# Road trips in Italy

> 59 road trips and 199 hand-picked places in Italy, with routes, stops and practical tips for driving and camping.

Source: https://camping-spirit.com/roadtrips/italy/

59 road trips and 199 hand-picked places in Italy, with routes, stops and practical tips for driving and camping.

## Road trips through Italy

- [Pompeii and the Amalfi Coast from Naples](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/amalfi/): Roman streets, cliff villages and lemon groves on one of Italy’s most famous roads.
- [A loop through the Dolomites](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/dolomites/): Emerald lakes, the Tre Cime and high passes above Cortina.
- [Tuscany and Lazio by motorhome](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/tuscany-camper/): Pisa, wine country, cypress hills and a village on a crumbling rock. Ends in Rome, so plan for the ZTL.
- [Lake Garda and Lake Como](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/italian-lakes/): Castle towns, lakeside campsites and car ferries between the villages.
- [Sicily loop: temples, Etna and Baroque towns](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/sicily-baroque/): From Palermo along the north coast to Etna and Taormina, then south through the Baroque towns to the Valley of the Temples.
- [Sardinia’s Orientale Sarda](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/sardinia-east/): The SS125 from Olbia to Cagliari: white beaches, the Gulf of Orosei and some of the wildest coast in the Mediterranean.
- [Puglia: trulli, white towns and the heel of Italy](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/puglia-trulli/): Cliff towns, olive groves and cone-roofed trulli, then Baroque Lecce and the lighthouse at the tip of the heel.
- [Cilento and Maratea: the quiet side of Campania](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/cilento-coast/): Greek temples at Paestum, fishing villages and caves on the Cilento coast, then the cliffs of Maratea.
- [Great Dolomite Road: Bolzano to Cortina](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/great-dolomite-road/): The historic road over the Costalunga and Pordoi passes, past Lake Carezza, ending in Cortina d’Ampezzo.
- [Lake Garda loop](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/lake-garda-loop/): Around Italy’s largest lake: the Gardesana tunnels, lemon houses at Limone, Monte Baldo and the castle at Sirmione.
- [Langhe and Roero: Barolo country](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/langhe-wine/): Truffles, hazelnuts and castle villages on vine-covered hills south of Turin.
- [Italian Riviera: Genoa to Lerici](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/riviera-levante/): Portofino, Camogli, the Cinque Terre and the Gulf of Poets on the Via Aurelia.
- [Italy’s Food Valley: Parma to Ravenna](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/food-valley/): Parmigiano, prosciutto and balsamic along the Via Emilia, with Bologna’s arcades and Ravenna’s mosaics.
- [Umbria’s hill towns](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/umbria-hill-towns/): Perugia, Assisi, Spello, Spoleto and Orvieto, ending at Civita di Bagnoregio.
- [Abruzzo: Gran Sasso and the stone villages](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/abruzzo-high/): Little Tibet at Campo Imperatore, the castle of Rocca Calascio and the road through the Sagittario gorge to Scanno.
- [Aosta Valley: castles and Gran Paradiso](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/aosta-valley/): Castles on every spur, ibex in Italy’s oldest national park and Mont Blanc at the end of the road.
- [Val d’Orcia slow road](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/val-dorcia-slow/): Cypress avenues, Montalcino’s Brunello and Renaissance Pienza in a UNESCO landscape.
- [Riviera di Ponente: Genoa to the French border](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b1-riviera-ponente/): Medieval harbour towns, prehistoric footprints in a cave and Monet’s bridge on the western Ligurian coast, ending in a garden above the sea.
- [Lake Maggiore and Lake Orta](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b1-maggiore-orta/): A convent island on quiet Lake Orta, then palace gardens and island hopping on the western shore of Lake Maggiore.
- [Bergamo, Lake Iseo and the Valcamonica rock art](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b1-iseo-valcamonica/): From Bergamo’s walled upper town through the Franciacorta vineyards to a car-free lake island and thousands of prehistoric carvings.
- [Brenta Dolomites and the Val di Non](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b1-brenta-dolomites/): A loop from Trento round the Brenta group: a lake resort, a thundering waterfall, Madonna di Campiglio and a gorge sanctuary among apple orchards.
