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Italy Travel Guide


Italy Attractions & Activities - The Best Holiday Destinations for 2020

Italy (Italian: Italia) is a large country in Southern Europe. Together with Greece, it is acknowledged as the birthplace of Western culture. Not surprisingly, it is also home to the greatest number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the world. High art and monuments are to be found everywhere around the country. It is also famous worldwide for its delicious cuisine, its trendy fashions, luxury sports cars and motorcycles, diverse regional cultures and dialects, as well as for its many beautiful coasts, alpine lakes and mountains (the Alps and Apennines). No wonder it is often nicknamed Il Bel Paese (The Beautiful Country).

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Location
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Flag
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Quick Facts
Capital Rome
Government republic
Currency euro ? (EUR)
Area 301,230 km2
Population 59,619,290 (Jan 2008 est.)
Language Italian (official); minor German, French and Slovene-speaking communities
Religion predominately Roman Catholic with mature Protestant and Jewish communities and a growing Muslim immigrant community
Electricity 230V/50Hz (European or Italian plug)
Calling Code +39
Internet TLD .it
Time Zone UTC+1

Two independent mini-states are surrounded entirely by Italy: San Marino and Vatican City. While technically not part of the European Union, both of these states are also part of the Schengen Region and the European Monetary Union, (EMU). Apart from different police uniforms, there is no evident transition from these states and Italy's territory, and the currency is the same. Italian is also the lingua-franca in both city-states.


The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Italy


Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Italy - updated Mar 2024

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WHERE TO TRAVEL NEXT IN 2020


Italy Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.

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