Italy travel guide
Here’s one very good reason why Italy should be on your list of places to go before you leave earth: Italy is home to over 3,000 historic and heritage sites scattered all over the region. According to UNESCO, Italy has half of the world’s archaeological sites and more museums than any region or country on earth.
Italy is also the birth place of some of the most famous minds and thinkers who have revolutionized the world from Lorenzo de' Medici, Michelangelo Buonarotti, Leonardo da Vinci, Filippo Brunelleschi, Sandro Botticelli and many others from the beginning of the Renaissance. So if there’s one place you have to go and explore, it’s Italy.
The north of Italy lies two of its richest cities: Turin and Milan, and to the south, you have the ‘undiscovered’ Italy in regions such as Lombardy and Liguria. These places are often most visited by tourists looking for beautiful coastlines and scenic views as well as Italy’s dramatic mountain scenery and some of the world’s most popular ski resorts, bordering the tallest of the Alps.
It’s hard to explore the whole of Italy in just a few days. So if your trip is a short one, there are some must visit places that should be on your list. Carnivale is one such event worth seeing. This is a 10 day event in Venice leading up to Lent where it is an endless parade of authentic costumes and themed feasts. For the curious traveler, Carnivale is a beautiful reminder of Italy’s Roman past.
For a taste of ancient architecture, Italy is always a great choice, especially in Pompeii and Herculaneum, two of the best preserved Roman sites in the country. Experience the sights, sounds and smells these ancient cities have to offer and then head to Museo Archeologico Nazionale in Naples where you can find relics and erotic frescoes from these cities.
From then on, your next stop should be Basilica di San Francesco in Assisi. This is the burial place of St Francis and one of Italy's greatest church buildings. You will also find that the Basilica is fully covered with frescoes by Giotto, Simone Martini and others, showing artistic development of each century. The Basilica is opened daily from 6.30 am to 7.30am so pilgrims and art lovers can cover this place in good time.
If you are going to Italy in the winter, the Alps and Dolomites or the Abruzzo and Aspromite is where you should go for a little bit of skiing in the Italian alps. From the North to the south, Italy never runs dry of decent ski resorts and terrains. If you are in Naples, never leave the town without sampling some of the world’s best pizzas. Although you can eat pizza in every region in Italy, Naples has the best, served sizzling hot from a wood-fired oven.
End your sight seeing with a quiet night at Capri as when the sun sets, Capri is one place that has the most beautiful and scenic horizons and cliffs for the perfect home cooked dinner and a nice cup of latte.
The best way to get to Italy is by air and before you leave, it is best to contact the Italian State Tourist Office to get a hold of a selection of maps and brochures that list some of the best sites in Italy, how to get there, their opening times and a variety of other information.
Photo by Paolo Màrgari on flickr