Italy

…Numerous world heritage cultural sites, amazing culinary scene, wealth of wine regions, spectacular natural beauty…

Italy home to the largest number of UNESCO World Heritage cultural sites in the world.  This alone would be reason enough to visit, but it also has an amazing culinary scene, a plethora of wine regions, and a diversity of natural beauty (7600km of spectacular coastline, crystal clear lakes, lush green mountains).

We’ve been fortunate to have visited twice so far.  Our first visit explored both the big cities of Rome and Florence with their multitude of famous cultural sights and the countryside of Tuscany with its amazing wineries and quaint medieval hilltop villages.  Our second visit took us further north to the high fashion city of Milan and to several of the surrounding lake districts and wineries. We’ll definitely be back to check out another area of the country and some more wineries!

Here are highlights (DINK Trip Tips) from our trips so far...for more details or to help plan your own visit, contact us!

Rome

• Tons of UNESCO World Heritage cultural sites:
  • Historic Centre of Rome and the Holy See:  the Vatican and the Basicalla of St. Paul, Colosseum (also one of the New 7 Wonders of the World), the Forum Romanum, Pantheon, Trajan’s Column
  • Tivoli:  Villa d’Este and Villa Adriana
• Fabulous piazzas with their famous fountains and statues:
  • Piazza di Spagna (Spanish Steps)
  • Campo de’ Fiori
  • Piazza di Trevi and the Trevi Fountain
  • Piazza della Repubblica and the Fountain of the Naiads
  • Piazza Barbarini and the Fontana del Tritone
• Al fresco dining with delicious pizzas and pastas
• Gelato!

Florence

• Amazing renaissance architecture and art in the Historic Centre of Florence (a UNESCO World Heritage cultural site), including the Florence Cathedral (Duomo), Basilica of Santa Croce, the Uffizi, and the Pitti Palace
• Famous piazzas (Piazza della Signoria with a copy of Michelangelo's David statue and Piazzo del Michelangelo with fantastic views of Florence)
• Comprehensive gallery of statues in the Loggia dei Lanzi
• Fantastic views of Florence from Piazzo del Michelangelo

Tuscany

• Awesome wineries to visit (Banfi) and wines to taste (Brunello di Montalcino)
• Fantastic villas to rent with a group of friends and self-cater with farm fresh produce and regional wines
• Spectacular day trips:
  • Neighboring medieval hilltop villages with beautiful panoramas (e.g., Volterra, Montalcino, San Gimignano)
  • The city of Siena with its UNESCO World Heritage Site historic centre, Duomo, Piazza del Campo
  • Island of Elba

Milan

• Awe-inspiring painting “The Last Supper" by Leonardo da Vinci in the Church and Dominican Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie (UNESCO World Hertage cultural site)
• Impressively large and complex Duoma di Milano with its rooftop walkways and amazing views
• High fashion events and shoots during Vogue Fashion week
• Lively Navigli canal area with lots of bars/restaurants for "apertivo", pre-dinner drink (usually Prosecco) with snacks
• Formula1 racing at Monza (if you can time it right)

Mantova (small village ~1.5 hour drive east of Milan)

• Amazing B&B/villa with art frescoes and chandeliers (Palazzo Arrivabene)
• Spectacular frescoes at the Palazzo Te
• Beautiful countryside to ride rented bikes and picnic
• Delicious regional dishes (e.g., Tortelli de zucca - sweet potato filled raviolis)

Valpolicella (viticultural zone of the province of Verona, east of Lake Garda)

• Small, friendly wineries where the owners will talk to you about their wines and give you a private barrel tasting
• Delicious selection of wines - Valpolicella, Valpolicella Classico, Amarone della Valpolicella, Recioto della Valpolicella, Valpolicella Ripasso

Lake Iseo

• Delicious sparkling wine in the traditional menthod in the Franciacorta region
• Tiny lakeside village of Clusane with lakeside accommodation and a fabulous little restaurant Trattoria del Muliner with awesome regional dishes, such as gnocchi with truffles and a ravioli with lake fish
• Fantastic hiking on Monte Isola, an island in the middle of the lake, with a lovely hilltop church

Lake Como

• Quaint city Varenna, across from Bellagio, with a lovely guesthouse (Albergo Milano) with a converted attic providing great views over the lake
• Fantastic walks in the hills to waterfalls
• Boats available to rent and explore the beautiful lake and check out enormous celebrity villas

Lake Lugano

• Short but steep hike up Monte Bre with views over the lake and the town​​