Best House Museums in Italian Ports

visiting Villa Mombelli,Livorno

First time cruisers in the Mediterranean usually visit the  Vatican Museums when in Rome, see Pompeii when their ship docks  in Naples and  from Livorno  travel to Florence’s great  museums.

For repeat visitors who  have the chance to delve deeper and make a more leisurely visit  here is my  personal list  of  the best museums to visit.

 These smaller, intimate museums and art collections are often housed in former private homes, thus  offering  a truer feel for the place, its history  and how peopled lived in the past.  

Tarquinia Palazzo Vitelleschi 

Near Civitavecchia - The Port for Rome

     Tarquinia- Etruscan Museum in Palazzo Vitelleschi.  Tarquinia is a medieval hill town located a short bus ride from Civitavecchia port. Its frescoed Etruscan tombs dating from 800 BC  earned Tarquinia UNESCO  heritage site  status. The Museum is housed in a Renaissance palazzo in the city center while the painted tombs are located a short distance away. Bookshop. 

Mappamondo room, Caprarola, photo F. Pignatale 

Caprarola - Palazzo Farnese, about 1 hour drive inland from the port of Civitavecchia, is a magnificent pentagon shaped palace   built  for a Renaissance cardinal and  lived in by an eccentric American family in the early 1900s. Today it   wows visitors with  frescoed saloni  and gardens. To read more about Caprarola use the search box at the top of the page. 

fountain of  Hercules, Palazzo Farnese Caprarola

Rome

  Palazzo Doria Pamphili on Via del Corso is a private palazzo of 300+ rooms which also houses an  extensive collection of art belonging to the noble  Doria Pamphili family. Bookshop and nearby café. 

entrance to Villa Mombelli,Livorno

 Livorno

   Museo Civico Giovanni Fattori, Villa Mombelli (Via S. Jacopo in Acquaviva,65)  is a bit on the outskirts of the town but  easily reached by bus from the port area. The villa contains  paintings  of the Macchiaioli (1855-1900) School,  especially Giovanni Fattori.  Architectural details  and furnishings of Moorish, Baroque and  Renaissance styles. Bookshop and quiet, cool park. 

ceramic putti on stairway, Villa Mombelli

Naples

The  small chapel museum Cappella San Severo in the back streets of  old Naples contains  the famous sculpture of  the veiled  Christ  and others by Giuseppe Sanmartino. 

Villa San Michele, Anacapri

  Capri 

 Villa San Michele,  atop the  island at Anacapri,  was  once home to Swedish doctor and author Axel Munthe. The villa  contains his collection of Roman statuary, mosaics and works of art  and offers  magnificent views over the Bay of Naples. Villa San Michele

Elba

On the island  where Napoleon Bonaparte was exiled, Villa San Martino  evokes the Empire period with furniture and art that belong to him.  

bedroom, Villa San Martino, Elba 

Villa San Martino, Elba 

statue of Paolina Bonaparte

Siracusa

The Sicilian  Regional art gallery located in newly restored 12^th century  palazzo in  Ortygia gives Antonella da Messina’s Annunciation (1474) pride of place along with  stone sculptures.  Palazzo Bellomo

courtyard of Palazzo Bellomo, Siracusa

 Hope you find this article helpful for planning your next cruise in the Mediterranean. Check my website  and books  for more information about travel in Italy. 

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