The most beautiful villages in Italy are a series of municipalities under 15,000 inhabitants, all chosen for their splendor and distinctiveness. The goal of the initiative is to tell a different Italy, bringing hitherto considered marginal villages out of isolation.

In the last few days, 7 new municipalities have entered the rankings: there are now 361 of Italy's most beautiful villages, and there are many more on the waiting list waiting to be evaluated.

Maccagno Imperiale is a lovely village in the province of Varese (Lombardy), on the eastern shore of Lake Maggiore. Cobbled stairways, evocative legends and iconic sites, from Mandelli Castle to the Tower and the Imperial Mint: the small Lombard village seems to have stepped out of a history book.

Badalucco is a town of 1,074 inhabitants in the province of Imperia, Liguria. It is a charming medieval-style village that can be considered an open-air museum with its stone houses, narrow alleys, incredible religious architecture, caruggi and small squares.

Monteprandone is a municipality of 12,953 inhabitants located in the province of Ascoli Piceno, in the Marche region, linked to the legend le castello, whose origins are said to date back to the 9th century. Worth admiring are its 14th-15th century walls, the church of St. Nicholas of Bari and the Museum of Codices.

Giano is a small medieval village in the province of Perugia (Umbria). It is distinguished by its typical spiral urban structure, that of two circles of walls with gates and towers. It is an ancient Roman settlement and its name is probably linked to the pagan deity of the same name, Janus, god of beginnings, both material and immaterial.

The name of Palena, an Italian town of 1,224 inhabitants in the province of Chieti, (Abruzzo), is linked to saints, hermits, ari re but also to local artists and craftsmen who have gone down in history. Recently Palena has been nicknamed the country of orchids, as it has 64 different species and subspecies.

Irpinia is a place full of splendid but most often unknown villages. Frigento, in the province of Avellino, has just been added to the list. Of Roman origin, it boasts several flint or Frigento stone finds dating back to Paleolithic times. Its special feature is the breathtaking views from which 5 different regions and 11 provinces can be seen.

The last municipality added to the most beautiful villages in Italy is Sicilian: it is Agira, a town that stands on the site of the Greek Agyrion, home of the historian Diodorus Siculus, just under 40 km from Enna. It is one of the oldest in the region, according to legend founded before the Trojan War.