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In a rundown neighbourhood of Sicily's capital Palermo, a whitewashed old farmhouse that accommodates pilgrims now offers two rooms to tourists for bed and breakfast after a renovation. As foreign visitors flock to Sicily, last year Brother Mauro Billetta, head of the parish in the Danisinni neighbourhood, decided that revenue from B&B guests could...

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People go to Florence to walk across the iconic Ponte Vecchio over the Arno River. They point themselves to this central Italian city in order to gawk at Brunellescchi’s enormous dome crowned upon the Cathedral of Santa Maria de Fiore. They march to Florence so they can stroll the cheese-and-prosciutto-flanked aisles of the Mercato Centrale.  But m...

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he Italian island of San Pietro hides one of Sardinia’s best-kept secrets just a 40-minute ferry ride from the mainland. With crystal-clear waters rivaling the Caribbean and a cultural fusion unlike anywhere else in Italy, this hidden Mediterranean paradise offers a refreshing escape from Sardinia’s more trafficked destinations. A cultural melting...

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As summer approaches, Riviera Travel has released a round-up of hidden gem destinations across Europe that promise history, charm, and breathtaking scenery without the crowds of tourists. From the unique capital cities of the Baltics, to the ancient ruins of Sicily and the dramatic mountains found in the north, Italy is no stranger when it comes to...

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On just about any list of must-see places in Italy, Trieste isn’t usually in the top 10. But one visit to this elegant city, with its broad, palace-lined piazzas, impressive literary chops, and fascinating history, and you’ll soon see what the rest of the world is missing out on. Facing the northernmost Adriatic Sea, Trieste is in the Friuli-Venezi...

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What are the reasons behind the enormous tourism boom in Puglia?  Why is it today the preferred region among Italian vacation destinations? In the search for answers to these questions, it quickly emerged that in this area of Italy, you don’t just experience a simple vacation but savor every moment. You do so when you walk through its whitewashed v...

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Everyone knows Liguria for its sea—the ribbons of turquoise, the piazza of Portofino, the pics from Cinque Terre. But woefully underappreciated is the hinterland: venture inland from the Riviera and you enter a different world—one of terraced olive groves, misty chestnut woods, and ancient stone villages clinging to hillsides. Italo Calvino, who sp...

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The sight of a velvet rope and a closed door beckons us. Nearly everyone wants to go beyond the velvet rope, often a message sent to our brains that screams VIPs ONLY, whether it’s a nightclub or an impossible-to-get-into hot restaurant of the moment.  The same is true for Rome’s ancient sites, both then and now. Two millennia ago, there were place...

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Every year, around this time, Italy enters its most colorful season: market stalls are filled with peonies and poppies, balconies are thick with geraniums, and entire hillsides bloom in coordinated palettes of wildflowers.  The country’s connection with flowers, however, goes well beyond gardens, decoration and natural beauty and, to understand it,...

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The Italian lakes have become a byword for a certain type of glamour. Como, Maggiore, even the supposed ‘secret’ lake Iseo roll off the tongues of the well-travelled, conjuring images of grand Belle Epoque hotels, glitzy wedding parties and the faint chance of a Clooney sighting. But try Lake Orta on even the most in-the-know British traveller and...

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