Italian food and café towns off the beaten path.
Less-touristed food and café towns in Italy, for travelers seeking fewer crowds but all the beauty.
Lovere's overhanging wooden roofs and stone arcades frame a lakeside café culture that quietly earned it a place among Italy's most beautiful villages, and that same instinct for unhurried eating and sitting runs through all 147 towns on this page. From Saluzzo at the foot of the Monviso in Piedmont's deep wine country to Bagnoregio in Viterbo's northern Lazio, and south to Scilla on the Strait of Messina, Italy's less-touristed food towns reward the traveler who lingers.
Scilla
A particularly photogenic pocket-sized town on a promontory at the northern entrance to the Strait of Messina, Scilla has a café and restaurant scene that pu…
Arona
Photogenic small town on the shore of Lake Maggiore in northern Italy, Arona has a café and restaurant scene that punches well above its size, along with an…
Saluzzo
A medieval hill town in Piedmont's Cuneo province, Saluzzo served as capital of its own marquisate for over four centuries — from 1142 to 1548 — and retains…
Saint-Pierre
A medieval castle rises dramatically above this compact Alpine valley village in Italy's Aosta Valley, where snow-dusted terraced hillsides, a lively café sc…
Bagnoregio
This particularly photogenic village in Lazio's Viterbo province, Bagnoregio draws attention for its scenic surroundings and an unusually dense concentration…
Anghiari
A particularly photogenic hill village in Tuscany's Arezzo province, Anghiari has an unusual concentration of churches and cafés for its size, along with sce…
Lovere
At the northwest tip of Lake Iseo in Lombardy, Lovere is a particularly photogenic small town whose streetscape blends overhanging wooden roofs with heavy st…
Domodossola
A walkable town in Piedmont's Ossola valley with a centre full of cafés and historic churches, Domodossola is the main hub of the Val d'Ossola, sitting at th…
Cannobio
This photogenic small town on the north-western shore of Lake Maggiore in Piedmont, Cannobio sits where the Cannobina Valley meets the lake and has repeatedl…
Vieste
Particularly photogenic coastal town on the Gargano peninsula in Puglia, Vieste sits within the Gargano National Park and has earned repeated Blue Flag recog…
Vietri sul Mare
Polychrome ceramics have been made in Vietri sul Mare since at least the 15th century, and the tradition remains central to this little Campanian town at the…
Monte Sant'Angelo
The Sanctuary of San Michele Arcangelo, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that has drawn Christian pilgrims since the 6th century, sits at the heart of this pocke…
Bertinoro
A hilltop wine-country village in Emilia-Romagna with an unusually lively café and restaurant scene for its size, Bertinoro sits atop Monte Cesubeo with view…
Trevi
Commanding views across the Umbrian plain — said to extend over much of the valley in westerly directions — this medieval hill town on the lower flank of Mou…
Cortona
A photogenic hilltop town in Tuscany's Val di Chiana, Cortona sits high enough to offer panoramic views in every direction and holds an unusual concentration…
Noto
Rebuilt in the early 18th century after a devastating earthquake, Noto is one of eight Late Baroque towns in Sicily's Val di Noto declared a UNESCO World Her…
Sant'Agnello
A pocket-sized town on the Sorrentine Coast between Piano di Sorrento and Sorrento, Sant'Agnello sits right at the water with scenic viewpoints nearby and a…
Omegna
At the northernmost tip of Lago d'Orta in Piedmont, Omegna sits directly on the water with a lakeside boulevard where a street market runs every Thursday mor…
Bra
Birthplace of Carlo Petrini, founder of the Slow Food movement, Bra is a gastronomically focused town in Piedmont's Roero area whose main claim to fame exten…
Gaeta
A seaside town on a promontory between Rome and Naples, Gaeta combines sandy beaches on its western coast with a layered military history — its walls date to…
Tollegno
A compact Piedmontese village of terracotta rooftops and a prominent stone bell tower, Tollegno sits in a forested valley near Biella, offering a lively café…
Pitigliano
