Towns and Villages of Italy
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By Dion Protani
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Latest update: 25 September 2023
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The smaller towns and villages of Italy are where the country's traditions are kept alive while modernity and change run through cities. Italy's hill towns built in defensive positions and the villages with their close-knit communities are what makes Italy so special.
Many of the towns were of huge importance in previous eras of history or may still be flourishing in modern times such as the impressive mountain towns in the northern Alpine regions of Italy. The main towns or municipalities in Italy are called comuni (plural) and there are just under eight thousand of them. The very best of those are detailed here in a dozen different categories. |
Modica, Sicily
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The hill towns of Italy section details the most famous ten from a list of thousands of possible entries. As you drive around Italy you can't help but notice the extraordinary number of towns that occupy the brow of a hill in a clearly defensive position.
Most of these towns date back to the medieval period when Italy wasn't the united country we see today. It was divided up into dozens of republics, duchies and city states that any given time could be at war with its neighbour or part an alliance with them. Among the most famous of these towns are the likes of Volterra, San Gimignano and Montepulciano in the region of Tuscany. |
Volterra, Tuscany
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Within the historic towns of Italy section you'll find some of the best places the country has to offer which were once at the centre of an historic event or just generally steeped in history.
As you discover Italy in more-depth, you find a country that's no less than an open-air walk through time. The Ancient period of Roman rule has left its mark on the country's landscape like no other but it can be easy to mistake certain of its landmarks with others that belong to a much older period of history. Take the Ancient Greek Theatre of Taormina in Sicily for example which precedes the Colosseum in Rome by some 400 years. |
Ancient Greek Theatre, Taormina
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Italy is a country of diverse landscapes that very quickly takes you from turquoise beaches on the coast to rolling green fields further inland or some stunning mountain locations with glacial lakes along the central Apennines or particularly in the Alps to the north.
The best mountain towns of Italy can be enjoyed as much during the winter season when they're teeming with snowboarders and skiers enjoying some of the most famous resorts in Europe, while in the summer you find them just as popular as people take up pursuits such as hiking or cycling in the stunning mountain passes. Trento, Aosta and Bolzano are just three of the major Italian mountain towns but there are many more besides them. |
Bressanone, Trentino Alto-Adige
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The major ski resorts of Italy have been gathered together in this section and feature some of Europe's most glamorous locations.
It's hard to look past the Alps for the best of the resorts while the sub Alpine region of the Dolomites can arguably boast the most famous of all. Cortina d'Ampezzo (more commonly referred to simply as 'Cortina') needs little introduction to ski enthusiasts with its long-held position as one of the country's premium resorts. While Cortina has an international fame there are numerous other resorts that every Italian knows about with the likes of Livigno, Breuil-Cervina and Madonna di Campiglio among the best of those. |
Madonna di Campiglio, Trentino Alto Adige
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This list of colourful Italian towns celebrates a feature of the country that's not always given the prominence it deserves.
Apart from the natural wonders of Italy such as its dazzling coastline, breathtaking mountains and delightful interior, the sense of colour in some of its prettiest towns leaves a lasting impression. If we take the Liguria region of north west Italy as a prime example, almost every town is a kaleidoscope of colour with one house painted in bright pink while it's neighbour maybe a vivid shade of green or a sunny yellow for example. We see this all over the country with Bassano del Grappa in Veneto a prime example. |
Bassano del Grappa, Veneto
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Away from the larger towns there are some unique locations that we can see showcased in the Italy's most beautiful villages section.
Among these we find a variety of the weird and wonderful with villages that have no equal anywhere else in the world. In the Puglia region for example we find Alberobello with its trulli houses, built with conical roofs and decorated with symbols and motifs. The tiny village of Castelluccio in Umbria is another that's detailed here and not so much for the village itself but for the wider area that it represents; at certain times of the year the fields beyond the village display a dazzling array of colours that defy belief. |
Alberobello, Puglia
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Although the name of this section is almost identical to the English version above, I Borghi Più Belli d'Italia is something a bit different.
Translating as The Most Beautiful Villages in Italy, this isn't so much a personal selection but an actual organisation of that name. There are in excess of three hundred villages that make up the organisation which slowly gets added to over a long period of time. These tend to be the most historic villages in Italy that have somehow managed to maintain their original identity despite the modern world evolving around them. Within these villages such as Cività di Bagnoregio in Lazio, traditions remain almost unchanged. |
Cività di Bagnoregio, Lazio
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It's not particularly easy to distinguish between the previously-mentioned Borghi Più Belli d'Italia and this section of Orange Flag towns of Italy but there are some subtle differences to note.
Established by the Touring Club Italiano association, the Orange Flag (Bandiera Arancione in Italian) is a mark of quality assigned to certain towns and villages that attain a required standard of facilities, environmental consideration and attractions for tourists. These range from towns such as tiny Roccascalegna in Abruzzo with its oddly-shaped castle or towns such as little Arpino, once home to Cicero and tucked away in the hills of Lazio south of Rome. |
Roccascalegna, Abruzzo
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Italy's position at the top table of food and drink has rarely been in doubt and remains one of the country's greatest attractions.
The chance to try its wonderful cuisine which varies from region to region is often the major factor that draws visitors from across the globe. A major part of this type of tourism is owed to the excellent wines that the country has produced for thousands of years. Visiting the vineyard towns of Italy is a well-established type of vacation and here we can see some of the most popular towns which are dominated by their wines and viticulture. The little town of Bolgheri in Tuscany is one such example while other favourites include Soave in Veneto and Barolo in the region of Piedmont. |
Bolgheri, Tuscany
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Another joy of exploring Italy is the frequency with which you can be surprised at what you find. You may find yourself in a tiny village miles from anywhere, seemingly innocuous, before discovering that you've stumbled upon an amazing outdoor art gallery.
There are dozens of these mural towns of Italy that crop up in the most unlikely places. They're not always signposted or heavily publicised but we've got most of them covered in this section. They can be found all across the country from Sardinia to Veneto and all points in between. Two of my personal favourites are the nearby villages of Satriano di Lucania and Sant'Angelo Le Fratte in the region of Basilicata which almost seem to be vying for supremacy. |
Orgosolo, Sardinia
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During the early twentieth century when international tourism for everyday people was in its infancy, a series of spa resorts started to spring up across the country, taking advantage of Italy's precious hot springs with their healing and regenerative qualities.
The spa towns of Italy soon started to draw in visitors from far and wide who sought relaxation and the temptations of extended youth. It's important to note the period during which most of these resorts were established withthe prevailing architectural style of the era is one of their best features. Known in Italy as Liberty or Internationally as Art Deco, we can now see beautiful buildings such as the spa of Salsomaggiore Terme in the Emilia Romagna region. |
Salsomaggiore Terme, Emilia Romagna
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The title of this section might raise a few eyebrows so it's a good idea to put it into some context first.
This collection of ghost towns of Italy refers not to the fact that the towns may be haunted by otherworldly beings but because they have largely been abandoned due to economic factors, natural disasters or a decline in the surrounding infrastructure that has left them untenable. It's only a small collection but villages such as Craco in Basilicata have an eerie feel to them; empty streets, abandoned, sometimes crumbling houses where families once lived now devoid of life. |
Craco, Basilicata
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