Last month, I accomplished my goal of visiting all 20 regions in Italy when I set foot in Molise (which Italians cheekily refer to as "the region that doesn't exist," because it's so small). Although I have great memories of Emilia-Romagna's incredible food and Sardinia's therapeutic salty air, nowhere has quite stolen my heart like Basilicata — a region I've visited six times since 2021, and come to think of as the country's best-kept secret.

Basilicata is located in Southern Italy, right between Puglia and Calabria. I'll admit that I have an emotional connection to the area, too: My great-grandmother hails from a small town called Pignola, right in the heart of the region near its capital, Potenza.