Known as "the little Jerusalem" for its historic Jewish community and working synagogue, Pitigliano is a small Tuscan hill town in the province of Grosseto s…
Varenna
Sitting directly on the eastern shore of Lake Como in Lombardy, Varenna is a modest lakeside village with a heritage-dense centre of medieval churches, histo…
Sondrio
Walkable wine-country town at the heart of the Valtellina valley in Lombardy, Sondrio serves as the provincial capital and was named Alpine Town of the Year…
Massa Marittima
Small Tuscan hill town in the Metalliferous Hills of Grosseto, Massa Marittima sits at the centre of a mining region historically rich in iron, mercury, copp…
Sansepolcro
Birthplace of the Renaissance painter Piero della Francesca and the mathematician Luca Pacioli, Sansepolcro is a compact Tuscan town on the upper Tiber, near…
Bosa
Sitting on the north bank of the Temo River — the only river-built town on Sardinia — Bosa is a little Sardinian settlement with a strong café and restaurant…
Alassio
A sandy-beached resort town on the Italian Riviera in Liguria, Alassio draws visitors year-round — as a bathing destination in summer and a health resort in…
Susa
This little town in the Susa Valley west of Turin, at the foot of the Cottian Alps, with a concentration of Roman and medieval monuments that reflects its an…
Sutri
Sutri's ancient remains — a Roman amphitheatre carved directly into tuff rock, an Etruscan necropolis of rock-cut tombs, and a Mithraeum embedded in the cryp…
Pella
Sitting on the western shore of Lake Orta in Piedmont, this compact village in the Province of Novara offers waterfront views, mountain country close by, and…
Brunate
Known as the "Balcony on the Alps," this compact village above Lake Como offers panoramic views stretching across the western Alpine arc, the Po Plain, and t…
Ivrea
Ivrea earned UNESCO World Heritage status in 2018 for its mid-20th-century Olivetti complex — factories, headquarters, and surrounding modernist buildings th…
Ostuni
Widely known as "the White Town" for its whitewashed houses and medieval walls, Ostuni is a walkable Apulian hill town in the province of Brindisi with a den…
Thiene
This walkable Veneto town in the province of Vicenza, Thiene sits close to the mountains and within reach of the wine country that defines much of the surrou…
Pontremoli
A heritage-dense tiny town in Tuscany's northernmost corner, Pontremoli sits on the Magra river — its name meaning "Trembling Bridge," after a prominent cros…
Varazze
Small Ligurian town on the Riviera di Ponente with a seafront position, a strong café and restaurant scene, and an unusual concentration of churches for its…
Gallipoli
A historic town on the western coast of Salento in Apulia, Gallipoli is built around a limestone island connected to the newer mainland district by a 17th-ce…
Castel San Pietro Romano
Small hilltop village east of Rome recognised among Italy's most beautiful villages and, since 2019, named the most beautiful village in the Mediterranean —…
Sperlonga
This photogenic coastal town on the Tyrrhenian Sea, roughly midway between Rome and Naples, Sperlonga is best known for the ancient Roman sea grotto found wi…
Castellammare del Golfo
A seafront town in Sicily's Trapani province, Castellammare del Golfo takes its name from the medieval fortress in its harbour — "Sea Fortress on the Gulf" —…
Lavagna
This compact Ligurian seafront town of terracotta rooftops and domed churches, Lavagna sits between the Ligurian Sea and a backdrop of green hills, with a li…
Borgosesia
A small town on the Sesia River in Piedmont's alpine Valsesia valley, Borgosesia has a café and restaurant scene and a concentration of churches that both ex…
Numana
This compact Adriatic village on the Conero Riviera in the Marche region, Numana sits directly on the water with vineyards nearby and scenic viewpoints along…
Scalea
A tiny coastal town on Calabria's Tyrrhenian shore, Scalea pairs a modern beach resort strip — developed since the 1960s along the Riviera dei Cedri — with a…
Atrani
Tiny village on the Amalfi Coast, Atrani sits right at the water's edge just a short walk from Amalfi itself, with a heritage-dense streetscape, a striking n…
Caprarola
Villa Farnese dominates this compact Lazio town in the Cimini volcanic hills, a large Renaissance mansion begun in 1530 as a fortress for Cardinal Alessandro…
