12 Small Towns in Italy That Look Like Storybook Villages

Strolling through the charming Italian village of Atrani on a pleasant fall day, I stumbled upon a covered passageway with a photographic exhibition dedicated to the 20th-century Dutch artist M.C. Escher. As I walked, or rather climbed, through narrow whitewashed alleys and stairs that connected the sea to the upper part of the village, it was easy to see how the improbable geography of this Amalfi Coast locale inspired Escher’s art, which often played with optical illusions and labyrinth-like concepts. I peered through a wrought-iron gate at a small decorated shrine, amazed at how little seemed to have changed over the past century. Ten minutes away, Amalfi was buzzing with tourists, but in Atrani, only a handful of local shopkeepers were milling around.

That’s the magic of small towns like Atrani—they offer a glimpse of a bygone era. Luckily, Italians are adamant about recognizing and protecting their history and heritage. There are consortia that protect regional products like Parmigiano Reggiano, organizations that preserve the country’s artistic and architectural treasures, and even official designations for the country’s most beautiful villages. I Borghi più belli d’Italia is an association founded in 2001 to valorize and promote the historic, cultural, and artistic heritage of Italy’s villages.

According to the association, “A borgo (plural: borghi) is a fascinating small Italian town, generally fortified and dating back to the period from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance. It usually rises around a castle or a noble palace and is often surrounded by defensive walls and towers.”

There are currently 382 villages recognized as borghi più belli d’Italia, and each one proudly displays the association’s logo. Here are our picks of the 12 most beautiful from that list.

Photo by thegrimfandango/Shutterstock

Alberobello

• Location: Puglia, one hour from Bari

This town in Puglia’s Itria Valley is famous for having the highest concentration of trulli (ancient limestone dwellings with whitewashed walls and conical roofs) in Italy. In fact, the town was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list because of them. Originally built as peasant dwellings and then long forsaken by locals, many trulli in the town center and the surrounding countryside have now been renovated and transformed into holiday homes or B&Bs, shops, and restaurants. You can even watch a cheese-making demo and sample freshly made mozzarella and burrata at Agriturismo Aglio Piccolo, a trullo-turned-agriturismo in the countryside just outside of town. If you want to stay in one, the Thinking Traveller has a collection of villas in converted trulli.

Photo by Sean Pavone

Atrani

• Location: Campania, 90 minutes from Naples

The next town over from Amalfi, this little hamlet doesn’t often register on the map for those flocking to more famous towns like Positano and Ravello. But take the panoramic road that ascends from Amalfi’s beach, and you’ll soon arrive in Atrani, which at 0.07-square-miles is one of the tiniest towns in Italy. Despite its diminutive size, it’s big on charm, with a beautiful beach and a main square, Piazza Umberto I, that feels frozen in time. It’s no wonder the town was used as one of the main filming locations in the Netflix series Ripley. In Atrani’s restaurants, expect to find fresh seafood and other local specialties like mozzarella di bufala and limoncello.

Barolo

• Location: Piedmont, one hour from Turin

This village in the Langhe hills of Piedmont shares its name with the region’s famous fine wine. Pretty much everything here revolves around the stuff. The countryside surrounding the town is covered in vines that grow the Nebbiolo grapes used for prized Barolo wines, and a visit to the area would be incomplete without doing a tasting at wineries like Cantine Damilano, Gaja, Ceretto, where you can see the Barolo Chapel, a site-specific artwork with riotously colorful exteriors by American conceptual artist Sol LeWitt and interiors by British Swiss muralist David Tremlett. Even the 10th-century castle in the center of town now houses WiMu, the Wine Museum in Barolo. A bottle pairs well with local specialties like agnolotti al plin (meat-stuffed ravioli) or tajarin (a type of long pasta) topped with white truffle foraged in the nearby woods.

Capalbio

Location: Tuscany, 90 minutes from Siena

Set in the southernmost municipality in Tuscany, this medieval village became a favorite vacation spot for Italy’s elite intellectuals and politicians, including philosopher-novelist Umberto Eco and former president Giorgio Napolitano in the latter half of the 20th century. The historic center, which is perched high on a hill and characterized by winding cobblestone lanes and houses, is about a 20-minute drive from the coast. Another nearby site you should check out is the Tarot Garden by Niki de Saint Phalle, a massive park full of monumental sculptures depicting the figures of the tarot deck, inspired by Gaudí’s Park Güell in Barcelona and the Sacro Bosco di Bomarzo in nearby Lazio.

