After the Tuscan capital city of Florence, Siena is the most often talked-about – and typically in gushing tones. It’s easy to fall in love with this beautiful town, especially if you’re lucky enough to stay right in the historic center and can pretend the modern city outside the old walls doesn’t even exist. Siena makes a popular day trip from Florence, but if you can spend the night (or a couple nights) you’ll get to experience the best of
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The Umbrian hilltop town of Perugia has long been famous for its university (especially popular with foreigners learning Italian) and its chocolate festival (held each October). More recently it’s been in the news as the backdrop for a murder and subsequent trial, but as most people will tell you that snapshot of Perugia isn’t what the city is about. It’s a picturesque town full of romantic corners and historic buildings, and its student population means there’s a youthful vibe almost
The vast majority of people pass through Pisa for – at most – a couple of hours in order to take one of those must-have photos of themselves “propping up” the leaning tower of Pisa. But if you’re interested in seeing another side of this city, then you’ve got to stay longer – preferably overnight. The touristy part right around the tower isn’t representative of all Pisa has to offer, and if you stay the night you’re likely to be
Positano is one of the many jewel-like towns on the Amalfi Coast, climbing out of the water and up the side of the cliffs. It’s an incredibly popular vacation destination – mention it and you’re likely to inspire wistful sighs from people who have been before – but it’s also an expensive one. While it’s sort of a “playground of the rich and famous,” Positano isn’t off-limits to travelers on a budget. You just need to be more careful about
One of the most popular regions of Italy with visitors from all over the world is the Amalfi Coast – and with good reason. But it’s also an expensive area to visit. And even though Sorrento isn’t technically part of the Amalfi Coast, it’s still wildly popular and not cheap – so what’s the ideal solution? If you aren’t up for spending the night in much-cheaper Naples, then the next best option is to find a hostel or a budget
Verona makes a popular day trip from Venice, but given how expensive it is to stay the night in the canal city you might want to think about reversing that trend and staying in Verona instead. This city is perhaps most famous for being the setting of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet,” and these days for the summer opera performances in the Roman amphitheatre, but even without those claims to fame Verona is a beautiful city worth spending more than a
