Italian villages

A reopened flight route, a surname spotted on the village bell tower, a recipe scribbled in pencil: sometimes that is all it takes to trigger a return ticket.

Can a small cup of coffee change the fate of a borgo, a historic village? In Sardinia, three young women have turned an everyday gesture into a collective invitation to put down roots again in places many had stopped believing in.

Restoring abandoned properties has become one of the most pressing priorities for many Sicilian municipalities, which have long been dealing with depopulation and the decline of their historic building stock. The €1 houses in Sicily scheme has provided a response to these challenges, turning crumbling homes into genuine opportunities for Italian and international buyers.

There is only one place in the country that can claim the title of Italy’s only car-free town. No traffic lights, no engines idling, no delivery vans edging through narrow lanes.

Sicily is dotted with small historic centres that sit on cliffs, hide behind medieval walls or spill gently towards the sea.

Caorle immediately stands out for its historic center of pastel-colored houses overlooking the sea, a unique cylindrical bell tower in Italy, and a waterfront transformed into an open-air art gallery. For summer, this Veneto town also boasts two golden beaches, while its seafood cuisine is also worth considering.

The warm season is just around the corner, and the countdown to Italy’s most popular destinations has already begun. Yet there is another side to the country: small villages that still preserve their scents, views and atmosphere, capable of surprising even in high season, if you arrive just a little earlier than everyone else. Here are ten villages chosen for summer, set between the sea, lakes and mountains, linked by a common thread: authenticity, striking scenery and a welcoming spirit that encourages you to slow down.

From the Piedmont hills to the shores of Lake Garda, to the Emilian Apennines, the heritage of medieval villages is rich and surprising. Northern Italy's medieval villages are among the most fascinating destinations for those seeking a weekend getaway immersed in history, art, and evocative landscapes.

Italy isn't just about great art cities and famous villages: there's another geography made up of tiny towns where the houses can be counted on one hand and life flows very quietly. These are the smallest villages in Italy, places where it only takes a few minutes to walk through the entire town. In these tiny villages with very few inhabitants, every house has a story, every alley holds a memory, and every elder is a sort of living archive of traditions, dialects, and legends.

A train ticket, a window seat, and the moment the scenery shifts without warning: sea gives way to hills, then to a ridge of houses clinging to pale tuff rock.In Campania, many historic villages are easily reached by train, with short local bus connections where needed, making them ideal for a slow

Italy has a knack for hiding its best cards. Beyond Rome, Florence and Venice, there are incredible places in Italy that feel lifted straight out of a historical novel: alpine lakes that once turned red, Moorish revival castles, lava-carved gorges and abandoned hilltop towns.

High above the Valtiberina in eastern Tuscany sits a hilltop town where history isn’t boxed away in a museum but written into the streets and skyline.

Milan and the big lakes tend to steal the spotlight. But Lombardy has far more up its sleeve. Beyond the headline names, there’s a patchwork of villages with castles rising straight out of the water, footpaths clinging to cliffs between mountains and lakes, grand villas with vast gardens, and old-school spa towns where slowing down feels natural. Explore lesser-known yet unmissable villages in Lombardy that deserve a spot on your holiday wish list.

Condé Nast Traveler rounded up 20 of the most beautiful small towns in Italy, the sort of places that tempt you to swap big-ticket cities for something slower and more atmospheric. We've pulled out six of the best small towns in Italy that capture very different sides of the country: Riviera po

The "South Working Sicilia" plan represents an ambitious challenge to transform the region from a land of emigration to a land of attraction. With concrete financial support of €30,000 and clear rules, Sicily is ready to lead the smart working revolution in Italy. Let's discover the details of the IRFIS announcement, which allocates significant resources to encourage the return of talent and the attraction of smart workers to the island.

In Porto Venere, it only takes a few steps to go from the cool shade of narrow alleyways to the bright light along the cliffs.

€1 homes in Guardia Sanframondi, how the scheme works, who can apply, buyer requirements, renovation deadlines, and how to submit an application.

On 5 April, during the prime-time broadcast of Il Kilimangiaro, the winner of Borgo dei Borghi 2026 was officially announced.

Some twentieth‑century neighbourhoods in Italy have surprisingly rich backstories, and the Village of the Newlyweds, or Villaggio degli Sposi in Bergamo, is one of them. Born as a post‑war workers’ village, it has grown into a quieter residential area with decent transport links and everyday services.

Italy’s northern edge tapers off in a small Alpine settlement at the head of a narrow valley on the Austrian border.

Vernazza is one of the five villages that make up the Cinque Terre, perched along the Ligurian coast.

There’s been plenty of chatter over the past couple of years about Harry Styles quietly buying a house in a tiny Italian hill town with just 11 inhabitants.

Italy’s beauty isn’t limited to Rome, Florence or Venice. Across the country, small towns rise from volcanic cliffs, glow in pastel colours by the sea or sit quietly among vineyards and olive groves.

Italy’s cities get most of the attention, but it’s the smaller villages that really show how layered the country is.