It is difficult – if not impossible – to limit a list of things to do in Italy to 100, and even more difficult to put them in order of descending significance or entertainment value: home to Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Etruscans, Greeks and Romans, with islands as diverse as dour Sicily and African-influenced Pantelleria and cultures as far apart as Renaissance Venice and the prehistoric Trulli in Alberobello, Italy is a vibrant and colorful hotch-potch, a land of stark and passionately defended contrasts.

Let’s continue the count…

38. San Galgano (Siena)

Anyone interested in the legends of Merlin and King Arthur will be fascinated by San Galgano`s Hermitage of Montesiepi chapel, which houses a real sword in a real stone! Legend has it that Galgano Guidotti (1148-1181), a thoroughly nasty character by all accounts, decided to renounce wining, wenching and warmongering and become a Christian, and thrust his sword into a stone expecting it to break. He was canonized in 1185 and the site turned into a chapel, which is open to the public. Close by are the famous ruins of San Galgano abbey, a hauntingly beautiful building with its roof open to the sky, built between 1218 and 1288.

San Galgano lies around 30 km north west of Siena and can be reached by road in 45 minutes, or by bus in just over an hour. Siena has its own airport: the nearest international airport is in Florence.

39. Valley of the Temples (Agrigento, Sicily)

The “Valle dei Templi” is not actually a valley but a ridge just outside the town of Agrigento on the southern coast of Sicily, which houses a staggering total of seven Greek doric temples, built around 400 BC, in a better state of preservation than any outside of Greece. The town of Agrigento itself is home to many Greek and Roman buildings and other edifices, a fine archaeological museum and a unique brand of ice-cream made from sheep`s ricotta, as well as kilometres of long and largely deserted white sandy beaches.

Agrigento is 2 hours south of Palermo by road or rail. Palermo has its own airport, alternatively ferries run regularly from most Italian ports, the nearest being Naples and Civitavecchia.

40. Lake Garda

The “Lago di Garda” is Italy’s largest lake and a popular holiday destination, both nationally and internationally. Situated midway between Verona and Brescia, surrounded by mountains to the north and with a particularly mild climate, it is an idyllic destination for the entire family. Camping is particularly popular, and camping sites abound; the area is also ideal for lovers of hiking, trekking, rock-climbing and watersports of all types. Add long sandy beaches, great restaurants and boutiques and a vibrant nightlife, and it is not difficult to see why Lake Garda is so popular.

Lake Garda covers a surface area of around 370 square kilometres, so the choice of where to stay can be a little difficult. Torri del Benaco (just over 1 hour) and Nago-Torbole (2 hours) are particularly picturesque! (Times given by road or rail from Verona).

Source: https://www.jenreviews.com/