Oulx
This pocket-sized village in the upper Susa Valley near the French border, Oulx sits at the confluence of the Dora di Riparia and the Dora di Bardonecchia ri…
Tomo
Compact Italian hamlet in Belluno's forested valley country, where a classical white-façade church anchors a cluster of red-tile buildings against densely wo…
Castelsardo
A photogenic coastal town on Sardinia's northwest shore, at the eastern end of the Gulf of Asinara, Castelsardo sits right on the water with scenic viewpoint…
Luino
Modest town on the eastern shore of Lake Maggiore, Luino is best known for its Wednesday market, said to be among the largest of its kind in Europe, drawing…
Spello
This small walled hill town on the southern flank of Monte Subasio in Umbria, Spello has an unusually dense concentration of historic churches and a café and…
Norcia
Norcia, a small Umbrian town on the edge of the Monti Sibillini mountains, is widely known across Italy for its cured meats and sausages — so much so that th…
Bardonecchia
This small mountain town in Piedmont's upper Susa Valley, Bardonecchia is a winter sports base with two ski areas — Colomion-Les Arnauds-Melezet and Jafferau…
Grottammare
A walkable Adriatic beach town in the Marche region, Grottammare pairs a seafront café and restaurant scene with a medieval hilltop quarter that belongs to t…
Conca dei Marini
A compact village on the Amalfi Coast between Amalfi and Furore, sitting directly on the water with scenic viewpoints nearby and an unusually dense cluster o…
Porto Cesareo
This modest Apulian town on the Ionian coast of the Salento peninsula with a café and restaurant scene that punches well above its size, Porto Cesareo is bes…
Iglesias
A walkable town in southwestern Sardinia with a centre dense with historic churches, cafés, and restaurants, Iglesias was one of the most important royal cit…
Santa Maria Maggiore
This modest mountain village in Valle Vigezzo, Piedmont, Santa Maria Maggiore sits on the narrow-gauge Vigezzina railway that runs through the Italian Alps b…
Fossombrone
Compact Marche town where a river curves through a red-tile historic centre, backed by vineyard-covered hills, with a good café and restaurant scene and a no…
Cagli
Small town in the Marche region of central Italy, Cagli sits alongside the Burano river with an unusually dense concentration of churches for its size and a…
Avigliana
Two volcanic maar lakes — Lago Grande and Lago Piccolo — sit at the edge of this modest Piedmontese town in the Susa valley, west of Turin, with the medieval…
Cividale del Friuli
Founded by Julius Caesar as Forum Iulii — the name that eventually gave the entire Friuli region its identity — Cividale del Friuli later became the capital…
Camerino
A little Apennine hill town in the Marche region of central-eastern Italy, Camerino is home to a medieval university and has a café and restaurant scene that…
Arcidosso
This small Tuscan village on the slopes of Monte Amiata, Arcidosso draws visitors year-round with access to skiing in winter and mountain trails in summer, a…
Sennori
A small wine-country town in northern Sardinia, Sennori has been a member of Italy's national association of wine towns since the association's founding in 1…
Lacco Ameno
Rebuilt after a devastating 1883 earthquake that destroyed most of its buildings, Lacco Ameno transformed from a fishing village into a thermal-spa resort on…
Piazza Armerina
The Villa Romana del Casale, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1997 celebrated for its extensive Roman mosaics, sits just outside this Sicilian hill town in…
Piuro
On 4 September 1618, a catastrophic landslide completely buried the village of Piuro — then part of the Three Leagues — killing between 1,000 and 2,500 peopl…
Gazzaniga
This modest town in Lombardy's Val Seriana, Gazzaniga sits on the right bank of the Serio river northeast of Bergamo, with a café and restaurant scene and a…
Bolsena
On the eastern shore of Lake Bolsena in northern Lazio, this compact town is known across the Catholic world as the site of the Eucharistic miracle that led…
Diamante
This pocket-sized coastal town on Calabria's Tyrrhenian shore, Diamante lends its name to the Diamante citron, a variety still grown in the region.
