Italy

A country that hardly needs introduction, Italy has nonetheless prompted many—in song, on canvas, paper, and plate. A diverse landscape promises that no visit could possibly be long enough, with magnificent mountains to climb, vineyards to unwind in, ancient city alleys to get lost in, and Mediterranean beaches to doze on. With so many distinct regions, to visit every region of Italy is to fall in love anew each time.

Artists such as Michelangelo, da Vinci, Raphael, and Bernini did, stirred by the beauty of the land, its people, and ways of life. But inspiration precedes the Renaissance. Astounding architecture—some even older than Western civilization itself— monumental palaces and squares, daring fashion, one of the world’s most revered cuisines, and some of earth’s finest wines prove that the manmade treasures of Italy are the only ones that come close to rivaling its natural ones.