Caserta – when you want to see the Italian Versailles
What hasn't been said about Caserta yet?
Besides the fact that from Scalea, it's not suitable for a day trip and that I recommend including this train trip in your plans when staying in Naples.
It's a royal palace about 40 km from Naples – Reggia di Caserta – and it is among the largest and most magnificent royal residences in Europe. When one mentions "the Italian Versailles," they are talking about this place. The castle was built in the 18th century by Charles VII of the Bourbon family, and architect Luigi Vanvitelli truly "didn't hold back."
Inside, you can expect:
dozens of lavish halls, staircases, and salons, endless marble corridors, gold-adorned ceilings, frescoes, crystal chandeliers, and grand royal apartments, where you feel like you're just waiting for someone to say "Madame, dîner est servi." And then you step outside – and realize that the best is yet to come.
Gardens that will leave you in awe for a long time
The gardens in Caserta are a chapter of their own.
They stretch for kilometers, combining the Italian formal style with the French, complemented by a vast English park.
What awaits you here: a long water axis with a series of fountains and cascades, statues of gods and mythical figures, the Great Cascade with a dramatic waterfall at the end of the perspective, avenues, grassy areas, and nooks where the crowd suddenly quiets down completely.
To reach the more distant places in the gardens, you can: walk (but keep in mind that it's really a "walk," not just a few steps),
or take a shuttle bus / or a horse-drawn carriage, depending on the season. I chose the bus to the end of the fountains, and yet the walk back through the park in 40 degrees was almost endless, but beautiful.
Upon returning to the castle grounds, I recommend the local café, where they not only have coffee but also other drinks, including small bottles of water, all at reasonable prices. Nearby are also decent toilets, which you'll definitely appreciate after the trip.
