Italy

Italy

Welcome to Italy

Lean in the attractiveness of the Leaning Tower of Pisa in the birth land of the eminent Leonardo Da Vinci with a taste of an abundant variety from the small rounded Pastas to the big rounded Pizzas.

Featured Overland Adventures in Italy

Country Quick Facts

Country

Italy is a country surrounded by the Adriatic Sea on the East, the Tyrrhenian Sea on the West, the Ionian Sea on the South and surrounded by France, Switzerland, Austria, and Slovenia on the North with its location in the southern Europe. It is also nicknamed as ‘the boot’ due to its mainland resembling the shape of a boot and Puglia region known as the heel of the boot" and Calabria region as the "toe of the boot."

Area: 301,338 km²
Population: 59,290,969
Capital: Rome

Weather

Italy goes through a Mediterranean climate, reason being its hot & dry summers and cool & wet winters. However, these weather conditions vary from region to region. The Northern areas of Italy experience frequent thunderstorms and the country’s Mediterranean climate also witnesses varied variations. The summertime here ranges somewhere between 28-33°C and the wintertime has a range between 11–14 °C generally and sometimes less than 6 degrees too. Light clothes are recommended here during summers and warm clothes are recommended during the winters.

People & Language

Italy is a hub of 34 spoken languages and dialects having ‘Standard Italian’ as its official language. On dividing the majorly spoken languages in this country on the basis of their communicators, Italian is used by 97.41%, English by 13.74% whereas French is spoken by 8.46%. Italy’s 88% of the population is an ardent follower of the Roman Catholic Church but not even half of these are active in this religion.

Practicalities

Time: The Central European Summer Time (CEST) is followed in Italy and is 9 hours ahead of the Pacific Standard Time.

Electricity: The Standard Voltage in Italy is 230 V with a frequency of 50 Hz. The plug sockets here consist of 2-3 round pins. If your country’s Standard Voltage ranges between 220V- 240V, then you can make use of your electrical appliances here without suffering any issues

Weight & Measurement: Italy uses the Metric System for weight and measurement.

Telecommunications: The majorly used telecom services used in Italy include TIM, Vodafone, Wind, H3G etc. with TIM having the highest market share and being the most dominant one. Varied facilities for making international calls are provided here without any stoppage.

Currency

The official currency of Italy is ‘Euro’ that is symbolised as (€). One Euro is equivalent to 100 cents and the existing banknotes of the same are €5, €10, €20, €50, €100, €200 and €500. On comparing this currency with the INR, I Euro is equivalent to 79.90 INR. You will witness local ATMs in the different regions of Italy with the cash of multiple dimensions available. The Italian banks are available for its consumers from Monday to Friday, timings being 8 or 9 A.M. to Noon or 1 P.M. and from 3 to 6 or 7 P.M. Every Euro coin and the note is accepted within the zones of Europe irrespective of its issuing nation.

Top Attractions

Food and Drink

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Culture & Lifestyle

The culture belonging to the Italian peninsula has been in existence from many years and is still continuing to be an inspiring one for millions all across the globe. Being listed on the 23rd position in the list of the most populated countries in the world, Italy is a habitat to more than 62 million people. Special priorities are given by the Italians to varied aspects such as arts, music, literature, architecture, food and the family

Apart from the 95% of the Italian population, the remaining space is filled up by the Austrian, Albanian and some of the Europe groups. Italy is a hub of languages that too in abundance which include Italian, English, Spanish, French, and Greek etc. along with many dialects such as Neapolitan, Ligurian, Sicilian, Sardinian, Venetian, Piedmontese and Calabrian.

One of the important values is carried by ‘family’ in Italy. Italian believes on the philosophy of being a part of the expanded family rather than the nuclear ones. They really enjoy each other’s company, frequently meet up during their family reunions and spend time with them.

