Hi all, i'm a Napoli fan, i just discovered this forum and i would like to give you some info on Napoli and the surrounds. Sorry my English is very bad, I hope you will understand.
TOURISM
Napoli is 3d city of Italy for number population, but this classement not consider all the people living in the downtown attached to the city (totally about 4,5 millions people). It's also the city with highest density of population in Italy.
Neapolitans are considered the "hottest" people in Italy (maybe with the Sicilians), very very easy to chat (very loud) and to socialize, to catch girls etc:). This is the stereotype of the Neapolitan (unfortunately it comprends alsto to be considered a robber and people that doesn't want to work, only singing, eating and sex. Napoli has also a very high tax of criminality ("camorra" mafia etc..) and is one of the poorest italian cities, with very high tax of unemployement. If you are so lucky to have a rolex watch it's better don't take it with you, if you don't want problems.
Unfortunately not so many people speak English, but Neapolitans are also know for their ability to speak with the hands and the face expression:), i nthe rest of Italy Napoli is considered like a 24h/24 theater..
This city can appear a bit dirty in the streets and chaotic and not respecting the laws (like 3 persons going on a vespa without helmets), so be prepared to his. Anyway I think you've been everywhere in europe, so maybe you will find something of greece or turkey here..That's why I absolutely don't recommend to rent a car to stay in Napoli.
Napoli is very well know for is kitchen (especially pizza, that is born here, but also pasta and caffè espresso. This 3 things here are religion.. but also fishs, seafodd and patisserie). You have to take a walk in the big historical centre, very very caratheristic (patrimonio mondiale dell'unesco). It' very old, made by hundreds of small streets. Here you will find some historical "pizzerie", you can also eat in the pizzeria where the first pizza was made, hundreds of years ago, for the italian queen Margherita (I will give you names and addresses if you want). A full pizza it would cost about 3 euro (and you will not eat pizza anymore out of Napoli:).
It's also a city very famous for the ability in making classic clothes, likse suits, classic shirts, ties and shoes. The life in Napoli is quiet cheap, and there's really a lot of clothes shop.
Napoli is super rich with art, history, culture... It was the biggest and most important city of Italy until the unification of the nation in 1861. There are lot of monuments, fantastic churchs (it's a very religious city), but as i told you just only walking in the historical centre is an experience (there's also a chantry dedicated to Maradona, with his hair in it. Maradona here is seriously considered like God) . I'll give you more detailed infos on the places to go if you want.
If you will stay not only for the matchday, but also if you have just an half day free, you can't miss, for any reason of the world, Pompei, one of the most important archeological site of the world. This is definitivly a place you have to go obligatory.. also if you are not interested from history and archeology. It's a full roman city perfected conservated by the eruption of Vesuvio 2000 years ago. No word for this, impossible to explain.. living here i've been there several times, but everytime is like the first time, it gives goosebumps. So go to Pompei. From Napoli you can take a train called "circumvesuviana" (about 1/2 euros, 30 minutes the journey, the one day tickets is about 4/5 euros and yo ucan take also bus and tram). The train stop is in front od the ruines entrance, there yo ucan find a guide or just take the free book at the entry. A decent visit will take not less than 4-5 hours (and you will see not all).
With the circumvesuviana you can also go to Herculaneum and Oplonti (other very very beautiful archeological site, in Pompei yo ucan buy combined ticket for all these sites). Always with circumvesuviana you can go to the end of line to Sorrento (from Napoli is about 50 min/1h, from Pompei 20/30 min). It's a very beautiful and very very touristic place, almost surronded by the sea (it's a peninsule that closes the bay of Naples). Vey nice food here too..and it's the town of limoncello (lemon liqueur).
From Sorrento, but also from Napoli and the other ports of the bay of Naples you can take a ferry boat to the islands of Ischia, the biggest one, know for his therme (it's all vulcanic here) or Capri (world famous touristic destination, anyway is better see photos...)
You can go on the Vesuvio (due to this volcano we have old pompei, herculaneum and oplonti..). It doesn't explode since 1944 but it's considered active volcano, only sleeping. It's classified as the most dangerous in the world because of all the people living in the surrounds, at the base of it and also on it...a lot of houses and full towns have been builded there (high density of population) without taking care of this and of the laws, so it's very hard to think to a good evacuation plan...and if they will explode another time, like all the experts say, it will be interesting to see..obviously by far. There are some buses that arrive until 1000 metres quote (if I remember well), then you have to walk about 10 minutes (the costs is 5/6 euros). It's really very impressive, with a big cratere. From there you can view all the bay drinking glass of wine made on the bases of the volcano.
FOOTBALL
The Neapolitans are considered the hottest fans in Italy. The city has only one team and is religion. Napoli tooks 70 thousands fans to stadium in 3d division (maybe you saw hot stadium like this in greece or turkey). Now the capacity is reduced at 60 thousands for security reasons.
The visual of the match is very crap (there's also a net that cover all the sector), and there's athletic piste around the pitch (no one knows id has been never used).
Napoli fans have been banned to all the away matchs in the last 2 years because of the ultras and of the police repression of them. Napoli ultras are considered objectuvely by far the most dangerous and with biggest numbers in Italy. Many of them are banned from the stadium.
Napoli have hundreds of ultras in both "curva" (curva A and curva B). The curva A, the one attached to the away fans sector, it's probably the hardest. Both the curve, but also the tribune stand up and chants, lighting flares etc.. In the Milan match 2 years ago someone threw also molotov at milan fans (but this not happens everytime:)
Since this season the Italian ministre of the interior introduced the "tessera del tifoso". It's a kind of credit card to subscribe, giving all personal details to police, to go to the away match and to make season abonemment (think in Englans there's something similar). Almost all the ultras (and a lot of normal fans) of Italy didn't make it (no one ultras in Napoli made it), so it's impossible to have decent away fans in Napoli and in away games in Italy.
That's why Napoli ultras have really a big waiting for Europe matchs (where we don't play since more than 15 years). You have a big reputation so there's big interest by the ultras. All we hope that Uefa will not close the stadio San Paolo for the ultras fights in Bucarest happened last week (the San Paolo already received a "yellow card" from Uefa for passed facts).
I don't know which will be the ambient here for you. Anyway, if this will be not good and if you don't want to be stressed and want to enjoy the trip in peace without being involved in problems it's absolutely recommended not singing and not wearing team colours or scarfs in the city. No one never tried to do this here without huge escort from police (and not in the centre, just some seconds before entering the away sector). This cause Napoli ultras have no friends in Italy, almost only rivalties (the biggest probably with Verona, Lazio, Inter, Roma.. almost all Italy except Genoa and Catania) It's usual for the ultras try to stole other ultras flags, banners or scarfs. They attack only people that want to fight, not normal fans but when troubles start ..never say never, also normal people can join the figts so no rules. Everyone here know you have very very good fighting reputation but I can't think that yo uall will come for this!
If you wear stone island, cp and stuff like this here yo uare considered someone who want to fight. Many ultras are fascinated by English terraces ambient, so they are informed about casuals etc..these clothes are evidents.
Anyway, as you are a so famous crowd with away games experiences everywhere i neurope you don't need all this things I say. It's just to let you know that here is not Milano or somewhere else in Italy..
I hope I wrote a decent English. All the price and numbers are approx.. If anyone have some questions or want to know more details on the place to go just ask me, also in private. bye!