Albenga
This heritage-dense coastal town on the Gulf of Genoa, Albenga is known as the city of a hundred spires and holds a well-preserved historic centre within eas…
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A compact town on the shore of Lake Lugano in Lombardy's Province of Como, Porlezza has a café and restaurant scene that punches above its size, several hist…
Sarnico
This tiny lakeside town on the western shore of Lake Iseo in Lombardy's Bergamo province, where the lake meets the River Oglio, Sarnico has a café and restau…
Pizzo
This modest seaport town on Calabria's Costa degli Dei, Pizzo sits on a steep cliff above the Gulf of Saint Euphemia and is locally known for its gelato trad…
Mola di Bari
Focaccia from Mola di Bari's bakeries has long been a point of local pride in this Adriatic fishing town in Apulia, refounded by Charles I of Anjou in 1277 o…
Acqui Terme
Hot sulphur springs have drawn visitors to Acqui Terme since the Roman era, when the town was known as Aquae Statiellae, and a 19th-century pavilion called L…
Mamoiada
Mamoiada, a small village in Sardinia's mountainous Barbagia region, is known across the island for its traditional carnival, in which participants wear the…
Castelmola
Tiny hilltop village above Taormina on Sicily's east coast, Castelmola occupies the site of ancient Taormina's acropolis and is listed among Italy's most bea…
Carlentini
This Sicilian hill town in the Province of Syracuse, Carlentini sits on the Colle Meta Grande near the Lago di Lentini and the slopes of the Monti Iblei, and…
Santarcangelo di Romagna
A little town in Emilia-Romagna with a notably dense café and restaurant scene, Santarcangelo di Romagna sits on the Via Emilia in the province of Rimini, cr…
Peschici
This small coastal town on the Gargano promontory in Puglia, Peschici sits within the Gargano National Park and has built a reputation as a seaside resort si…
Procida
This little island off the Naples coast, between Cape Miseno and Ischia, has a café and restaurant scene, a concentration of historic churches, and vineyards…
Bultei
This compact Sardinian hill village in the Goceano region, its dense cluster of terracotta-roofed stone houses set among wooded slopes and rolling farmland,…
Correggio
Correggio, in Emilia-Romagna's wine country, gave its name to the Renaissance painter Antonio Allegri, known simply as "il Correggio," and was ruled from 151…
San Daniele del Friuli
San Daniele del Friuli, a little town in Friuli-Venezia Giulia northwest of Udine, is best known as the production centre of its eponymous DOP prosciutto, ce…
Bojano
A little town in Molise's Campobasso province with a café and restaurant scene that punches above its size, and an unusual concentration of historic churches.
Pazzano
A small village in Calabria's Locride region, Pazzano was once the principal iron-mining centre of the entire southern Italian mainland during the Bourbon pe…
Otranto
Italy's easternmost town, Otranto sits on the Adriatic coast of the Salento peninsula in Apulia, with a café and restaurant scene that holds a surprising num…
Borgo San Dalmazzo
A tiny Piedmontese town near Cuneo with a café and restaurant scene that punches above its size, Borgo San Dalmazzo also holds an 11th-century parish church…
Fasano
A walkable Apulian town with a café-filled centre and a notable concentration of historic churches, Fasano sits at the boundary between the Salento and the T…
Ozieri
Ozieri, in Sardinia's Logudoro region, is the centre of the earliest known archaeological culture on the island — the Ozieri culture — giving it a deep prehi…
Cremeno
A small Lombardy village in the hills above Lecco, Cremeno draws visitors with its elegant colonnaded baroque church, scenic upland surroundings, and a surpr…
Pietrasanta
This walkable coastal town in northern Tuscany's Versilia district, Pietrasanta sits at the foot of the Apuan Alps with a centre full of cafés, restaurants,…
Tavagnasco
Small village in Piedmont's Dora Baltea valley, north of Turin, Tavagnasco sits on the river with mountain terrain close by and vineyards in the surrounding…
Capranica
This modest town in the Tuscia area of Lazio, Capranica sits on the ancient Via Cassia and along the route of the Via Francigena pilgrimage road, with vineya…
Sora
This walkable town on the banks of the Liri river in Lazio's Frosinone province, Sora has a centre with a good spread of cafés, restaurants, and historic chu…
Tortona
A walkable Piedmontese town on the right bank of the Scrivia river, between the plain of Marengo and the foothills of the Ligurian Apennines, Tortona sits in…
Atina
A small village in Frosinone province, Lazio, with several historic churches and a café and restaurant scene that punches above its size.
