Tourist flow from Russia to Italy in 2016 increased by 5.3%, and on average there are more than 48 million people a year. Of the beach resorts, Amalfi, San Remo and the island of Capri are of the greatest interest for tourists, and of the ski resorts - Cervinia, Cortina d'Ampezzo and others. Those who do not know what to see in Italy should pay attention to the sights of Milan, Naples, Rome, Florence and, of course, Venice.
Holiday season in Italy
It is recommended to visit Italy in the last spring month, at the beginning of summer and September-October. Swimming in Capri, Sardinia and Sicily (the coast of the Tyrrhenian Sea) will be possible from May to October, and skiing in Cervinia - from the 1st winter month to the end of spring.
Do not miss the opportunity to visit the Venice Carnival (January-February), Milan Fashion Week (last month of winter), Pink Night in Rimini (July), Saint Rose Festival in Viterbo (September), Naples Pizza Festival (first month of autumn)).
Top 15 places of interest in Italy
Coliseum
Coliseum
Colosseum (built of the first century) - a landmark of Rome. This amphitheater could accommodate more than 50,000 spectators (the length of the arena is 85 m; the height of the walls is 48-50 m). The Colosseum was equipped with 80 entrances, and 4 of them were used by the highest nobility. Ordinary spectators entered the amphitheater through the arches of the lower row, marked with the numbers I-LXXVI.
Despite the far from ideal preservation of the Colosseum, there are always a lot of people near it. You can view it from 9 am to 4:30 pm-19: 15 pm (it all depends on the time of year). It is more economical to buy a single ticket (valid for 2 days) to explore the Colosseum, the Roman Forum and the Palatine Hill in the Forum itself, where there are much fewer queues.
Those who want to learn a lot about the Colosseum can join the guided tour that takes place here every half hour (cost - 6 euros).
Leaning tower of pisa
The 55-meter tower is located in the city of Pisa, and to get up, you need to leave 294 steps behind. The tower is not only one of the components of the ensemble of the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Ascension, but also its main decoration. Those who go inside will see covered galleries - they are connected through arches decorated with different ornaments. Noteworthy are the bas-reliefs (they depict the inhabitants of the underwater kingdom) on the walls of the huge hall, the belfry (the oldest of its bells is over 400 years old) and twisted staircases (there are 3 of them).
Important: groups of 30-40 people are allowed into the tower; You cannot take even the smallest handbags with you (there is a luggage room for things) - only a photo or video camera; ticket price - 18 euros.
Trevi Fountain
The Trevi Fountain in Rome (Baroque style) reaches 22 m in height and 19 m in width. The center of the fountain composition is occupied by Neptune in a chariot in the form of a shell, which he harnessed with seahorses.
To visit the capital of Italy again, you need to throw a coin at Trevi with your back to the fountain. To the right of it are the “lovers' sticks”: if the lovers drink water from them, they will never part.
You should pay attention to the Trevi Fountain when it gets dark and bright lights will illuminate it.
Mount Etna
Mount Etna
The active 3300-meter Etna stratovolcano is located in Sicily. It has 200-400 volcanic side craters, each of which in turn spews lava.
There are three routes to climb the volcano:
- Eastern: the route goes through the village of Zafferana Etnea to Rifujo Sapienza (1900 m).
- North: the route goes through Linguaglossa and Piedimonte Etneo to the base of Piano Provenzana.
- South: the route runs through the Rifujo Spienza base. You can get there from Catania once a day by suburban bus. And from there to the base of Le Montagnola (2500 m), tourists will be taken by a funicular.
Souvenir shops await travelers on Etna, where you should definitely get products made of lava stone and the eponymous 70-degree liqueur.
Lake Como
The depth of Lake Como is more than 400 m. Como is 40 km away from Milan. In Como, you can take a cruise from large cities and small villages (one way fare is 5-13 euros). On the shores of Como, you can see cypress, laurel, oleander, fig, pomegranate, and in the lake itself you can catch trout, whitefish, carp.
Subject to inspection are Villa Carlotta in Tremezzo (famous for its sculpture museum and a park with rare plants), Balbianello on Cape Lavedo (there is a museum of the Italian Fund protecting the environment, and the gardens adjacent to the villa), Melzi and Serbelloni (now there is a hotel on the edge of the cape) in Bellagio. On the island of Comacina, you will be able to see the Basilica of St. Eufemia and the fort of 1169, in Como - the Church of Sant Abbondio, the Broletto Palace, the Basilica of San Fidele (Lombard style).
St. Mark's Cathedral
Cathedral of Saint Mark in Venice
St. Mark's Cathedral (its height is 43 m, and its area is 4000 sq. M) is a landmark of Venice. It is decorated with Byzantine mosaics, valuable art objects, a golden altar with 80 icons, columns, statues of saints … The cathedral keeps the relics of the Apostle Mark.
It is not possible to shoot video and photograph in the cathedral, where the entrance is open to everyone free of charge. The cathedral has a museum (a ticket costs 5 euros) and a treasury (entrance fee is 3 euros), and climbing the bell tower will cost 8 euros.
Villa Hadrian
Hadrian's villa is located in Tivoli, where the emperor Hadrian ruled. The complex consisted of 13 buildings, the names of which he gave in honor of the cities he visited. Objects in the form of Poikile Square (there is a lake in its center) and the remains of its walls are intended for inspection; premises for slaves (Cento Camelle); a building with 3 deep semicircular niches; small terms for women; large terms for men; lobby; the Canopa Museum (it is worth paying attention to male marble busts, 4 caryatids, statues of Venus and Mars, copies of Venus of Cnidus); Pretoria (was a rather large complex, consisting of several floors); The Hall of Dorian Pilasters (where the court administration was located); Tempe Pavilion (represented by a panoramic terrace).
