Hidden Palermo: discover the Royal Gardens – the green heart of the historic city
Looking for unique things to do in Palermo? Tucked away beside the iconic Norman Palace, the Royal Gardens of Palermo offer a tranquil, leafy escape steeped in centuries of history and culture. This is everything you need to know. In the heart of Sicily’s capital, between Piazza Indipendenza and the Palazzo dei Normanni (Norman Palace), you’ll fin...
How Moka Made—and Burnt—Italy's Taste for Coffee
For 60 million Italians, morning has a scent: that of the moka. Not just coffee in general—specifically moka coffee. From childhood, you learn to recognize its sound; its aroma accompanies your wake-up while still in bed, and when you leave for school, you smell it in the stairwells of apartment buildings. The moka is a ritual, repeated several ti...
Italian sports industry drives growth and global influence
The Italian sports industry is a powerhouse - it generated €24.7 billion in value added last year and shipped €4.7 billion worth of goods abroad - representing 1.38 percent of Italy’s GDP. This speaks volumes, not just economically but diplomatically, as sport has become one of our most potent international ambassadors - through major events and in...
The Photographer Who Looked Past the Idea of Italy
The Italian photographer Gianni Berengo Gardin, who died in August at age ninety-four, announced his vocation to the world by pissing on his lens. It was the early nineteen-fifties, and he hadn’t yet left his day job in his family’s glass shop near Saint Mark’s Square, in Venice. He was on an outing with the local photography club La Gondola when d...
Lazio Inside Lake Bracciano: a peaceful spot to escape Rome's crowd
Just outside of Rome lies a peaceful oasis: Lake Bracciano. Surrounded by nature and scenic beauty, it's the perfect spot to escape the chaos and heat of the city for a day, or even a relaxing weekend. Its clear, swimmable waters are ideal for all types of water sports, and its shores are lined with picturesque villages rich in history and charm, l...
The tricolor flag and the “100% Italian” label – are they still convincing?
Buyers are becoming more discerning – a simple “Made in Italy” tag no longer has the pull it once did. A patriotic claim by itself isn’t enough. People today are looking for concrete details about where a product comes from and what makes it special. The Italian-inspired section of the grocery market is massive – nearly 28,000 items tied to an Ital...
Italy, US agree to boost LNG ties and infrastructure investment
Italy and the United States on Monday vowed to deepen energy ties including through increased exports to Italy of liquefied natural gas (LNG), as Europe continues to seek alternatives to Russian energy supplies following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. Italian Energy Minister Gilberto Pichetto Fratin and U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, after tal...
Bvlgari has launched its first-ever jewelry school, ‘Scuola Bvlgari’ in Valenza
Bvlgari’s newly launched Scuola Bvlgari is its first dedicated jewelry school, located within the expanded Manifattura Bvlgari in Valenza, Italy, the world’s largest single-brand jewelry manufacturing site. The school is designed to combine real-time production with immersive, hands-on learning. Scuola Bvlgari is a bold statement of inclusion and c...
A taste of Piedmont: best sights, food, and wine
Piedmont is a fascinating corner of Italy, a place where grand, elegant cities sit against a backdrop of snow-dusted alpine peaks. But deciding what to see in Piedmont is about more than just ticking off the sights. What’s on your plate is just as important as the historic palaces and vineyard views. Spend the morning exploring a royal residence an...
Rome, permanent district of design, arts and crafts and antiques born in historic Ponte district
On September 18, 2025, in the historic Ponte district, between Piazza Navona and Castel Sant’Angelo, the Ponte Art and Design District, Rome’s first permanent district dedicated to design, contemporary art, artistic crafts and antiques, was born. The project, promoted by the Roma Faber association and supported by the Lazio Region, the Superintende...
The Fontana Sisters: 1950s Hollywood’s Favorite Italian Couturiers
Long before Armani, Prada, and Gucci became go-to labels for red-carpet dressing, there was the Casa di Moda Sorelle Fontana, helmed by three intrepid sisters from rural Italy who dressed the world’s biggest celebrity names during Italy’s dolce vita heyday and created a global business in an era when few women even worked. In 1943, while WWII cont...
The 26 loveliest places to stay on the Italian Lakes
Como, Maggiore, Garda … the names alone are enough to lull you into soporific bliss. The lure of Italy’s northern lakes was forged in Roman times and reinforced over centuries. Celebrities, cardinals and queens have had homes here. Artists from Turner to (Mary) Shelley have taken inspiration from their depths, and today we still make for the lakes...