- [Friuli: from the Adriatic lagoons to the Julian Alps](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b1-friuli/): Habsburg Trieste, Roman Aquileia, a star-shaped fortress town and Lombard Cividale, then north to mountain lakes on the Slovenian border.
- [Palladian villas and the Prosecco hills](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b1-prosecco-palladio/): Vicenza and Palladio’s villas, the covered bridge of Bassano, hill-town Asolo and the steep vineyards of Valdobbiadene and Conegliano.
- [Po Delta: lagoons, abbeys and Ferrara](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b1-po-delta/): A flat, quiet trip through Italy’s largest wetland: fishing towns, mussel lagoons, a Romanesque abbey and the Renaissance city of Ferrara.
- [Montefeltro: Rimini to Urbino and Gradara](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b1-montefeltro/): Behind the Adriatic beaches: a Roman bridge, a fortress on a rock, Renaissance Urbino and the castle of Paolo and Francesca.
- [Conero Riviera and the Frasassi caves](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b1-conero-frasassi/): White coves under Monte Conero, the pilgrim town of Loreto and Leopardi’s Recanati, then inland to one of Europe’s largest show caves.
- [Monti Sibillini: Ascoli to the flowering plain](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b1-sibillini/): From the travertine squares of Ascoli Piceno over high passes to the Piano Grande, then through the Sibillini valleys to lakes and gorges.
- [Trabocchi Coast to the Molise and Abruzzo mountains](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b1-trabocchi-molise/): Fishing platforms on stilts along the Adriatic, then up into Molise for Samnite ruins and a bell foundry, ending in bear country in the Abruzzo National Park.
- [Gargano: forest, cliffs and sea stacks](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b1-gargano/): The spur of Italy’s boot: an archangel’s cave sanctuary, white sea stacks, Vieste’s monolith and an ancient beech forest.
- [Castles and ravines of the Alta Murgia](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b1-alta-murgia/): From Bari’s coast of Romanesque cathedrals up to Frederick II’s octagonal castle, a giant sinkhole and the cave town of Gravina.
- [Basilicata: Matera, ghost towns and the Lucanian Dolomites](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b1-basilicata/): Matera from across the ravine, the abandoned town of Craco, rock villages linked by a zip line and crater lakes on an extinct volcano.
- [Calabria’s Coast of the Gods](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b1-costa-degli-dei/): Pizzo’s cave church and ice cream, Tropea on its cliff, the Capo Vaticano headland and the Riace Bronzes at the toe of Italy.
- [Pollino and Sila: Calabria’s mountain heart](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b1-pollino-sila/): A village stacked on a hill, an Albanian-speaking community above a gorge, a purple Byzantine manuscript and the ancient pines of the Sila.
- [Western Sicily: Segesta, Erice and the salt pans](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b1-sicily-west/): Gold mosaics at Monreale, a lone Greek temple, a roadless nature reserve, the hilltop town of Erice and windmills on the salt pans of Marsala.
- [Inland Sicily: mosaics, majolica and the Madonie](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b1-sicily-interior/): Through the island’s high interior: a tiled staircase, Roman floor mosaics, the belvedere city of Enna and mountain villages above Cefalù.
- [Sardinia’s west coast: Alghero to Barumini](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b1-sardinia-west/): Catalan Alghero and a sea cave under Capo Caccia, the cliff road to Bosa, quartz beaches and Phoenician ruins on the Sinis, then the Bronze Age at Barumini.
- [Gallura: granite coast of northern Sardinia](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b1-gallura/): The Costa Smeralda, a bear carved by the wind, Capo Testa facing Corsica and a castle town above the sea, ending at La Pelosa.
- [Piedmont’s western valleys: forts and the source of the Po](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b1-piedmont-valleys/): From Turin to a mountaintop abbey, Roman Susa and a giant Alpine fortress, then through the Po plain to Saluzzo and up to the foot of Monviso.
- [Maremma: cypresses, hot springs and tuff towns](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b1-maremma/): The cypress avenue of Bolgheri, Etruscan tombs by the sea, a wild coastal park, free hot springs and towns carved out of volcanic rock.
- [Chianti road: Florence to San Gimignano and Volterra](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b11-chianti-san-gimignano/): The Chiantigiana wine road through Greve and Castellina, then the walled villages and towers of the Val d’Elsa to hilltop Volterra.
- [Lucca, the Garfagnana and the marble of Carrara](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b11-lucca-garfagnana/): From Lucca’s walls up the Serchio valley to the Devil’s Bridge and a show cave, then over the Apuan Alps to the Carrara quarries.
