Southern Europe · Europe

Italy

Discover Italy - home to the most UNESCO World Heritage Sites on Earth, birthplace of the Renaissance, and a country where food is a way of life.

Where Is Italy?

Italy is a country in Southern Europe. Its capital is Rome.

Where Italy isSouthern Europe · Capital Rome

Plan a trip · 20 guides

Capital Rome
Population 58.9M
Area 301,336 km²

Italy is a country shaped like a boot kicking a football across the Mediterranean, and it lives up to that dramatic silhouette. From the snow-capped Alps in the north to the sun-baked beaches of Sicily, this is a place where 3,000 years of civilization have left behind more art, architecture, and culinary tradition than most continents combined. It holds the record for the most UNESCO World Heritage Sites of any country on Earth.

The Italian approach to life revolves around quality - slow food, strong coffee, long conversations, and doing a few things extraordinarily well rather than many things quickly. Rome, Florence, Venice, and Naples each feel like separate countries with their own dialects, cuisines, and fierce local pride. Italy was a collection of independent city-states until 1861, and that regional identity still runs deep in everything from how pasta is shaped to which football club you support.

At a glance

Language

Italian

Currency

Euro (EUR)

Calling Code

+39

Drives On

Right

Internet

.it

Timezone

CET (UTC+1)

Script

Latin

Government

Parliamentary Republic

Independence

1861

Travel guides

Plan a trip to Italy

All 20 Italy guides

The Roman Arena in Verona seen from Piazza Bra, its stone arches in full sun

Italy · 5 days

5 Days in Verona

A Roman arena, a medieval river city and one very famous balcony. Five days in Verona, planned properly, with Lake Garda on day four.

Updated Oct 2026Read the plan →

The Mole Antonelliana rising above the rooftops of Turin with the snowy Alps behind it

Italy · Piedmont · 5 days

5 Days in Turin

Royal palaces, a great Egyptian museum, bicerin and white truffles. Five days in Italy's first capital, planned properly.

Updated Oct 2026Read the plan →

The Colosseum glowing at dusk above the Roman Forum

Italy · 5 days

5 Days in Rome

Ancient ruins, popes, Baroque fountains and cacio e pepe. Five days in the Eternal City, with the tickets you really have to book.

Updated Oct 2026Read the plan →

The Pretoria fountain and the tiled dome of San Giuseppe dei Teatini under a blue sky

Italy · Sicily · 5 days

5 Days in Palermo

Gold mosaics, market noise, street food and the sea at the end of the bus line. Five days in Sicily's capital, planned properly.

Updated Oct 2026Read the plan →

Milan Cathedral's white marble facade and the Vittorio Emanuele II statue

Italy · 5 days

5 Days in Milan

Leonardo, a marble cathedral, opera and the best aperitivo in Italy. Five days in Milan, planned around the booking windows.

Updated Oct 2026Read the plan →

The port of Genoa seen from above, with moored boats, container cranes and the Lanterna lighthouse

Italy · Liguria · 5 days

5 Days in Genoa

Slate roofs, painted palaces and focaccia dipped in cappuccino. Five days in Italy's most underrated port city.

Updated Oct 2026Read the plan →

By population

Largest cities in Italy

Rome

The Eternal City and capital, built on seven hills with nearly 3,000 years of globally influential art and architecture

2,873,000

Milan

Fashion and financial capital of Italy, home to La Scala opera house and Leonardo's Last Supper

1,396,000

Naples

Birthplace of pizza, gateway to Pompeii and the Amalfi Coast, raw and vibrant

914,000

Turin

Industrial powerhouse and home of Fiat, with elegant baroque architecture and the Shroud of Turin

848,000

Palermo

Sicilian capital with Arab-Norman architecture, chaotic street markets, and legendary street food

630,000

Genoa

Major port city and birthplace of Christopher Columbus, known for pesto and the largest aquarium in Italy

