La Paranza: review of the cooperative behind the Naples catacombs

Who La Paranza are

The La Paranza social cooperative began in 2006, when a group of young people from the Rione Sanità started running the San Gaudioso catacombs. In 2008 it won a Fondazione CON IL SUD grant that led to the restoration and reopening of the San Gennaro catacombs. Today the cooperative reports 70 people employed, more than one and a half million visits and 14,000 square metres of heritage recovered. It is part of the San Gennaro Community Foundation.

The cooperative says visitor numbers have grown fivefold since it started, and your ticket directly funds jobs in the district. Besides the catacombs, La Paranza’s website points to the Basilica of San Severo with Jago’s Veiled Son, the Jago Museum at Sant’Aspreno ai Crociferi and guided visits to the Fontanelle Cemetery.

The Catacombs of San Gennaro

The entrance is at Via Capodimonte 13, next to the church of the Incoronata Madre del Buon Consiglio. The catacombs spread over two roomy levels that grew out of a 2nd-century family tomb. What you see:

• the upper vestibule with the oldest Christian paintings in southern Italy, from the early 3rd century;
• the Crypt of the Bishops, with 5th-century mosaics and a portrait of St Quodvultdeus, bishop of Carthage;
• the three-aisled underground basilica built after San Gennaro’s remains were brought here, and the chamber of his tomb;
• the basilica of Sant’Agrippino, where Mass is still said, and an 8th-century baptismal font.

The Catacombs of San Gaudioso

You enter from Via Sanità 123, inside the church of Santa Maria della Sanità; the catacomb opens beneath the high altar. St Gaudiosus, an African bishop who reached Naples in the 5th century, is buried here. The most striking part is the 17th-century noble burials: skulls set into the wall, with the body painted below in the clothes and tools of the person’s trade. The guide also explains the old practice of “draining” corpses, which gave Neapolitan its curse “Puozze sculà!”. There is also the Madonna della Sanità, from the 5th–6th century, described as the oldest image of Mary in Campania.

Naples catacombs tickets: official channel or booking sites?

The price is the same everywhere: €13 on the official shop, Tiqets and GetYourGuide. What changes are the terms. Tiqets offers free cancellation up to 24 hours before on the San Gennaro tour. The official channel, on the other hand, honours discounts: €9 with the Campania Artecard, €10.40 for Touring Club and FAI members, €11 if you already hold a Fontanelle or Jago Museum ticket. If you qualify for a discount, buy from the cooperative; if you want flexibility, Tiqets is a good alternative at no extra cost.

Getting to the Rione Sanità

For San Gennaro, take a bus from the Museo Nazionale stop (lines 168, 178, 204, C63 and others) to “Basilica Incoronata – Catacombe San Gennaro”: about 15 minutes. If you drive, there is free parking near the entrance. San Gaudioso is lower down, at Via Sanità 123 in the heart of the district; the Miglio Sacro walk links the two areas on foot. The San Gennaro catacombs sit on the Capodimonte hill, also home to the Capodimonte Museum.

Pros, cons and what visitors say

Reviews mostly praise the guides, knowledgeable and funny, and the way they tell the story of the neighbourhood. The most common complaints are limited chances for photos and a wish for more languages beyond Italian and English.

• Pros: one ticket for two sites, the same price on every channel, local guides, real social impact.
• Cons: closed on Wednesdays, booking always required, San Gennaro’s step-free entrance currently closed, a little off the classic sightseeing routes.

Our verdict on La Paranza

La Paranza is one of the most reliable operators beneath Naples: clear prices, one ticket for two sites and guides who know the district because they grew up in it. If early Christian art interests you, or you want to see a less-trodden side of Naples, plan it alongside Naples Underground. All the options are on our catacombs tickets page and in the underground guide.

We are an independent guide: if you book through the Tiqets or GetYourGuide links on this page we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.