Terra Murata and the belvedere over Corricella

Terra Murata is the fortified top of the island, built where people retreated from pirate raids, and it is a completely different Procida from the harbour below: high walls, dark volcanic stone, empty lanes and almost no shops. The Abbazia di San Michele Arcangelo sits at the heart of it, and behind the abbey the huge block of Palazzo d'Avalos looks out over the sea — a sixteenth-century palace that spent a century as a prison and was closed at the end of the 1980s.

The reason photographers climb up is the belvedere on the seaward wall. From there Corricella is directly below you: the whole curve of the harbour, the boats, and the stacked houses seen from above so the colours read as a mosaic. It is the single most recognisable frame on Procida and it needs no long lens.

Afternoon and the last hour are the times to be here. The viewpoint looks roughly north-west over the harbour, so the low sun rakes across the roofs and puts the colours at their warmest, while in the morning the same view is flat and partly backlit.

The climb from Corricella is a long stepped lane and takes fifteen minutes at an unhurried pace; there is also a road up from the town. Palazzo d'Avalos can only be seen on a guided visit with its own schedule, so check availability rather than assuming you can walk in.