560,000

People

Famous people from Italy

Leonardo da Vinci
Art
Renaissance polymath who painted the Mona Lisa and The Last Supper and designed flying machines centuries before their time
Galileo Galilei
Science
Father of modern observational astronomy and physics, championed the heliocentric model of the solar system
Dante Alighieri
Literature
Author of the Divine Comedy, widely considered the father of the Italian language
Michelangelo Buonarroti
Art
Sculptor of David, painter of the Sistine Chapel ceiling, architect of St. Peter's Basilica dome
Giuseppe Verdi
Music
One of the greatest opera composers in history, creator of Aida, La Traviata, and Rigoletto
Sophia Loren
Film
First actress to win an Academy Award for a non-English-language performance
Enrico Fermi
Science
Built the first nuclear reactor, won the Nobel Prize in Physics (1938) for work on induced radioactivity
Paolo Maldini
Sport
Widely considered the greatest defender in football history, 25 years at AC Milan and 126 caps for Italy

Food

Traditional cuisine of Italy

Pizza Margherita: Born in Naples in 1889, topped with tomato, mozzarella, and basil to represent the Italian flag
Pasta Carbonara: Roman classic made with eggs, pecorino romano, guanciale, and black pepper - never cream
Risotto: Creamy rice dish from northern Italy, slow-cooked with broth and finished with butter and parmigiano
Gelato: Italian ice cream with less air and fat than American varieties, resulting in a denser and more intense flavor
Tiramisu: Coffee-soaked ladyfinger dessert layered with mascarpone cream, the name literally means pick me up
Prosciutto di Parma: Dry-cured ham aged for at least 12 months, sliced paper-thin and eaten uncooked
Osso Buco: Milanese specialty of braised veal shanks with vegetables, white wine, and gremolata
Bruschetta: Grilled bread rubbed with garlic and topped with fresh tomatoes, basil, and olive oil

Nature

Nature and landmarks in Italy

Amalfi CoastCoast: Dramatic stretch of coastline along the Sorrentine Peninsula with colorful cliffside villages and terraced lemon groves
DolomitesMountain: Dramatic limestone peaks in the northeastern Alps, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and world-class ski destination
Mount EtnaMountain: Europe's tallest and most active volcano at 3,357 meters, dominating the eastern Sicilian skyline
Lake ComoLake: Glacial lake in Lombardy surrounded by grand villas and mountains, a retreat for the wealthy since Roman times
Cinque TerreCoast: Five colorful fishing villages perched on the rugged Ligurian coastline, connected by cliffside hiking trails
SardiniaIsland: Second largest Mediterranean island with some of Europe's most pristine beaches and ancient nuraghe stone towers
Gran Paradiso National ParkNational Park: Italy's oldest national park in the Aosta Valley, established in 1922 to protect the Alpine ibex
Po RiverRiver: Italy's longest river at 652 km, flowing through the fertile Po Valley from the western Alps to the Adriatic Sea

Sport

Sports in Italy

Football: Four-time FIFA World Cup winners (1934, 1938, 1982, 2006), Serie A is among the world's top leagues
Cycling: The Giro d'Italia is one of cycling's three Grand Tours, Italian riders have won it 69 times
Motor Racing: Home of Ferrari and the legendary Monza circuit, the most successful team in Formula 1 history
Fencing: More Olympic fencing medals than any other country in history, a dominant force since the modern Games began
Water Polo: Consistently among the top nations with multiple Olympic gold medals and World Championship titles

Facts

Did you know?

Italy has more UNESCO World Heritage Sites than any other country in the world, with 61 and counting
The University of Bologna, founded in 1088, is the oldest continuously operating university in the world
Italians consume about 23 kg of pasta per person per year, roughly three times the European average
There are more than 350 different shapes of pasta, each designed to hold a specific type of sauce
Venice is built on 118 small islands connected by over 400 bridges, with no roads at all - only canals and footpaths
Italy did not become a unified country until 1861 - before that it was a patchwork of independent states and kingdoms
The Colosseum in Rome could hold up to 80,000 spectators and had a retractable awning system to shade them from the sun
Italy produces over 300,000 tonnes of olive oil per year, second only to Spain, and has been growing olives since before the Roman Empire