Ceglie Messapica
This walkable Apulian town in the Salento area of Brindisi province, Ceglie Messapica has a whitewashed historic centre of narrow stone-paved lanes, many chu…
Erice
Sitting on the summit of Monte Erice above Trapani in western Sicily, this medieval hilltop village retains its ancient Elymian-Punic fortifications, cobbled…
Lipari
The largest of the seven Aeolian Islands in the Tyrrhenian Sea off northern Sicily, Lipari is the main gateway to the archipelago and the administrative cent…
San Vito dei Normanni
A town in Apulia's Brindisi province with a walkable centre full of cafés and restaurants, San Vito dei Normanni sits in northern Salento, a short drive from…
Scicli
Scicli's baroque historic centre earned UNESCO World Heritage status in 2002 as part of the Late Baroque Towns of the Val di Noto, and the town backs this up…
Acquaviva delle Fonti
Acquaviva delle Fonti, a town on the Murge plateau in Apulia's Bari metropolitan area, is known across the region for its red onions, which carry DOP protect…
Isola Bella
One of the Borromean Islands on Lake Maggiore, Isola Bella is a small island a short distance from the lakeside town of Stresa, divided between the Borromeo…
Tricase
A little town in Salento, the southern tip of Apulia, Tricase has a notably dense café and restaurant scene for its size, alongside an unusual concentration…
Melfi
Melfi's medieval old town carries a history well above its size: it was the first capital of Norman rule in southern Italy, and later a favoured residence of…
Ittiri
Compact Sardinian town spread across a basalt plateau, its terracotta rooftops and church bell tower rising above rolling green hills, with a lively café sce…
Viverone
A pocket-sized village on the shore of Lago di Viverone — the third-largest lake in Piedmont — with an unusual concentration of cafés, restaurants, and churc…
Polignano a Mare
Cliffs dropping straight into the Adriatic Sea define the old quarter of this small Apulian town south of Bari, where the historic centre sits on a rocky pro…
Tempio Pausania
This compact Sardinian town in the Gallura region with an unusually dense café and restaurant scene and a concentration of churches for its size, Tempio Paus…
Castellana Grotte
The Grotte di Castellana, a karst cave system discovered in 1938 by geologists Franco Anelli and Vito Matarrese, made this modest Apulian town one of Puglia'…
Fossano
A walkable Piedmontese town in the province of Cuneo, Fossano has a centre dense with historic churches and cafés, set against a backdrop of surrounding vine…
Tremestieri Etneo
This modest Sicilian town on the slopes north of Catania supports a notably dense café and restaurant scene alongside an unusual concentration of churches fo…
Agropoli
This coastal town at the start of the Cilentan Coast on the Tyrrhenian Sea, Agropoli has a walkable centre with a good spread of cafés and restaurants, viney…
Orosei
This small Sardinian town on the Gulf of Orosei, with beaches including Cala Ginepro, Cala Liberotto, and the Bidderosa Oasis stretching along a long coastline.
Bienno
Tiny Val Camonica town in the Brescia province of Lombardy, Bienno sits in mountain terrain with a café and restaurant scene and a concentration of historic…
Sulmona
Sulmona, in the Abruzzo region of central Italy, has been producing confetti — the sugar-coated almond sweets — for centuries, and the tradition remains cent…
Pozzomaggiore
A small Sardinian village in the Logudoro uplands, where a baroque stone church fronts a cobbled square strung with festival bunting, hinting at a lively loc…
Bolotana
A compact Sardinian village in the Province of Nuoro with several historic churches and a café and restaurant scene that punches above its size.