The entrance ticket costs 8 euros.
Castle of Castel del Monte
Castel del Monte castle
Castel del Monte Castle is 16 km away from Andria. There are 8 octagonal towers in the corners of the castle, and the lower, as well as the upper floors of the castle are occupied by 8 halls. The castle is also famous for its octagonal pool. From the rooftop of Castel del Monte, you can enjoy panoramic views. There are many fireplaces in the castle, and it is believed that they were intended for carrying out alchemical experiments.
From Andria to Castel del Monte (a tour costs 5 euros, and an audio guide - 3, 50 euros) bus number 6 rides.
Cinque Terre
Cinque Terre
The Cinque Terre is a national park famous for the Road of Love (which is the footpath that connects Riomaggiore and Manarola), stone and pebble beaches (the sandy beach is in Monterosso), terraces (where olives and grapes are grown, liqueurs and wine are produced) and 5 settlements in the Gulf of Genoa (province of La Spezia) with preserved medieval buildings from pirates.
A visit to the Cinque Terre Park is free, except for walking along the trail that runs along the seaside.
Pompeii
Pompeii is an ancient Roman city buried under volcanic ash near Naples. The territory of the complex is interesting thanks to the Forum; the basilica (at first it was a covered market), the walls of which are decorated with graffiti and half-columns in 2 tiers; the buildings of the Municipality (each of them had a hall where statues, an apse and niches were located); the temple of Vespasian (you can enter there by any of the 2 stairs; at the entrance to the temple there was an altar, on the reliefs of which the ceremony of sacrificing a bull was depicted); the temple of Jupiter (the cellars were the location of the treasury); the temple of Apollo (the temple is surrounded by 28 Doric columns; the statue of Apollo and the bust of Diana have survived to us, but in Pompeii everyone will see copies of them, while the originals are kept in the Museum of Naples).
Inspection of Pompeii will cost 12 euros (visiting hours: 08:30 - 17: 30-19: 30).
Milan cathedral
The Duomo is a cathedral in Milan (the decoration of its main spire is the figure of the Madonna), which can seat about 40,000 visitors. Tourists should pay attention to the statue of the patroness of the city made of gold, the Mausoleum of Gian Giacomo Medici, the Egyptian bath of the 4th century, and numerous paintings. In November and February, in the cathedral, you can look at paintings, the subjects of which are related to the life of St. Carlo Borromeo.
Everyone will be offered to climb to the roof of Milan Cathedral - from there you can clearly see Milan from above. The entrance to Milan Cathedral costs 3 euros and is open from 09:00 to 18:30.
Frasassi Caves
Frasassi Caves
The length of the Frasassi karst caves is 30 km. In the caves there are stalactite, stalagmitic and stalagnate formations (some have names - "Mother of God", "Giant" and others). The cave of Grottafucile is of interest: the hermit Sylvester Guzzolini lived in it, and until the 19th century there was a monastery of the Silvestrins. Today the caves ("Hall of the Bear", "Grand Canyon", "Endless Hall" and others) are part of the tourist route, the length of which is 1.5 km.
In the summer months, the caves (ticket costs 15, 5 euros) are available for inspection from 10 am to 5 pm, and in the winter from 11:30 to 15:30.
Alberobello
Alberobello
The commune of Alberobello is located in the province of Bari, and the unique houses of the trulla brought fame to it (it is enough to pull one stone out of the cone-shaped roof, and the house will fall apart; this construction of houses is explained by the fact that it was impossible to officially build here, with the exception of quickly disassembled buildings). There are about 1500 of them here, many of which date back to the 14th century. The Trulla Church of St. Anthony deserves attention - it adorns the top of the Rione Monti.
In the shops it is worth getting wine, olive oil, cheeses, handicrafts, and in local restaurants - enjoy Italian dishes (black truffles are pampered in the Il Poeta Contadino restaurant, and the dishes of the Puglia region - in the Amatulli trattoria).
Grand canal
The Grand Canal (3800 m long and 30-70 m wide) encircles the whole of Venice: it starts in the lagoon near the train station and ends next to the customs building. The bank of the canal has "sheltered" about 100 palaces, among which Palazzo Barbarigo, Ca 'Foscari Palace and others stand out. There are no embankments near the canal, and the facades of houses built on piles act as banks.
Moving around the canal is possible by vaporetto, traghetto and gondola. You can start your boat trip from Piazzale Roma or Santa Lucia train station (ending at Piazza San Marco). In both cases, you can use the vaporetto routes Line 1 (journey takes 40 minutes) and Line 2 (journey takes 25 minutes).
Roman forum
The Roman Forum was once a marketplace and today it is a square in the center of the ancient part of the Italian capital. The ruins in the form of the temples of the Dioscuri (it will be possible to see three 15-meter Corinthian columns), Vesta (in the temple in the form of a tholos, the Sacred Fire was kept burning), Saturn (the statue of the god Saturn was kept here) and others, the arches of Titus (interest is caused by a bas-relief depicting processions with trophies that were captured in Jerusalem) and Tiberius (it was a one-span arch supported by Corinthian columns), Basilica Julia (was the venue for trials and meetings of the Senate, as well as the location of the shops of money changers), Emilia (in the tuff and travertine were used in a triangular shape, and the floor of the basilica was lined with marble), Maxentius and Constantine (its walls were decorated with marble slabs, and the floor was colored marble), the houses of the Vestals (the atrium remained from it, once framed by 2-storey porticoes with statues stored there high priestesses).
At the entrance (a ticket will cost 12 euros), you can take an audio guide (4 euros) or use the services of a guide (50 euros / hour).
