Local highlights
Hiking and skiing in the Alps and Dolomites; the simple pleasure of sightseeing between gelati; regional cuisine; Lake Como and the other stunning northern Lakes; Renaissance architecture and art in towns and cities throughout the north; walking the Cinque Terre’s perilously cliff-hugging footpath between its spectacular villages on the Ligurian coast; the cities and hilltop village of Tuscany and Umbria; the Amalfi Coast; the antiquities of Rome; the Vatican; the little visited region of Le Marche; the pageantry and drama of the Palio horse race around Siena’s ancient main square; truffle season in Piedmont; Pompeii; climbing Mt Vesuvius; seafood restaurants and sultry chaos of Naples; stepping back in time on Sicily; the beach holiday islands of Elba and Sardinia, as well as quieter Ponza and Pantelleria; the passeggiata – nothing is more infectiously Italian.
Getting out and about
Roads are good in most of the country, with excellent autostrada links between cities, although these often come with heavy traffic and tolls. Off the main routes, most roads are quiet and well maintained, making cycling a very pleasant – and popular – way of getting about. In terms of public transport, the easiest way to get around Italy is by train. Italian trains are among the least expensive in Europe, pretty comprehensive, and in the north of the country at least, pretty efficient. It’s also far preferable over long distances to the fragmented, localised, often grindingly slow bus service.
Travel arrangements
Flights time from London is between 2 and 3 hours, depending upon which area you fly into. Italy’s airports are served by several airlines from the UK, including British Airways and Alitalia.
In addition to holidays by air, you may also be interested in holidays by rail (including the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express and an overnight sleeper service from Paris to Italy), rail travel whilst you are in Italy or taking your own car all the way to
Italy (self-drive holidays).