Biancavilla
A Sicilian town on the slopes of Etna's foothills, where a cobblestoned centre is anchored by an ornate baroque church tower with a tiled dome, surrounded by…
Luogosanto
This small Sardinian village in the Gallura region with an unusual concentration of historic churches for its size, Luogosanto sits in highland terrain at th…
Maglie
A small town in the province of Lecce in Apulia's Salento region, Maglie has a café and restaurant scene that punches above its size, alongside a notable con…
Ruvo di Puglia
Ruvo di Puglia, a town on the Murge plateau in Apulia's Bari metropolitan area, holds the Jatta National Archaeological Museum, whose Hellenistic collection…
Oria
A little town in Apulia's Salento region with an unusually dense concentration of historic churches and a lively café and restaurant scene for its size, Oria…
Castiglione della Pescaia
A Tuscan seaside town in the Grossetan Maremma, Castiglione della Pescaia grew around a 12th-century medieval fortress and a large fishery — the latter givin…
Giovinazzo
A walkable Adriatic town in Apulia with a centre full of cafés, restaurants, and historic churches, Giovinazzo sits a short drive from Bari on the southeaste…
Tuscania
This tiny town in northern Lazio with an unusual concentration of churches for its size and a café and restaurant scene that punches above its weight.
Erba
A walkable Lombard town at the foot of the Prealps, Erba sits in the Brianza region between Milan and Como, with a centre dense with historic churches, cafés…
Randazzo
Sitting at the northern foot of Mount Etna, Randazzo is the closest town to the volcano's summit and one of the main starting points for the ascent.
Ghilarza
Antonio Gramsci, political philosopher and founder of the Italian Communist Party, spent his formative years in this tiny Sardinian town in the Province of O…
Acquapendente
Pocket-sized town in northern Lazio with a café and restaurant scene that would suit a town twice its size, Acquapendente also has a tradition of pottery cra…
Palazzolo Acreide
A UNESCO World Heritage baroque town in Sicily's Hyblean Mountains, Palazzolo Acreide has Greek roots stretching back to antiquity and a historic centre dens…
Copertino
A walkable town in Salento, in Italy's Apulia region, Copertino is the birthplace of Saint Joseph of Copertino and holds a centre with a concentration of his…
Fabriano
Handmade paper production has defined Fabriano for centuries, earning this Apennine town in the Marche region a place on UNESCO's Creative Cities network und…
Galatina
A walkable town in the Salento area of Apulia, southern Italy, with a centre dense with historic churches and a strong café and restaurant scene.
Casagiove
This modest Campanian town just west of Caserta holds a notable concentration of historic churches for its size, alongside a lively café and restaurant scene.
Floridia
A mid-sized Sicilian town in the Province of Syracuse, Floridia spreads across agricultural lowlands toward the coast, with a walkable centre, surrounding ol…
Castrovillari
This southern Italian town in Calabria's Cosenza province, Castrovillari sits against a dramatic backdrop of snow-capped mountains and offers a walkable cent…
Lusciano
This compact Campanian town with a lively café and dining scene well above its size, an impressive cluster of local churches, and easy access to the UNESCO-r…
Quattrograna
A tiny hamlet in Campania's Avellino province, Quattrograna sits at the water's edge with vineyard-covered surroundings, a surprising number of churches and…
Bolzanello
This tiny waterside hamlet in Puglia's Taranto province, Bolzanello punches above its size with several churches, scenic viewpoints, and a handful of local s…
Angellara
Tiny hamlet on the Salerno coast, Angellara punches above its size with multiple churches, a handful of local cafés, and easy access to upland scenery and th…
Santa Croce
This tiny Calabrian hamlet on the water's edge, Santa Croce punches above its weight with multiple churches for its size, backed by rolling hills and within…
Santa Maria
A tiny Tuscan hamlet in Arezzo's wine-growing hills, Santa Maria sits at the water's edge with a surprising density of churches, nearby heritage architecture…