The royal palace of Caserta: the italian Versailles
"The location is of exceptional beauty, in the lush plain of the world and with extensive gardens that extend into the hills; an aqueduct there leads to a entire river, who gives drink to the palace and its surroundings, and this mass of water, you can transform it, riversandola on artificial rocks, in a beautiful waterfall. The gardens are beautiful and harmonizes much with this district, which is only one garden."
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
This wonderful experience will take you a full day for visiting the royal Palace, and enjoy the beautiful park without a hurry.
The royal palace has an area of 47 000 square metres: its length is 247 metres, a width of 190 and a height of 41; it has a rectangular shape with four internal courtyards with bevelled angles of 45 degrees, each with a length of 74 metres and a width of 52; at the meeting point between the two arms, where, in the original project, a dome was There are five floors: land, mezzanine, noble floor, second floor and attic, as well as an underground floor, illuminated by slits, which housed cellars, kitchens and workshops. Internally there are 1 200 rooms, 34 stairs, while the windows are 1,742.
The Museum of the Opera and Territory is housed in the basement of the palace.
The Palace of Caserta is a royal residence, historically belonged to the Bourbons of the Two Sicilies, located in Caserta and strongly desired by the king Carlo di Borbone. The laying of the first stone, which started the construction work, took place on January 20, 1752, on a project of Luigi Vanvitelli: this was followed by the son Carlo Vanvitelli and other architects. The palace was completed in 1845.
A tip: be accompanied by a guide or at least to take an audio guide, which will explain the various environments.
To be able to access to the entrance I recommend a small walk in the park in front of it in the form of a cash cello. The entrance is immediately striking the grand staircase of the architect Vanvitelli,
autore anche del progetto del Parco Reale della Reggia e della Cappella Palatina. Le sale di rappresentanza e gli appartamenti privati vi lasceranno senza fiato per la ricchezza dei decori, degli affreschi e degli arredi.
The Park
To visit the park of the royal Palace, given its size, you have several opportunities:
piedi, in bici o in carrozza. All’interno del parco è presente un servizio navetta che dalla Reggia vi porta fino alla parte più alta dei giardini dove troverete anche l’ingresso al English Garden, it too is another masterpiece of the royal Palace of Caserta.
La navetta vi trasporterà dalla parte bassa dei giardini fino alla fountain of Diana. Guardando il giardino dall’ingresso la distanza non sembra enorme ma l’apparenza inganna: il percorso rettilineo per raggiungere la parte alta sembra breve ma in realtà sono più di 3 km.
Once at the top of the you will impress the frame that the park offers to the royal Palace. The gently sloping land, and the waters used for the fountains and waterfalls create a natural cleverly exploited by the architect Vanvitelli to create suggestions and optical illusions.
The English Garden
Behind the royal Palace on the right is the entrance to the English Garden. A riot of plants, flowers, lakes and hidden places to discover, as the Criptportico or the statue of Venus built on a rock on the inside of a pond.
In the summer the royal Palace is in full sun, but the coolness of the trees allows a visit to the garden, even on a sunny day. Some benches along the paths that intersect inside the park will be a pleasant stop along the way.
Once you exit from the English Garden, you may decide to reach the lower part of the park to walk; the walk is short but the beauty of the park is certainly worth a try.
Opening hours
From 8.30am-7.30pm;
Entrance to the Park and the English Garden from 8.30am (for closing times please see the calendar on the website, depending on the month)
Cost of Tickets
Ingresso agli Appartamenti, al Parco e al Giardino Inglese costa €14,00;
Apartments Only €10,00
(for more information, refer to the corporate website).
The medieval village of Casertavecchia
A board for all to visit this beautiful village in the morning before embarking on the long journey to the Palace.
Con la nostra navetta arriviamo al Belvedere di San Leucio e proseguiamo per Casertavecchia.
Two places not to miss during your experience to Caserta. The Belvedere of San Leucio is a beautiful place. An industrial village, where in the past they were manufactured in silk, and in which are preserved ancient wooden looms.
The village of Casertavecchia is about 10 km from Caserta.
The visit to the village
The shuttle will leave at the foot of the road leading to the village, as you move away from the road and you start to walk along the small cobblestone lanes will feel like you are traveling back in time, the village seems to be immersed in a bubble of time, and will offer a glimpse into the past of the village.
The belvedere, which opens immediately after the road to reach the village is nothing short of breathtaking. A beautiful view on the Caserta, the royal Palace and its beautiful gardens.
From here you leave the alleys cobbled passable only on foot where it is easy to marvel at the facades, gates, and balconies full of flowers.
Small restaurants and bars characterize the whole village, we invite you to enjoy this quiet, where it seems that time has stopped.
A day would not be enough to fully appreciate all that Caserta offers to those who decide to devote time to this experience, but our advice is to take advantage of this information is to book a guided tour to enjoy an unforgettable day!
