Italy

Experience the dolce vita in Italy

Your stay in Italy will take you to the heart of a country that has witnessed ancestral artistic wealth. From the ancient relics of Rome and Pompeii to the Uffizi Museum in Florence or the magnificence of Venetian Palaces, relive the history of an outstanding people.

Your stay in Italy, discovering exceptional cultural and historical heritage

Titian, Raphael, Michelangelo, Boticelli and others have in large part worked at building Italy’s pictorial and sculptural heritage. During your stay in Italy, make sure you visit Venice to admire the sumptuous Venetian palace facades and to then step inside those jewels of Medieval and Renaissance architecture, most of which have ceilings adorned with fine gold and sublime paintings. Don’t miss the Bridge of Sighs, which convicts used to cross on their way from their judges to their jailers. Once in Murano, drop in at the City of Glass. ...

In Rome, the majestic Coliseum, the Trajan Markets all around and the hot baths of Caracalla are waiting to treat you to a walk through ancient history. In Pompeii, Roman relic enthusiasts will delight in touring the city buried under ashes from Mount Vesuvius in 79 BC. Mosaics, paintings and life itself have remained frozen as if the disaster had struck yesterday.

There are churches throughout the country, bearing witness to Catholic fervour among the Italians. At Santa Maria di Trastevere in Rome, you can admire fabulous mosaics restored under Pope Innocent III. At Saint Jean de Latran, you can contemplate the nave, which stretches over 130 metres, making the church the second-largest in Rome in terms of surface area. Of course, you will head for Saint Peter’s, to marvel at the larger-than-life proportions of the basilica dome and main building. You can’t leave there without seeing Michelangelo’s Pieta, the major artistic work in Saint Peter’s. Just next doors, drop in to the Sistine Chapel to admire the Last Judgment painted on the ceiling, again by Michelangelo. Lastly, wander through the town, make a wish and throw a coin into the famous Trevi Fountain!  

In Florence, world capital of Art, you will admire “Il Duomo” and its cupola, as well as Santa Maria Novella and San Lorenzo. Amble a few minutes through the Uffizi Museum, formerly the de Medici offices, where you will admire works by Renaissance Masters. Do not miss Ponte Vecchio, an architectural masterpiece crossing the Arno River. Then find some peace and quiet in the Boboli Gardens, right next to Pitti Palace, where Florentine and Roman sculptures are displayed.

Your stay in Italy: festivals and carnivals

Italy is a country of parties and celebrations. You could become Harlequin or Colombine during the Venice Carnival. A traditional medieval festival, this carnival has come through the centuries and remains a major tourist attraction to this day. It is held every February. In Siena, it’s Il Palio which attracts large crowds; every year in July and August, the town residents challenge each other in a spectacular horserace on Piazza del Campo. In Milan, opera lovers will go to the Scala to hear the best works performed by the world’s greatest tenors. Many music festivals are held throughout Italy, in Ravello, Verona, Rome and Naples, to name but a few.

A gastronomic stay in Italy

And how could one talk about Italy without mentioning the country’s gastronomic and viticultural heritage? The vines growing on the slopes of Mount Vesuvius produce the tasty grapes whose juice is used to make Lacrima Christi. In Tuscany, wine enthusiasts will taste the jewel of local winemaking: Chianti. And don’t hesitate to try a little glass of Brunello di Montalcino, or Vino Nobile di Montelpuciano – you’ll be surprised...

In the trattorias and restaurants, surrender to the delights of a regional menu made up of a succession of pasta, minestrone, polenta and Carpaccio served with their famed grissini or risottos. By the Mediterranean, there are all kinds of seafood and fish to please gourmet palates.   

Tempted by a stay in Italy? Book your Logis hotel restaurant and discover the country’s thousand and one facets.