- [Crete Senesi, Montepulciano and Cortona](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b11-crete-senesi-cortona/): Clay hills and abbeys south of Siena, a village square filled with hot springs, then Montepulciano’s wine town and Cortona above Lake Trasimeno.
- [Tuscia: monsters, villas and Etruscan tombs north of Rome](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b11-tuscia/): Renaissance gardens and a park of stone monsters around Viterbo, volcanic Lake Bolsena and the painted Etruscan tombs of Tarquinia.
- [Appian Way, Tivoli and the Castelli Romani](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b11-tivoli-castelli/): An easy loop from Rome: the Appian Way, the villas of Hadrian and the d’Este at Tivoli, St Benedict’s cliff monastery and the volcanic lakes.
- [Riviera d’Ulisse: Rome to Gaeta](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b11-riviera-ulisse/): South from Rome to the ruined garden town of Ninfa, the dunes of Circeo and the cliff-backed beaches and Roman villas of Sperlonga and Gaeta.
- [Naples’ volcanoes, Herculaneum and the Royal Palace of Caserta](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b11-campania-volcanoes/): Greek Cuma and the Phlegraean Fields, Herculaneum and the crater of Vesuvius, then the Bourbon palace of Caserta and Roman Benevento.
- [Southern Umbria: Todi, Montefalco and the Marmore Falls](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b11-southern-umbria/): Hill towns and Sagrantino vineyards, Spoleto’s giant aqueduct, a Roman-made waterfall and the ruined bridge of Augustus at Narni.
- [Val di Funes, Val Gardena and the Sella passes](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b11-val-gardena-sella/): The chapel under the Odle peaks, Seceda’s ridge and the Alpe di Siusi, then the high passes around the Sella group to Val Badia and Arabba.
- [Val Venosta: Merano to Lake Resia and the Stelvio](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b11-val-venosta-resia/): Castles and apple orchards up the Adige valley, a walled mini-town and a high abbey, the tower in Lake Resia, then over the Stelvio to Bormio.
- [Lake Como: villas and gorges on both shores](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b11-lake-como-shores/): The west shore’s villas and gardens, a car ferry across the lake to Varenna, then the gorge of Bellano and a Romanesque abbey at the north end.
- [Mantua, Sabbioneta and Cremona: Renaissance towns of the Po plain](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b11-mantua-cremona/): From Verona to the mills of Borghetto, the Gonzaga palaces of Mantua and the ideal town of Sabbioneta, then Cremona and the Certosa di Pavia.
- [Riviera del Brenta, Padua and the Euganean Hills](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b11-brenta-euganean/): Palladian villas along the Brenta canal, Giotto’s chapel in Padua, then Petrarch’s village and the walled towns below the Euganean Hills.
- [Aosta Valley: the Matterhorn, Fort Bard and Monte Rosa](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b11-matterhorn-monte-rosa/): From Aosta to Cervinia under the Matterhorn, down the valley past castles and the Fort of Bard, then up the Walser valley of Gressoney.
- [Valle d’Itria: caves, trulli and white towns](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b11-valle-itria/): The Castellana caves and the harbour town of Monopoli, a Roman port by the sea, then the white towns of the Valle d’Itria to Ostuni.
- [Salento: sea pools and cliffs between two seas](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b11-salento-two-seas/): Down the Adriatic cliffs from Lecce to Italy’s heel at Leuca, then up the sandy Ionian shore to Gallipoli and the pine woods of Porto Selvaggio.
- [Around Etna: lava castles, the north slope and the Alcantara Gorges](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b11-etna-alcantara/): A loop round Europe’s highest active volcano, from the Cyclops coast to Etna’s northern slope, the basalt gorges of the Alcantara and the hill villages above Taormina.
- [Val di Noto: Syracuse to Scicli](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b11-val-di-noto/): The Greek theatre of Syracuse, the flamingo lagoons of Vendicari and the fishing village of Marzamemi, then the Baroque towns of Modica, Scicli and Ragusa.
- [South-west Sardinia: Costa del Sud, mines and the Piscinas dunes](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/b11-sardinia-southwest/): Roman Nora and the beaches of the Costa del Sud, the island of Sant’Antioco, the cliff mines of Iglesiente and the wild dunes of Piscinas.
- [Stelvio and Bernina: two giants of the Alps](https://camping-spirit.com/guides/stelvio-bernina/): Forty-eight hairpins over the Stelvio, duty-free Livigno, St. Moritz and down the Bernina pass to Tirano.

