Italy: a land of ancient ruins and Renaissance art, of medieval villages with narrow cobblestone streets and baroque cities with grand piazzas.
A land where history jumps out from every corner, the smell of espresso wafting out from a cafe, a land where food isn’t just a meal—it’s a way of life.
A land of dramatic coastlines, rolling vineyards, snow-capped mountains, and sun-soaked islands.
We love this country of passion, chaos, and beauty, and we keep being drawn back here. Having visited the main hotspots of Italy countless times, in 2024 we decided to spend several months travelling through Italy in our campervan.
Italy is an incredibly diverse country. It’s recognisable boot shape stretches 1000km (600 miles) from the Alps in the north, down into the Mediterranean. The country is divided into 20 administrative regions. As you travel you’ll find subtle and not so subtle differences between these.
After our 90-day Schengen limit was up in early January 2025 we realised we’d still not even seen half of what we wanted to see. We returned to Italy in early 2026, to explore more of Sicily and the beautiful towns of Tuscany. There’s still a lot on our Italy Bucket List though. But then, is even a lifetime enough for Italy?
Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase through these links, we may earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. Purchasing through these links supports our work and allows us to continue bringing you travel guides, like this, for free. As an Amazon Associate, we earn a commission from qualifying sales. Thank you for your support.
Italy Road Trip Travel Guides
As we travelled through Italy we produced travel videos for our YouTube channel and we are working our way through all our notes and photos to create more written Italy Road Trip travel guides.
Italy City Guides
- 13 interesting things to do in Milan – more than just fashion!
- How to spend one day in Orvieto, Italy
- 15 Amazing things to do in Naples – Italy’s most under-rated city
- Best things to do in Venice, Italy
- Best things to do in Rome – Ultimate Guide to the Eternal City
Sicily Travel Guides
How to get to Italy
By Air
Italy has international airports in the main cities (Rome, Milan, Naples, Venice, Palermo and more). As the country is long and narrow, if you’re just visiting part of Italy, one of the smaller international airports might suit your plans better. We recommend SkyScanner for flight availabiltiy and pricing.
By Car
Italy is an awesome place for a road trip! As part of the EU and Schengen Zone, there are no land border crossings coming in and out of Italy from it’s Schengen neighbours. (France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia). If you don’t have your own car, you can hire a car from any large city (or airport). We recommend Discover Cars, to search across many rental companies for the best deal.
By Train
In Europe the train network is much more developed and convenient, probably more than anywhere else in the world. Fast international trains (some with sleeper cabins), arrive into Italy from all neighbouring countries.
Getting around Italy
By Air
There are well over 50 airports in Italy, so flying between the cities is certainly possible, but may be costly. And also, you’d miss out on so much of the scenery! For flight schedules and the best pricing, we recommend SkyScanner.
By Car
Italy is blessed with a really comprehensive motorway system. A motorway is called an Autostrada (plural Autostrade) here. Most of the Autostrade privately owned, and tolls may be payable.
You can pay your tolls with cash or credit card. If you’re staying in Italy for a while, you could get a prepaid Viacard or a rechargeable Telepass. See this website for more information.
The Italian road network also includes non-toll roads, ranging from the SS Stade Statali (State Highways) all the way down to the Stade Comunale – which can be very narrow and winding.
Driving in Italy can definitely be an adventure – the drivers tend to be more reckless the further south you go (and the road conditions worsen). But this is all part of the fun. Take your time, and when in doubt, just pull over and let them pass!
By Train or Bus
The public transport system in Italy is very well developed. We have travelled on intercity trains and have found them to be fast and efficient. If you book in advance, you can often get a cheaper price. In September 2024 a train from Turin to Milan cost €10.85 and took around an hour.
When is the best time to visit Italy?
Italy is in the south of Europe and has a Mediterranean climate. You’ll find snow on the mountains in the north in winter (and some great ski-ing). The south can be very hot in summer.
In August a lot of businesses close down. This tradition of Ferragosto dates back to Roman times. If you visit during August you’ll find a lot of smaller shops and restaurants are closed. Many locals take the month of August off and go on holidays.
August IS the height of summer, so in tourist towns you can expect places to stay open.
Italy suffers from over-tourism, like several other European countries. Recently measures have been put in place, like charging an entrance fee for the city of Venice. However, we’re not sure a €5 entrance fee would discourage someone from visiting the beautiful city of Venice!
Italy is beautiful in both the spring and autumn – temperatures are milder, and the crowds are less. May and September are possibly the best months to visit Italy. We’ve just spent May 2026 visiting Orvieto and the towns of Tuscany. The weather has been beautiful!
We visited Sicily in the winter (December-January) and the temperatures were very mild. We had three weeks of blue skies with daily top temperatures ranging from 15-20 degrees celsius (60-70 farenheit). Perfect sightseeing and hiking weather!
Italy Road Trip Travel Guide – Essential Information
Language
Italian is the official language of Italy, although various regional dialects are spoken. In the Sud Tirol region German and Ladin are spoken, and you will see a lot of signs in German.
English is quite widely spoken in tourist areas, but we should never assume that people speak English. Learning a few words in Italian will be very helpful. Use “Buongiorno” or simply “Ciao” for hello, and “Grazie” for thank you.
Currency
Italy uses the Euro. Credit and debit cards are widely accepted. We use the Revolut card, its so easy to load our home currency, and then exchange for Euros within the app. We can use our card at ATMs and also for purchases.
Visas and entry requirements
Italy is part of the Schengen zone. Non-EU citizens may be eligible for visa free entry, depending on your nationality. For Australian, NZ, UK, USA and Canadian passport holders, we can enter the Schengen Zone without a visa and stay for 90 days within a 180 day period.
In 2026 the EU are introducing an ETIAS system, whereby you’ll have to complete an electronic travel advice before you enter. Your biometric data (face photo and fingerprints) will be taken the first time you enter Schengen and used to track your stays. This is known as the EES.
On October 12 2025 the EES comes into effect, so when you enter a Schengen country you’ll need to have your photo taken and fingerprints recorded. You can find out more and stay up to date on the ETIAS website.
Phone and Internet
You’ll find good 5G signal in most areas in Italy. Even when we were in the mountains of the Dolomites, or hiking in Sicily, our connection rarely dropped out.
We use and recommend the Holafly eSIM when travelling – no need to fiddle around with changing SIM cards in your phone, and it gives you unlimited data. Use the code NIGELANDSUE for a discount with your purchase.
Can you drink the water in Italy?
Officially, tap water is safe to drink in Italy, unless it is otherwise specified. We drank tap water throughout northern Italy, and once we were south of Naples we were buying bottled water. Fortunately its inexpensive, unfortunately it comes in plastic, and recycling isn’t that widespread in the south!
Several campervan stopover places we stayed south of Naples had taps to refill our campervan tank, but they were labelled “Not drinking water”.
Northern Italy Travel Films
This page will be updated as we add more travel guides. Meanwhile, you can sign up for our monthly newsletter to get the latest! Here are some of our favourite travel videos from our Italian Road Trip. You can check out more on our YouTube Channel.
