Along Italy’s rugged coastline, villages huddle together like tiny jewels between the blue expanse of the sea and the greenery of the mountains rising above them.

The five ancient fishing ports of the Cinque Terre are between Genoa and La Spezia along the Ligurian coast. Then there are Abruzzo’s beach resorts, the renowned Sorrento peninsula, romantic Amalfi, the splendidly wild cliffs of Calabria and the islands of Sicily and Sardinia, the jewels of the Mediterranean.

Italy’s crystalline lakes have attracted artists and aristocrats, writers, and wealthy retirees for hundreds of years. On their banks, castles and grand residences are surrounded by formal gardens; solitary abbeys add their promise of serenity.

Lombardy’s spectacular lakes - Maggiore, Garda, Como and Lugano - are known and loved by many world travellers. Other smaller lakes, spared from fame and mass tourism, rest in pristine natural settings and are worth seeking out.

From the great Alpine valleys to the sunny plains of Sicily, Italy is dotted with lovely lakes. Orta and Iseo, Bolsena and Bracciano, Lesina and Varano are all awaiting the keen traveller.