Beyond Italy’s famous art cities like Rome, Florence and Naples there’s a rich tapestry of smaller towns and villages to discover and enjoy at a slower and more traditional pace. The association I Borghi più belli d’Italia, “Italy’s Most Beautiful Towns”, was created specifically to protect and promote them.

Small towns with a population of up to 15,000 people can request this certification if they’re prepared to follow a long and scrupulous process that checks the artistic, historical and cultural heritage of the place as well as its local traditions, attention to sustainability and tourist infrastructure. In October 2020 four new towns entered this exclusive club, all of them from the southern and central areas of the country.