Italy Travel Guide

Planning a trip to Italy and looking for practical, experience-based Italy travel guides and ready-to-use itineraries?

This page features all our Italy articles in one place, including destination guides and sample itineraries for the most popular cities, coastal areas, and the Dolomites. You’ll also find ticket and tour advice, plus practical tips to help you plan your trip and avoid common mistakes.

All guides on this page are based on real experience and multiple trips to Italy, across different regions and seasons.

Start here if this is your first trip to Italy:

Italy Travel Guides – OVERVIEW:

Manarola in Cinque Terre at sunset
Lake Garda in Italy
Trevi Fountain in Rome Italy

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Italy Travel Inspiration & General Guides

Itineraries

 

Tickets, Tours & Day Trips

Important to know: Many tourist attractions in Italy are so popular that it’s absolutely essential to book skip-the-line tickets in advance, or you risk not being able to visit at all. The most visited landmarks, like the Colosseum or the Vatican Museums, always sell out, but it’s also the case for many smaller museums and other tourist attractions.

We personally use and recommend the GetYourGuide website for all tickets, guided tours, and day trips for your trip to Europe (and beyond). It’s our favorite one-stop shop for all tickets and activities worldwide. They have the most complete inventory, amazing customer service, and the most flexible cancellation policy on the market.

In addition, Tiqets is a great website for some of the best digital city cards and bundle deals. For example, their Rome Tourist Card makes it easy to secure tickets and book time slots for all the top sights in Rome in one spot. You can also click on the pictures below to check their city cards for the most popular destinations in Italy.

INSIDER TIP: If you are looking for unique local experiences or exclusive-access tours that bring you to the most special places before or after they are open to the general public, check out the Take Walks website. They have lots of incredible tours all over Europe and Italy in particular. We have done dozens of tours with them over the years and they never disappoint.

READ ALSO: Europe Attractions You Must Book in Advance

Florence Digital Pass
Rome Tourist Digital Pass
Venice digital pass

Getting Around

If you’re mainly visiting Italian cities, it’s usually best not to rent a car. Trains connect most major destinations and are fast and easy to use. Guided day tours are also a good option for places that are harder to reach by public transport. See our Italy itinerary for examples of trips that work well without a car.

If your trip includes smaller towns or rural areas, having a car can be much more convenient. Many travelers combine both — using trains for most of the route and renting a car only for a few days where it makes sense.

Driving in Italy is similar to other European countries, with toll roads, busy city traffic, and limited parking in many towns. Outside the main cities, however, a car makes it much easier to explore smaller regions and less-visited places.

If you need a car for part of your trip, Booking.com is a practical option for comparing rental companies and prices. Their full insurance coverage is strongly recommended and is usually much cheaper than adding insurance at the rental counter.

Where to Stay

The best places to stay in Italy will depend highly on your destination and how you travel around. In general, in the main cities, it’s best to stay in the heart of the historic center. Most cities are very walkable so staying centrally often means that you don’t need to worry about transportation.

If you are making a road trip and have a car, avoid having to drive/ park in the biggest cities, and be sure to book accommodations with parking.

Below, you can find our lodging guides for some popular destinations:

Good to know: If you’re visiting Italy in high season (from Easter to early November), book your accommodation well in advance. The best value-for-money places usually sell out first, and major cities remain busy even in the low season. The best website for accommodation in Italy is Booking.com. It offers a wide selection of hotels, B&Bs, and private rentals, with clear booking conditions and flexible cancellation policies.

TIP: You can also use the map below to find the best accommodations for your trip to Italy. Simply insert your destination and travel dates and you will see the best deals from various hotel booking websites in one place (it might take a while to load all the options though).

 

Best Time to Visit

Italy can be visited year-round, but the most popular period is from April to October, when the weather is generally best and all major attractions are open. Summer (June to August) can be very hot, especially in large cities. If you’re traveling in this period, consider smaller towns, the coast, or mountain areas instead.

Spring and autumn are usually the best seasons for sightseeing, with more comfortable temperatures and fewer crowds. This is one of the best times to travel in Europe. Traveling in the winter is also a good option if you prefer quieter cities and a slower pace.

For a more detailed look at specific months, see what it’s like to visit Italy in November, Rome in November, and Venice in December.

Destination Guides Per Region

Below, you can find an overview of all our Italy articles per region, sorted alphabetically.

Campania (Naples/ Amalfi Coast/ Capri)

Naples:

Amalfi Coast:

Capri Island:

Emilia Romagna

Lazio (Rome)

Rome – best places & experiences:

Rome itineraries:

Practical information for visiting Rome:

Liguria (Italian Riviera)

Cinque Terre:

Italian Riviera:

Lombardy (Milan and the Lakes)

Milan:

Lake Como:

Lake Garda:

Trentino-South Tyrol (Italian Mountains)

Dolomites:

Hiking in the Dolomites:

Trentino:

Tuscany (Florence & beyond)

Florence:

Siena:

More of Tuscany:

Veneto (Venice, Verona & beyond)

Venice:

Verona:

San Marino

While the Republic of San Marino is an independent country, this tiny gem is completely surrounded by Italy. I, therefore, included all our guides to San Marino in this Italian travel guide.

READ ALSO: How to Plan a Trip to Europe

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Plan a trip to Italy with our destination guides, trip itineraries, and experience-based travel tips
Italy travel guide