafà
Thirty covers on the Piazza dei Martiri belvedere, on the climb to Terra Murata. Budget bracket, and the highest rating on the island. Takeaway and delivery too.
Budget bracket
Il Pescatore
A terrace on the Corricella quay, with online booking through Tablein. Octopus and paccheri with swordfish; closed on Mondays, two sittings, lunch and dinner.
Mid bracket
La Conchiglia
Da Tonino, on the sand at the Chiaia: you get there down 170 steps from Via Pizzaco, or by boat from Corricella. About 40 EUR a head, Easter to November.
About 40 EUR a head
La Lampara
It sits at the highest and most panoramic point of Corricella, above the Hotel La Corricella. You come for the sea urchin and for the table on the railing: that one is booked weeks ahead.
Mid bracket
Hotels
Hotel La Corricella
Nine rooms looking over the fishermen’s village, with an in-house restaurant and a 24-hour reception. You get there only on foot, by the steps: it is not for everybody.
Insula Boutique Hotel
Ten rooms only, an outdoor pool with a pool bar and panoramic balconies, at Piazza Olmo. From here to the Chiaia beach is about 180 steps downhill.
Hotel La Casa sul Mare
Ten rooms in an eighteenth-century noble palazzo, all with a sea view and a private terrace, above Corricella. The Procida postcard, seen from breakfast.
La Suite Hotel & Spa
The island’s only five-star: 21 rooms, a SPA of 400 m², the black lava-stone pool and 5,000 m² of gardens with a kitchen garden. From about 203 EUR a night.
Activities & experiences
Boat tourIsland boat tour with swim stops and underwater photos
Two hours around the island with several swim stops, snorkelling gear and an underwater photo and video service included. Small groups, eight people maximum.
ExperienceSunset aperitivo boat trip
Two hours around the island at sunset, with music, an aperitivo and an optional swim stop. It leaves from Corricella, next to the Madonnina.
ExperienceGuided visit to the Vivara reserve
The only way to get into Vivara: a guided visit of two and a half hours, slots of 25 people, tickets online only. Walking boots compulsory.
Festivals & events
8 May and 29 September, every yearThe patron saint, Barbarossa and the debt of 1535
Festa di San Michele Arcangelo
Two fixed dates a year for the patron saint: 8 May, the more deeply felt, with the procession from the Abbey to the Corricella, and 29 September. Free.
Good Friday, every yearThe Good Friday procession, from 1600 to today
Processione dei Misteri
On Good Friday the island carries 40 to 60 Misteri in procession, built again from scratch every year. Assembly by 05:00, departure at 07:30. Free.
Late July / early AugustThe festival the island puts on for itself, for seventy-six editions
Sagra del Mare
Eleven days of celebrations all over the island: the election of the Graziella, the sea games and the remembrance of those lost at sea. Free entry to events in the squares.
Walks
From the Chiaiolella to the Vivara bridge
Marina, beaches, tuff stacks and the footbridge to Vivara. Beyond the bridge you get through only on a guided visit booked online.
From Marina Grande to Terra Murata and the Corricella
From the harbour to the fortified acropolis and down the stairways to the fishermen’s village. Nine stops, three churches, a former prison and the view everybody photographs.
Guides
Discover
Holy Week in Procida
Two days, two processions and a night to spend on the island: how the Procidan Holy Week really works and where it is best to wait for it.
Discover
The Il Postino locations in Procida
The locations of the 1994 film with Massimo Troisi and Philippe Noiret: where you actually go, how you get there and which attributions do not survive a check.
Discover
What to see in Procida
Everything worth seeing on the island, in the order it is worth seeing it: Terra Murata, Corricella, the six beaches, Vivara and the viewpoints, with the honest notes.
Planning
Plan your trip
Procida in June
The month when the sea becomes usable and the evening connections come back, without the August numbers. What reopens, what to book and what changes mid-month.
Plan your trip
Procida in May
The month when the island really reopens: everything works, there are few day trippers and the sea is still cool. Ideal for villages, steps and photography.
Plan your trip
Procida in September
The month we recommend first: water still warm, the crowd in retreat and the best light of the year. With two dates that change the plan.
Plan your trip
When to visit Procida
May, June and September beat July and August. The arrival figures cut the word crowded down to size, but out of season the buses stop at 21:00 and the evening sailings disappear.
Itineraries
Itineraries
A weekend in Procida
Two nights, three full half-days and no rushing: the format Procida seems made for, above all in May, June and September.
Itineraries
Procida from Naples in a day
The trip from Naples with the real numbers: 25.40 EUR of ferry there and back, the full itinerary, and an honest comparison with the organised package from 85 EUR.
Itineraries
Procida in 1 day
The two upper villages in the morning, the quay at Corricella for lunch and the sea in the afternoon: the right order for an island you cross in forty minutes.
Itineraries
Procida in 2 days
The format the island carries best: one day for the upper villages, one for the former prison and the sea, with the evening left to the people who sleep here.