## Places worth the detour in Italy

- [Tre Cime di Lavaredo](https://camping-spirit.com/places/tre-cime/): Three limestone towers, the symbol of the Dolomites. A toll road climbs to the Auronzo hut, then an easy trail loops around them.
- [Passo dello Stelvio](https://camping-spirit.com/places/stelvio/): At 2,757 m, the highest paved pass in Italy, with 48 numbered hairpins on the Trafoi side. Usually open June to October.
- [Vernazza, Cinque Terre](https://camping-spirit.com/places/cinque-terre/): Pastel houses stacked above a tiny harbour. Leave the car in La Spezia or Levanto and take the train.
- [Val d'Orcia cypresses](https://camping-spirit.com/places/val-dorcia/): Rolling Tuscan hills lined with cypresses, a UNESCO landscape. The best-known cypress group is beside the SR2.
- [Civita di Bagnoregio](https://camping-spirit.com/places/civita/): A hilltop village on crumbling clay, reached only by a steep footbridge. There is an entry fee.
- [Positano](https://camping-spirit.com/places/positano/): A vertical town of pastel houses above a beach on the Amalfi Coast. Parking is scarce and expensive; arrive early or by boat.
- [Scavi di Pompei](https://camping-spirit.com/places/pompeii/): A Roman city buried by Vesuvius in AD 79, with streets, houses and frescoes. Allow at least half a day.
- [Sassi di Matera](https://camping-spirit.com/places/matera/): Cave dwellings carved into a ravine and lived in for thousands of years. Many are now hotels and restaurants.
- [Valle dei Templi](https://camping-spirit.com/places/agrigento/): A ridge of Greek temples among almond and olive trees, among the best preserved outside Greece.
- [Scala dei Turchi](https://camping-spirit.com/places/scala-turchi/): A white marl cliff that steps down into the sea like a staircase. Go late in the day, when it glows against the blue water.
- [Cala Luna](https://camping-spirit.com/places/cala-luna/): A crescent of sand under limestone caves, reached by boat from Cala Gonone or on a four-hour coastal path.
- [Polignano a Mare](https://camping-spirit.com/places/polignano/): Whitewashed houses on the edge of a limestone cliff above a tiny pebble cove. The terraces are best at sunrise.
- [Paestum temples](https://camping-spirit.com/places/paestum/): Three Greek Doric temples standing in open fields, older than the Parthenon and among the best preserved anywhere.
- [Portofino harbour](https://camping-spirit.com/places/portofino/): Painted houses around a tiny harbour. Parking is limited: arrive early or take the boat from Santa Margherita.
- [Ravenna mosaics](https://camping-spirit.com/places/ravenna-mosaics/): Fifth- and sixth-century mosaics in gold and deep blue cover the walls of San Vitale and the Mausoleum of Galla Placidia.
- [Basilica of St Francis](https://camping-spirit.com/places/assisi-basilica/): Two churches stacked on a hillside, the lower one covered in Giotto-era frescoes. The town itself is car-free.
- [Rocca Calascio](https://camping-spirit.com/places/rocca-calascio/): A ruined castle at 1,460 m on a bare ridge of the Gran Sasso, with a tiny octagonal church below it.
- [Dolceacqua bridge and castle](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b1-dolceacqua-bridge/): A single-arched medieval bridge below the Doria castle, painted by Monet in 1884. Leave the car in the car park by the river; the village lanes are too narrow.
- [Isola San Giulio](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b1-isola-san-giulio/): A tiny island of convent walls and a Romanesque basilica, a few minutes by boat from Orta’s piazza. Walk the single loop lane, the Way of Silence.
- [Isola Bella](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b1-isola-bella/): The Borromeo family’s Baroque palace and terraced garden, with white peacocks, filling a whole island off Stresa. Public boats leave from the Stresa landing.
- [Monte Isola](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b1-monte-isola/): One of the largest lake islands in Europe, almost free of cars. Leave the vehicle at Sulzano, take the short ferry and walk or cycle round the shore.
- [Naquane rock art park](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b1-naquane-rock-art/): Glacier-smoothed rocks carved with thousands of figures, from prehistoric hunters to ploughs and houses. Italy’s first UNESCO site; come in low sun, when the carvings stand out best.
- [Nardis waterfall](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b1-cascate-nardis/): A broad waterfall plunging over granite at the mouth of the Val Genova. In high summer the valley road is restricted and shuttle buses run from Carisolo.
- [Lago di Tovel](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b1-lago-tovel/): A clear mountain lake under the Brenta walls that used to turn red with algae until the 1960s. A flat path circles it; in summer parking is paid and fills early.
