Italy

Italy compresses an astonishing variety of landscapes into a single boot-shaped peninsula: the glaciated Alps and the rose-tinted spires of the Dolomites in the north, the long Apennine backbone, active volcanoes, and thousands of kilometers of Mediterranean coastline and islands. It is a place where you can ski in the morning and reach the sea by afternoon.

Layered over this natural drama is the richest concentration of classical, Renaissance, and culinary heritage on Earth, so that hiking the Cinque Terre or the Dolomites comes with villages, vineyards, and extraordinary food.

Hike the via ferratas and high trails of the Dolomites, walk the cliffside paths of the Cinque Terre and Amalfi Coast, climb active Mount Etna, ski the Alps around Cortina, and sea-kayak the grottoes of Sardinia and the Aeolian Islands. The Apennines and Gran Paradiso add wild, uncrowded mountain country.

Italy is a year-round destination: summer for the Alps, Dolomites, and beaches; spring and autumn for hiking the coasts, hills, and volcanoes in comfort and for the harvest. Winter brings Alpine skiing in the Dolomites and Aosta Valley, while the south stays mild.

Alpine ibex and chamois (protected in Gran Paradiso, Italy's first national park), Apennine wolves and brown bears, and flamingos in Sardinian lagoons inhabit the wild areas, while the surrounding seas host dolphins, sea turtles, and the Pelagos cetacean sanctuary.

Italy sits where the African and Eurasian plates collide, raising the Alps and Apennines and fueling Europe's most active volcanoes — Etna, Stromboli, and Vesuvius — plus earthquakes and the geothermal fields of Tuscany. The Dolomites are fossil coral reefs uplifted into pale, sheer peaks.

Italy is the heartland of the Roman Empire and the Renaissance, and its landscapes are inseparable from human history — Pompeii beneath Vesuvius, Greek temples in Sicily, and hill towns crowning Tuscany and Umbria. Unified as a nation only in 1861, it remains a mosaic of strong regional identities.

Outdoor life in Italy is inseparable from food, wine, and village life — the passeggiata, agriturismo farm stays, and mountain rifugi serving regional cooking. Alpinism, cycling (the Giro d'Italia), and a deep love of the sea shape the national relationship with the land.

Book Dolomite rifugi and Cinque Terre trains in advance during summer, and start coastal and volcano hikes early to beat heat and crowds. Combine outdoor days with regional cuisine and wine, use the train network, and consider spring or autumn for the most comfortable hiking.