Luxury Vacations to Italy

Must-do culinary experiences in Italy should include fresh pasta, hand-tossed pizza and gelato, but also the very unique and often seasonal specialties that define the country’s distinct cities and regions. In northern Italy, order unique pesto pasta in Liguria, Chianti and cantuccini almond cookies in Tuscany, risotto in Venice, and stuffed pastas, balsamic vinegar and culatello salami with sparkling Lambrusco in Emilia Romagna, arguably Italy’s richest food culture. Naples is known as the birthplace of pizza, while there’s also pizza bianco and Roman street food in Rome. Further south, try limoncello in Sorrento on the Amalfi Coast, focaccia Pugliese in Bari and fresh seafood in Sicily, also the birthplace of the cannoli.

For Italy’s best seaside enclaves and port towns, look to any number of destinations in the country’s 4,700 miles of sprawling coastline. On mainland Italy, the most gorgeous coastlines, beaches and towns fronting shimmering Mediterranean waters include the Amalfi Coast (and its towns of Positano, Ravello and Sorrento), Cinque Terre (with Manarola, Monterosso al Mare, Portofino and Vernazza) and Gargano, Brindisi and Leuca in Puglia. Equally stunning if not more exotic are the islands of Sardinia with its Costa Smeralda and Sicily, which has excellent beaches in Taormina.

For those who prefer a luxurious and hassle-free travel experience while in Italy, the very best way to get around is with a private driver guide who can make touring stops on request and travel according to your schedule. Italy’s high-speed trains offer an efficient way to travel between major cities like Milan, Rome and Naples and become more luxurious with high-touch Concierge Rail Service, which can assist with escorted transfers and seat reservations. Short flights are best for visits to the islands of Sicily and Sardinia. Exclusive Guardian Angels® can connect all the dots for a seamless travel experience.

In Florence, visit the Bargello Museum for Renaissance sculpture, the Accademia with Michelangelo's David and the Uffizi Gallery, which boasts a room full of Botticelli works. In Rome, don’t miss the Vatican Museums and Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel, Borghese Gallery for works by Caravaggio and Raphael, and the Capitoline Museums for Roman history. There’s also Milan’s Pinacoteca di Brera, Venice’s Doge’s Palace, and Pompeii’s recently reopened Antiquarium. Car afficionados will also want to visit Modena’s immaculate Enzo Ferrari Museum and the six-floor Alfa Romeo Museum in Milan.

The very best cities to visit for its most iconic works are Florence, Venice, Milan and Rome. Florence offers Michelangelo's David in the Accademia, the Gothic Duomo and the Uffizi Gallery, home to the world’s greatest collection of Italian Renaissance art. In Venice, find modern art at the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, the mosaics of St. Mark’s Basilica and the exquisite Doge’s Palace, while in Milan, there’s everything from da Vinci’s Last Supper to the city’s extravagant Duomo. In Rome, an incredible depth of history spans the ancient Colosseum, the Vatican Museums with Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel and the grand Montemartini Museum.

The best time to visit Italy is in the spring from mid-April to June and the fall from September to October. These “shoulder seasons” offer a great opportunity to explore Italy’s best cities and sites with fewer crowds while enjoying generally pleasant temperatures. The winter “low season” can also be a very charming time to visit Italy, with harvest time, twinkling holiday lights and very few crowds making for a most authentic local Italian experience. The popular "high summer season" does come with heat and crowds, but it’s also the most ideal time to experience Italy’s beaches and coastal regions and, of course, gelato at its best.