10 Things You Can Only Do in Italy | Classics and Hidden Gems
Living in Japan and dreaming of Italy? Cicloposse Japan, based in Okayama, is the Japan-side partner of Cicloposse Italia. We help you plan and book your trip from Japan, in your time zone, with support in English by LINE or email. Our team in Italy speaks English too.
Here are the things you can only experience in Italy, from someone who grew up there.
Even at the famous sights, a few tips and an Italian's point of view can make your trip many times more enjoyable!
I'll also share plenty of lesser-known Italian experiences, so do add them to your plans. There are a few things to watch out for too, so read on so you don't miss out.
Experiencing the food, culture and everyday life of a place is something you can only really do in Italy itself.
I'm Matteo, born in Milan and now living in Okayama, where I organise cycling tours in Italy. Based on my own experience, I'll be your guide before your trip to Italy.
5 classic Italian experiences, enjoyed the Italian way
This chapter covers the classic activities in Italy.
There is plenty you can only do in Italy at the famous sights too, so here is how to enjoy the classics more, from a local's point of view.
1. Walk around with an authentic Italian gelato
In Italy, even small towns have a gelateria facing the piazza. More and more shops now make "gelato artigianale" by hand on site. It costs a little more, but Italians and visitors alike still choose quality, and handmade gelato tastes completely different from the factory-made kind.
For Italian children, gelato is the best snack between games with friends in the piazza. In the evening you often see kids running around with a cone in hand while the adults chat nearby.
My tip: rather than hunting for the famous shops in the guidebook, try the gelateria in the piazza of the town where you are staying. In the Val d'Orcia, my favourite is the Buongusto gelateria in Pienza. Sit on a bench in the piazza with your gelato and you will blend right into the local evening atmosphere.
2. Enjoy a real espresso or cappuccino at the bar
An Italian bar is not just a café: it is where people in town meet and chat. The Italian way is to drink your coffee standing at the counter (the banco). Sitting at a table usually costs extra, so keep that in mind.
Many visitors are surprised that Italians hardly ever drink cappuccino after lunch or dinner. Cappuccino is a breakfast drink, enjoyed with something sweet: a croissant, a pastry, or bread and jam. The croissant has different names around Italy: in my home town of Milan it's a "brioche", in Rome a "cornetto". In Tuscany both are used, and in Florence some people call it "pasta". Not the noodle kind, which is a little confusing!
With lunch or dinner, the usual drinks are sparkling or still water, or wine. With pizza, people often have beer or cola.
One more thing to know is the "coperto" on restaurant bills. It covers the table setting and the bread or grissini. It's not a rip-off, so don't worry.
3. Stroll through a local market and discover local produce
In many Italian towns, each district has a weekly market (mercato). Like a supermarket you can find everything from vegetables and fruit to household goods, but the difference is freshness and simplicity. It's not unusual for the vegetables to have been picked by the person selling them. Buying directly from someone who knows their produce well is the best thing about the market.
The relationship with the sellers is the fun part. On your first visit they size you up a little, but from the second time they remember you and recommend the best things of the day.
Besides the cheese and olive stalls, a market must-have is the roast chicken stand. When you get hungry from walking around, the smell will surely draw you in. When you travel, look up the market day in the town where you are staying and drop by on a morning walk.
4. Florence street food
The first time I ate a lampredotto panino was on a drizzly November day, standing in front of a street stall. Lampredotto, stewed cow's fourth stomach, is a Florentine everyday food. The vendor asked me "bagnato?" (dipped in the broth), and without knowing what it meant, I said yes.
With the rain, it was exactly the right choice: soft bread soaked in broth, salsa verde and a little heat. Next to me at the same counter were a craftsman on his lunch break and an elegant lady with her shopping bags. Florentine street food is not a trend but a centuries-old popular tradition.
Next came a thick, slightly oily schiacciata filled with finocchiona (fennel salami) and pecorino cheese, which I ate as I walked towards the Arno.
In the evening, the bistecca alla fiorentina: a T-bone steak three fingers thick, usually ordered by weight, and never well done, the Florentine way. Crisp outside, red and warm inside, seasoned only with coarse salt and Tuscan olive oil. Menu prices are often per 100 g or per kilo, so check before you order.
5. See the famous sights and World Heritage Sites of Rome
For me, the best way to enjoy Rome is to watch the same stones change colour with the light through the day.
At dawn the Colosseum turns pale pink, its travertine stones seeming to breathe after 2,000 years of nights. In the morning, light from the oculus in the Pantheon's dome draws a circle on the marble floor that moves slowly like an ancient sundial. From the Capitoline Hill you see the arches and columns of the Roman Forum in warm, dusty light.
At sunset the dome of St Peter's Basilica glows gold and the surrounding rooftops turn from pink to purple. You can climb the dome, and the view from the top is truly wonderful.
