Quiet rural escapes in Italy off the beaten path.
Less-touristed rural getaways in Italy, for travelers seeking fewer crowds but all the beauty.
Osilo pecorino — made from the milk of sheep that define the local economy — is as good an entry point as any into what these ten Italian villages share: a rural life that hasn't been staged for visitors. Sardinia's Anglona region alone accounts for Osilo, Laerru, and Martis, while the Apennine highlands deliver Cascia in Umbria's Valnerina and Poggio Bustone above its broad Lazio valley.
Cascia
A pocket-sized mountain village in the remote southeastern corner of Umbria, Cascia holds an unusual concentration of churches for its size and a handful of…
Poggio Bustone
A compact stone-built village rising above a broad valley in Lazio's upland country, with a bell-towered church at its crown and sweeping views over patchwor…
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,…
Osilo
This modest Sardinian village near Sassari holds an unusual number of churches for its size, alongside a castle and a modest but real café and restaurant scene.
San Paolo Cervo
Tiny Piedmontese hamlet of stone buildings and a tall arched villa rising through dense forested hillsides, San Paolo Cervo rewards visitors seeking mountain…
Cellio con Breia
Tiny Piedmontese valley hamlet in lower Valsesia where a tall baroque church tower rises above red-tile rooftops against wooded hills, offering a quiet base…
Laerru
Compact Sardinian village of terracotta-roofed stone houses spread across upland country in the Anglona region, with several historic churches for its size a…
Martis
A compact Sardinian village of orange-roofed houses spread across rolling agricultural land, Martis sits amid the upland countryside of the Anglona region, w…
Villaurbana
Small Sardinian village in the Oristano province where weathered stone-and-plaster architecture lines quiet streets, sitting within easy reach of the island'…
Boroneddu
This tiny Sardinian hamlet set among wooded hillsides and terraced farmland in the Oristano uplands, Boroneddu rewards slow travellers with several historic…