• Some of the most beautiful countryside in Europe: Tuscany and Umbria are perhaps the most famous - rolling, pine-covered hills, vineyards, fields of poppies and sunflowers, olive groves.
• Huge variety of scenery - from the lakes in the North to the sun-baked earth of Puglia in the South.Varied coastline too - from the long sandy beaches of the Adriatic to the plunging rocky coves of the Sorrento coast
• Unbelievably rich in culture and history.
• Real cities for serious sight-seeing, shopping and enjoying eg Rome, Milan, Florence, Siena, Bologna, Naples - each with their own incredible mix of culture and history. Easy to combine relaxing holiday with solid sightseeing/city exploring
• The food is great and little ones love pasta and ice cream.
• The Italians in turn love children - welcome them everywhere and integrate them fully into adult life.

Things to think about:

• A lot of Tuscan/Umbrian accommodation is a long way from a beach - harder to get a variety of activities
• Transfers can be longer
• Gets very hot and very busy in July/August
• If you don’t like pasta, you’re in trouble

Best times to visit: May-early July, September-October

Flight times from GB: 2.5 hrs

Time difference: GMT+1hr

Currency: Euros. Traveller’s cheques and/or credit cards not always accepted, so take some cash and ensure you have access to more

Capital: Rome

Web site: http://www.piuitalia2000.it/