The Italian welcome is as warm and traditional as a glass of fine wine. Italy has given the world pasta and pizza, Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci, Dante and Machiavelli, Catholicism with its vast array of saints and martyrs, Verdi and Pavarotti, Fellini and Sophia Loren and a remarkable sense of style and la dolce vita. Italians are such good hosts because they get so much practice welcoming visitors from the world over. In Italy, you can visit Roman ruins, study Renaissance art, stay in tiny medieval towns, go mountaineering in the Alps and Apennines , feel romantic in Venice , participate in traditional festivals and see most beautiful churches than you imagined exist in one country. It is no wonder, then, that Italy is one of the most popular vacation countries of Europe.
All seasons are good for visiting Italy.
In summer, Italy is an international playground when visitors from all continents mingle with vacationing Italians at the famous resorts. Spring comes early to Italy and autumn lingers on - and so will the wise traveller who wants to enjoy at a more leisurely pace the art centres, the large cities and the holiday resorts such as those in the Lombardian lake regions where spring and fall are ideal seasons. In winter, the Italian Alps are unequalled for scenery and skiing. Skiing is also a summer sport in the Turin Alps and the lofty mountains surrounding the Aosta Valley. From the sunny southern slopes of the Alps to the lush orange groves of Sicily , Italy offers enormous variety in its natural scenery and historical backgrounds.