The most followed religion in Italy stands out to be the Roman Catholicism with Venice having its most number of followers. Also, as notified presently it is confirmed that the Muslim immigrants are growing in number, while on the other hand atheists constitute about 20 percent of the Italy’s population. Italy is also renowned as a place for many operas some of which are "Aida" and "La Traviata.

Overlanding in Italy

How about an adventurous trip to Italy through self-drive? Stretch your legs wherever you want, sit as per your comfort, drive as per your comfort, carry your own itinerary and in short be you own boss! A self-drive is really apt for a traveller who loves being independent rather than following the routes and the information by other drivers or guides. Take a quick tour to Italy and explore its aesthetic beauty of divine tourist spots and ravishing landscapes. Whether they are hills, valleys, water bodies or just plain land, this magnificent nation has everything ready for your self- drive trip

Witness the heart-warming scenes and spots, stop whenever you want, spend time there and click beautiful pictures, an overland journey will just leave you with mind-blowing memories when you are back to your normal schedule. In case you are an art lover, you shall also get an opportunity to see the changes in the style of the architecture and the art that the artists have showed their creativity on. Italy has fine roads attracting millions of tourists for a self-drive and unlimited experiences.

Urban Adventure in Italy

Explore Rome on wheels

Travelling the whole Rome and that too through biking is one of the most commendable ways to travel and also a perfect combination of fun and adventure. You can spend as much time as you want in a place of your choice and roam as you want. Being considered as an apt place of History and city, it is ready to amuse you with its perfection. Ride along the Colosseum, grab unlimited memories and you will for sure have a satisfactory trip. If you have your own bike, its great and if not then you can rent one from Rome itself as it contains many Bike rental places and Biking tours.

Piedmont’s Heli Skiing

Well, Heli Skiing is a unique adventure activity as many might not have heard about it. Thus, experiencing this in case you are in Piedmont is highly recommended. It’s something new and the most exciting of all. Ski in Valle Stura that is referred to as one of the most beautiful valleys in Piedmont across the European Alps and grab a super-amazing experience. This sounds really exciting that you’ll be having an experience of the pure sensation of powder skiing in the middle of nature. You’ll be flying in a helicopter and dropped off from there on the powdered snow in the Piedmont, not to worry you will be facilitated with all the safest instruments attached with you during that activity.

Paragliding in the Italy’s Valleys

Castelluccio situated in the Umbria is widely acknowledged as one the places consisting of the very beautiful and vibrant colours’ filled valleys. You will have an unforgettable experience while paragliding in such an alluring places providing you the best scenic views possible. If you are striving to get a gorgeous view of the blooming flowers, it is highly preferable to visit this region from late May to early June. Just imagine, how amazing it would have been for the adventurers to witness the colourful scenes while pursuing a highly adventurous activity. Never miss any chance to visit this region if you are available in Italy.

Naples’s Kayaking activity

Many people are stuck in a myth of Naples being an odd city but it is certainly not. Visit Naples and get a chance to explore the Procida Island from where you can move towards the Capri. The splendid coastlines of Naples offers some unique views and a new line for Kayaking and other activities as well. Also, Naples is a home to the marvellous rock formation Faraglioni di Capri and its breathtaking view will leave you awestruck. Indulge in the open water Kayaking and the scenes of the caves present there and get the fun you might have never experienced anywhere before. Apart from this, Italy has many other coastlines offering kayaking services to its services you can also give them a try once Naples’s activities are done!

Dolomites’s Hiking

You cannot miss a chance of visiting the Dolomites whenever you are in Italy. Endless adventure opportunities here make this place worthy of being ‘re-visited’. All of the mountains here are a home to abundant adventure activities which include snowboarding, kayaking, hiking, skiing, parasailing and even biking. Hiking is as per your choice. Varied number of trails are available for the adventure seekers here and they can choose any. Also, you can decide on whether you want to hike by self else you shall be provided with a guide for the same. You will really get dumbfounded by the beauty which you will experience during hiking. Thus, it is a treat for everyone whether you are a nature lover or an adventure lover or a mixture of both.

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