Ancient Rome
Home to the emperor Augustus' wife Livia, the Casa was built around an atrium leading onto what were once reception rooms, decorated with frescoes of…
Must-see attractions in Italy
Siena
The baptistry is lined with 15th-century frescoes and centres around a hexagonal marble font by Jacopo della Quercia, decorated with bronze panels…
Western Sicily
Virtually the symbol of Selinunte, Temple C is the oldest temple on the site, built in the middle of the 6th century BC. The stunning metopes found by…
Sacrario militare di Redipuglia
Friuli Venezia Giulia
The breathtaking war memorial of Redipuglia is the largest commemorative shrine in Italy and one of the largest in the world. Designed by Giovanni Greppi…
Northwestern Tuscany
Next to Chiesa di Sant'Agostino, a steep path known as Via della Rocca leads up to the remnants of Pietrasanta's ancient fortifications. The crenellated…
Studio Museo Achille Castiglioni
Milan
Architect, designer and teacher Achille Castiglioni was one of Italy’s most influential 20th-century thinkers. This is the studio where he worked until…
Turin
The Arte Povera powerhouse, Mario Merz, was born in Milan but spent most of his creative life in Turin. This foundation space, an evocative reworking of…
Pavia
Dominating the town centre is Pavia's red-brick Duomo, topped by the third largest dome in Italy. Leonardo da Vinci and Donato Bramante contributed to the…
Southwestern Sardinia
From Piazza del Municipio, Via Pullo leads to the dainty rose-red trachyte of the Chiesa di San Francesco. Built over a 200-year period between the 14th…
Museo della Mandorla Siciliana
Mediterranean Coast
Located in a restored Favara mansion, this interesting museum showcases the importance of the humble almond to Sicily. Exhibits are well labelled in both…
Langhe, Roero & Monferrato
A capricious jaunt through the history of viticulture via light, film and installations, care of the imagination of Swiss designer François Confino (who…
Lipari
After the pirate Barbarossa rampaged through in 1544, murdering most of Lipari's men and enslaving the women, the island's Spanish overlords fortified…
Naples
Ferdinando Sanfelice’s debut staircase is this double-ramped diva inside the Palazzo Sanfelice. Upon its completion in 1726 it became the talk of the town…
Assisi
Hidden for almost 600 years, St Francis' tomb was discovered beneath the Basilica di San Francesco in 1818 following a 52-day dig, and painstakingly…
Pavia
Pavia's most important church isn't the Duomo, but the beautiful Romanesque San Michele, where medieval Lombard kings came to receive their iron crown and…
Spoleto
Spoleto's Romanesque basilica, listed as a Unesco World Heritage Site as part of the 'Longobards in Italy, Places of the Power (568-774 AD)' group, dates…
Northeastern Sardinia
The most exciting part of a visit to Isola Santa Maria is the journey across the crystal-clear aquamarine waters that lap its southern shores – known as…
Ferrara
Ferrara's art gallery, housed on the 1st floor of the late-15th-century Palazzo dei Diamanti, is the perfect spot to contemplate the genius of the 16th-…
Chiesa dei Santi Nicolò e Cataldo
Lecce
The beautiful church of Saints Nicolò and Cataldo, located in the monumental cemetery outside the city walls, was built by the Normans in 1180. It got…
Tridente, Trevi & the Quirinale
High-rolling shoppers and window-dreamers take note: this is Rome’s smartest shopping strip. At the eastern end, near Piazza di Spagna, Caffè Greco was a…
Sorrento Peninsula
A spectacular beach at the tip of the Punta Penna peninsula south of Sorrento, Ieranto is reached via a walking path that starts in the village of Nerano…
Naples
Recalling Milan's Galleria Vittorio Emanuele, Naples' most famous 19th-century arcade is a breathtaking pairing of richly adorned neo-Renaissance fronts…
Chiesa di Santa Maria Maggiore
Umbria
The impressive 12th-century Chiesa di Santa Maria Maggiore houses Spello's main draw – a wonderful cycle of frescoes by the Perugia-born artist…
Ancient Rome
The Casa di Augusto, Augustus’ private residence, boasts superb ceiling and wall frescoes. These are further enhanced by audio narrations and video…
San Remo
San Remo's little-visited old town is a labyrinth of quiet, twisting lanes set on a hilltop just above the bustling centre. Get there by taking Via Santo…
Riomaggiore
This small pebbly beach is immediately southeast of Riomaggiore marina. Take the short trail that leads just past the harbour to get here. The shore is…
Salina
Tumbling down the hillside to a small shingle beach, this settlement on Salina's north coast is the island's largest, though you'd never guess it from the…
Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata
Noto
The fantastical facade of this 18th-century palace wows with its wrought-iron balconies, supported by a swirling pantomime of grotesque figures. Inside,…
Rimini
This Roman triumphal arch, the oldest of its kind in northern Italy, was commissioned by Emperor Augustus in 27 BC and stands an impressive 17m high on…
Pisa
Home to some fascinating frescoes, this museum safeguards several sinopie (preliminary sketches), drawn by the artists in red earth pigment on the walls…
Museo Archeologico Nazionale Tarquiniense
Lazio
This charming museum, beautifully housed in the 15th-century Palazzo Vitelleschi, is a treasure trove of locally found Etruscan artefacts. Highlights…
Museo della Scultura Contemporanea
Matera
The setting of this fabulous museum of contemporary sculpture – deeply recessed caves and the frescoed rooms of the 16th-century Palazzo Pomarici – is as…
Salina
Salina's main port, Santa Marina is a typical island settlement with steeply stacked whitewashed houses rising up the hillside. The principal street is…
Tropea
There are spectacular views from this rocky cape, around 7km south of Tropea, with its beaches, ravines and limestone sea cliffs. Birdwatchers' spirits…
Cilento Coast
Santa Maria’s golden sandy beach stretches for around 4km, which equals plenty of towel space on the sand, even in midsummer.
Trastevere & Gianicolo
Many of the vaunted viewpoints along Gianicolo (aka Janiculum) are obscured by trees, but this lesser known overlook at the north end has sweeping views…
Agrigento
The 5th-century-BC Temple of Hera is also known as the Tempio di Giunone (Temple of Juno). Though partly destroyed by an earthquake in the Middle Ages,…
Ancient Rome
One of the few obviously recognisable buildings on the Palatino, the sunken stadio (stadium) was probably used by the emperors for private games and…
Matera
For a great photograph of the sassi, take the Taranto–Laterza road (SS7) and follow signs for the chiese rupestri. This road takes you to the Belvedere,…
Capri
Anacapri’s chief building is famous for its handsome floor, a veritable work of art depicting the Adam and Eve story in multicoloured tiles. So masterful…
