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Top things to do in Italy

Explore Pompeii and Vesuvius

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Bianca Benn

Travel specialist

020 7808 6785

020 7808 6785

Wander plentiful markets

Italy is a food lover’s heaven. Each region has its particular specialities and the local markets are the best place to discover the ingredients, as well as daily life and some enthusiastic gesticulating and shouting. Suggestions include the Rialto fish market in Venice, which displays a beautiful (although some might say ugly) array of fruits from the sea; Mercato Centrale in Bologna, beautifully located among a maze of medieval streets selling a mouth-watering range of pasta, meats, fruits and vegetables; and the Ballarò market in Palermo where the southern energy of the Italians is particularly palpable.

Explore Pompeii and Herculaneum

Pompeii and Herculaneum were buried under ash and mud during the eruption of Vesuvius in 79AD. Considered the most important archaeological sites in Europe due to their exceptional preservation, these towns offer a rare insight into daily Roman life. See houses, shops and public buildings with their contents still intact, as well as the chilling plaster casts of the victims of the eruption.

Relax on the Ligurian Riviera

Combine sightseeing and city tours in Tuscany with sea, sunshine and relaxation on the Ligurian Riviera. Retreat to the luxurious towns of Portofino or Rapallo on this dramatic coastline to enjoy incredible sea views, delicious Italian cuisine, and just watch life go by in the harbour. Make sure to take a trip along the coast to Le Cinque Terre National Park, an Unesco world heritage site where tiny villages of colourful houses and cobbled alleys cling uncertainly to the cliffs.

Attend the theatre

Some of the finest buildings in Italy are its theatres, and the greatest opera and ballet companies in the world perform in them. One of the most beautiful is La Scala in Milan. The performance schedule here runs from December to July: visit the Museo Teatrale alla Scala for a behind-the-scenes tour and an insight into its magnificent history since its first performance in 1778. Venice has two theatres: La Fenice, which has burned to the ground twice, and the Teatro Verde, an open-air theatre on the island of San Giorgio Maggiore with romantic views across to St Mark’s Square. For something a little different, book tickets for the Arena di Verona, a well-preserved Roman amphitheatre, still used for magnificent open-air opera performances.

Visit glorious Ravenna

Today, Ravenna is a small quiet town, but it was once the glittering capital of the western Roman empire. From the fifth and sixth centuries, beautiful churches were built with dazzling interiors, and it remains the best place to see early Christian and Byzantine church architecture. Impressive mosaics can be found in the Church of San Vitale and the Battistero degli Ariani. Ravenna can be easily visited on a day trip from Bologna.

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Self drive

Beyond Venice: Veneto & Friuli

8 days 7 nights

From £1,975

This twin-centre fly-drive explores the borghi, vineyards and cities of Veneto and Friuli Venezia Giulia

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Luxury
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Tuscany in Style

8 days 7 nights

From £4,430

Staying in some of Tuscany’s most luxurious hotels, this self-drive itinerary visits the Renaissance city of Florence before travelling into the heart of the picturesque Tuscan countryside

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General Interest

Naples, Sorrento and Capri

8 days 7 nights

From £1,865

This itinerary stays in the most popular locations of the Amalfi Coast - Naples, Sorrento and the island of Capri

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Self drive

Piedmont – at the foot of the Alps

8 days 7 nights

From £2,065

This relaxing, single-centre self-drive tour explores the idyllic vineyard landscapes of Piedmont in northern Italy

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Sardinian Sojourn

9 days 8 nights

From £2,085

Explore Sardinia on a gently paced self-drive tour from coast to coast

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Rail Journey

Lazio & Umbria: A Journey through the Heart of Italy

8 days 7 nights

From £2,295

Journey between the two historic regions of Lazio and Umbria, visiting eternal Rome, lakeside Castel Gandolfo, ancient Perugia, and hallowed Assisi – birthplace and resting place of Italy’s patron saint

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