‘Neighbourhood renaissance’: once noble La Sanità in Naples is open for business again | Naples holidays
Why go now My favourite way to enter Rione Sanità is by elevator: descending from a bridge into cobblestoned streets buzzing with mopeds and flanked by opulent but decaying 18th-century palazzi. Through the grand doorways of these once noble palaces are courtyards where bakers, butchers, cobblers and the odd contraband cigarette vendor do business. La Sanità – to the locals – is a thriving working-class district with a grand history. In the 17th century, the Spanish viceroys took a fancy to the area perched on the hill above the dense and crowded streets of the old town. Its name, which translates as “healthy district”, reflected a cleaner reputation (rainfall ran downhill, depositing debris and waste in the historic centre below). They built vast houses here in the 18th century (see Palazzo dello Spagnolo and Palazzo San Felice), with architects vying for attention as the court passed through to Capodimonte, the royal summer residence above the city. Business flourished until Napoleon arrived in the early 19th century, found the route too slow, and built the overpass …