Photo by Laura Itzkowitz

Carloforte

• Location: Sardinia, two hours from Cagliari

The only town on the Isola di San Pietro, a little island just off the coast of Sardinia, Carloforte might be one of Italy’s best-kept secrets. Ligurian fishermen settled here in the 18th century, painting the town’s buildings pastel shades of pink, yellow, green, and blue. Historically, the main industry was tuna fishing, and to this day, nearly every restaurant in town serves tuna in more ways than you can imagine—raw, smoked, cured, grilled, in pasta sauces, or on sandwiches. By its little coves are a handful of beaches, where you can find some of the most crystalline water in the Mediterranean.

Cisternino

• Location: Puglia, one hour from Bari

Only a 25-minute drive from Alberobello, this town might be the epitome of a traditional southern Italian borgo. A clock tower watches over the main piazza, while narrow lanes with whitewashed buildings jut off from it. Residents decorate their homes and shops with flowers and potted plants. In the summer, locals and visitors love to shop in the town’s boutiques, enjoy an aperitivo or dinner alfresco, and stroll around with a gelato in hand.

Photo by Laura Itzkowitz

Civita di Bagnoregio

• Location: Lazio, two hours from Rome

This curious village a couple of hours north of Rome stands isolated on a tuff hill due to erosion, which has made it rise like an island in the center of a valley. A narrow bridge that’s nearly 1,000 feet long connects the medieval part of town to the rest of Bagnoregio. No cars are allowed in the historic center, which makes walking through the narrow cobblestone streets seem all the more like stepping back in time. Today, the historic stone buildings that line the streets are filled with shops and restaurants, which serve local specialties like fresh pasta with wild boar ragù or black truffle.

Guardiagrele

• Location: Abruzzo, 40 minutes from Pescara

This town in Abruzzo, between Majella National Park and the Trabocchi Coast, became known as a center for artisans, especially forgers, who work with cast iron and gold, and silversmiths during the 15th century. Nowadays there are still shops selling delicate filigree jewelry or items made of cast iron, and you can even watch a demo by one of the town’s remaining forgers. Stroll through the village and admire the collegiate church of Santa Maria Maggiore flanked by an attractive brick-covered corridor (known as a loggia). The town is also known for a pastry called sise delle monache—literally meaning “nun’s tits"—made of three domed sponge cakes filled with pastry cream.

Photo by MilanoPE/Shutterstock

Sperlonga

• Location: Lazio, two hours from Rome

The emperor Tiberius had a villa in this coastal town halfway between Rome and Naples, and it’s still a favorite summer destination for Romans. Sperlonga’s beaches are awarded with a Blue Flag by the nonprofit Foundation for Environmental Education for their cleanliness and sustainability, while the town’s whitewashed buildings are filled with restaurants, bars, and shops. The historic center is perched on a rocky crag overlooking the Tyrrhenian Sea, and on summer evenings, the streets come alive with people taking a passeggiata (a leisurely stroll), visiting the shops, and enjoying an aperitivo or dinner on the restaurant terraces.

Tremezzo

• Location: Lombardia, 90 minutes from Milan

Poised on the western shores of Lake Como, this enchanting town is home to some beautiful 17th and 18th-century villas. One of the finest is Villa Carlotta, which is open to the public as a museum, with manicured gardens full of citrus trees, English roses, camellias, and many other plants. A five-minute walk away is the Grand Hotel Tremezzo, which has stood as an art nouveau icon for more than a century. With its floating pool, spa, extensive gardens, lakeview suites, and cuisine that upholds the legacy of the late legendary chef Gualtiero Marchesi, this family-run hotel is one of the best in Italy.

Tropea

• Location: Calabria, one hour from Lamezia Terme

Sometimes called “the Pearl of the Tyrrhenian,” this town is perched high on a cliff overlooking the glittering sea below. It’s one of the most important villages on Calabria’s Coast of the Gods, a place full of myths—legend has it Tropea was founded by Hercules. Today it draws visitors to swim and relax on its beaches by day and flock to the historic center in the evenings. Plenty of shops sell summer clothes while restaurants and bars serve local specialties like ‘nduja (a spicy spreadable sausage), caciocavallo cheese, and jam made with prized Tropea onions. Check into Villa Paola, a tranquil boutique hotel in a 16th-century convent with appealing gardens.

Photo by Sidney van den Boogaard/Shutterstock

Vernazza

• Location: Liguria, 50 minutes from La Spezia

One of the five hamlets that make up the famed Cinque Terre, Vernazza might be the most picturesque. It’s characterized by a promontory that curls around its harbor, which doubles as a small sandy beach. Surrounding the harbor are the pastel-painted buildings that made this part of Liguria so famous, while the Church of Santa Margherita towers over the port with its octagonal tower. And the castle overlooking the town? That’s Doria Castle, a fortress dating back to the 11th century.

This article was originally published in 2024 and most recently updated on January 21, 2026, with current information.