- [Miramare Castle](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b1-miramare/): A white castle on a rocky point built for Archduke Maximilian of Habsburg, with a seaside park open freely. Parking on the coast road is limited, so arrive early.
- [Basilica of Aquileia](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b1-aquileia-basilica/): The basilica of a once great Roman city, floored with a vast 4th-century mosaic of fish, birds and biblical scenes. The Roman forum and river port are a short walk away.
- [Fusine Lakes](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b1-laghi-fusine/): Two green lakes in the forest below the Mangart, a few kilometres from the Slovenian border. An easy trail links them; beautiful in autumn colours.
- [Villa La Rotonda](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b1-villa-rotonda/): Palladio’s perfectly symmetrical villa on a hill just outside Vicenza, copied across Europe and America. Opening days are limited; the gardens open more often than the interior.
- [Cartizze and the Prosecco hills](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b1-cartizze-hills/): Steep, vine-striped ‘hogback’ hills between Valdobbiadene and Conegliano, a UNESCO landscape. The Cartizze slope is the most prized; small roads are narrow for motorhomes.
- [Pomposa Abbey](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b1-pomposa-abbey/): A Benedictine abbey with a tall Romanesque bell tower rising out of the flat delta, where the monk Guido d’Arezzo developed musical notation. Frescoes cover the church interior.
- [San Leo fortress](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b1-san-leo-fortress/): A Renaissance fortress on a sheer rock slab above the Marecchia valley, where the adventurer Cagliostro died in prison. The village below has only one road in; park at the entrance.
- [Ducal Palace of Urbino](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b1-palazzo-ducale-urbino/): Federico da Montefeltro’s palace, one of the purest works of the Renaissance, now home to the National Gallery of the Marche. Park below the walls and take the lift up.
- [Portonovo bay](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b1-portonovo/): A white pebble bay under the wooded cliffs of Monte Conero, with a small Romanesque church by the sea. The access road is steep and parking scarce in summer, when shuttle buses run.
- [Frasassi caves](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b1-grotte-frasassi/): One of Europe’s great show caves, with a chamber big enough to hold a cathedral. Tours start from a car park at San Vittore with a shuttle bus; bring a jacket.
- [Piano Grande di Castelluccio](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b1-piano-grande/): A vast upland plain under Monte Vettore that flowers red, blue and yellow in late June and early July. The roads over Forca di Presta and Forca Canapine can close in snow.
- [Trabocco Turchino](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b1-trabocco-turchino/): A wooden fishing platform on stilts off a rocky point, the classic image of the Trabocchi coast. The cycle path on the old coastal railway passes right by.
- [Samnite theatre of Pietrabbondante](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b1-pietrabbondante/): The theatre and temple of the Samnites, Rome’s mountain enemies, on a green slope at almost 1,000 m. The seats have backrests carved from the stone.
- [Sanctuary of St Michael](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b1-monte-sant-angelo/): An ancient pilgrimage cave dedicated to the Archangel Michael, reached down a long stairway, in a UNESCO-listed town high above Manfredonia.
- [Baia delle Zagare](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b1-baia-zagare/): Two white sea stacks off a cove below the cliffs of the Gargano. The best views are from the coast road and from boat trips out of Vieste or Mattinata.
- [Trani Cathedral](https://camping-spirit.com/places/b1-trani-cathedral/): A pale Romanesque cathedral standing alone on the edge of the sea, with a tall open-arched bell tower. The old harbour next to it is lovely at sunset.

## FAQs

**What are the best road trips in Italy?**
Popular routes include Pompeii and the Amalfi Coast from Naples, A loop through the Dolomites, Tuscany and Lazio by motorhome and Lake Garda and Lake Como. CampingSpirit has 59 trip guides that pass through Italy, each with a stop-by-stop itinerary and a route map.

**Which places in Italy are worth a detour?**
Our editors recommend Tre Cime di Lavaredo, Passo dello Stelvio, Vernazza, Cinque Terre, Val d'Orcia cypresses, Civita di Bagnoregio and Positano.

**Do you need a vignette or pay tolls in Italy?**
Motorway tolls. Tolls on most autostrade; pay at the barrier by card or cash. Rules and prices change. Check official sources before you travel.

**What is the motorway speed limit in Italy?**
130 km/h on motorways for cars, unless signs show otherwise.

**Are there low-emission zones in Italy?**
ZTL zones in historic centres.