A nice bonus is the cast-iron drinking fountains, the "nasoni", all over the city. The cold, good water is free, so carry an empty bottle and save money too.
Two warnings. The Colosseum needs a timed ticket and popular slots sell out fast, so book online early. And watch out for the people dressed as gladiators in front of it: they put a helmet on me for a photo and then asked for money. Smiles yes, photos no.
Off-the-beaten-path Italy: experiences you won't find elsewhere
Here are some local experiences, real hidden gems, that anyone who loves Italy should try at least once.
Check out these authentic Italian cultural experiences that typical tours rarely include.
6. See Italy's best scenery by bike
Riding through the Tuscan hills by bike instead of seeing them through a car window, you feel the landscape with your whole body: the smell of the wind, the length of each climb, the village bells. I especially recommend the Val d'Orcia and its white gravel roads, the "Strade Bianche". You ride between cypress avenues and vineyards on roads with almost no traffic.
There are plenty of hills, but with an e-bike you'll be fine even if your legs aren't strong. Choose a gravel bike or e-gravel bike and you can ride the gravel roads with confidence.
You can either rent a bike locally and ride on your own, or join an Italian cycling tour with routes, hotels and luggage transfers all arranged. Cicloposse offers both guided tours and self-guided tours at your own pace. Mind the season: July and August are too hot, so our tours run in spring and autumn.
For more on the white roads, see What are the Strade Bianche?, and for choosing a bike and the best season, see 5 tips for cycling in Italy.
7. Take a cooking class in Italy
The best way to really know Italian food is not just to eat it but to cook it together in a local kitchen. Handmade pasta, kneaded and rolled out by hand, is the taste of the Italian home. For me, running an Italian home-cooking restaurant in Okayama, this is where it all starts.
On Cicloposse's Tuscany food tour, you make fresh pasta with chef Paolo at your accommodation near Pienza. It starts with a toast of sparkling wine or a spritz, and sitting down together to share the food you made is one of the most memorable moments of the trip.
If you travel on your own, many agriturismi and hotels run cooking classes, so ask when you book. Some only run with a minimum number of people, so it's worth checking. A cooking class can also be added to Cicloposse self-guided tours.
8. Visit a winery and enjoy the land and its wine together
Seeing the vineyards with your own eyes and breathing the air of the place before you taste the wine changes how it tastes completely. In Tuscany, Brunello di Montalcino and Chianti Classico are the famous ones.
My recommendation is the Fanti winery in Montalcino, which we visit for lunch on our Tuscany food tour. At the Palazzo Massaini winery near our accommodation, you can also see how wine and olive oil are made.
Near Montalcino there is also Santa Giulia, a winery run by an Italian and Japanese couple.
If you go on your own, most wineries require a booking, so reserve in advance on the winery's website. When touring by bike, the obvious warning is not to drink too much: taste a little at a time and drink plenty of water.
I write more about the link between wine and landscape in Italian landscapes and wine.
9. Explore small towns and villages
I believe the real charm of Italy is in its small hilltop towns rather than its big cities.
In the Val d'Orcia: Pienza, the Renaissance ideal town and a World Heritage Site (Piazza Pio II); Montalcino, the wine town with its 14th-century fortress; Bagno Vignoni, with a thermal pool in the middle of the village; Monticchiello, with its medieval atmosphere; and Radicofani, the fortress village on the mountain.
Each town is small enough to explore on foot, and half a day is plenty. Go early in the morning or in the evening: there are fewer day-trippers and you see the everyday life of the town.
The catch is transport. Small towns often have no train station and few buses, so a rental car or a tour is the realistic option. For the highlights of each town, see my Val d'Orcia travel guide.
10. Stay in an agriturismo
An agriturismo is a farm that offers accommodation and meals, a very Italian way to stay. The table often features wine, olive oil and vegetables from the farm or the area, for a stay rooted in the land, quite different from a hotel.
On our Tuscany food tour you stay 6 nights at La Pieve di Palazzo Massaini, a villa in a converted old farmhouse. Coming back to the same place every day means no packing and unpacking, and you can relax by the pool. Dinner at the organic farm Podere Il Casale is also on the programme.
If you choose one yourself, keep in mind that agriturismi are often far from town centres. Without a car, getting around can be difficult, so check the location and access before you book.
Finally: enjoy the experiences only Italy can offer!
Italy has so much more than its famous sights: a charm you only discover by experiencing the food, culture and daily life of each place.
Tasting the real thing, walking the lanes of a small town, cycling through beautiful countryside. Step a little off the classic tourist route and you may find an Italy you'll never see in a guidebook.
If any of these experiences caught your eye, do try them on your next trip to Italy.
At Cicloposse we also offer local tours in Italy centred on cycling, with food, wine and regional culture, and support from our Japan office.
If you'd like to experience a more local Italy, have a look at ciclopossejapan.com as one option for your trip.
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