ABRUZZO

Between the Gran Sasso of Italy — with its 2.912 meters the roof of the Apennines — and the emerald green waters of the Adriatic, Abruzzo is a region of extremes and authentic wonder. In just one hundred kilometers, you can travel from the highest peak in mainland Italy to the beaches of Pescara: a variety of landscapes and climates unlike any other in Europe. It is home to Italy's oldest and most precious natural parks—the Abruzzo, Lazio, and Molise National Park, founded in 1923, and the Majella National Park—where the Marsican brown bear, the Apennine wolf, and the Abruzzo chamois roam freely among beech forests and high-altitude meadows. It is also L'Aquila, a city devastated by the 2009 earthquake and continually reborn; Sulmona, home to confetti and the verses of Ovid; and Lanciano, home to its Eucharistic Miracle.

beaches

The Trabocchi Coast is one of Italy's most distinctive and picturesque coastlines: for over 60 kilometers from Ortona to Vasto, the Abruzzo coast is dotted with trabocchi, ancient wooden fishing machines that jut out into the sea like enormous wooden spiders, many of which have been transformed into charming seaside restaurants. Vasto Marina and its long sandy beaches, Ortona with its port and the beaches of Riccio, Lanciano Mare, Francavilla al Mare with its large beach, and the Punta Aderci Nature Reserve with its medieval tower perched on a hill overlooking the turquoise sea are the main seaside destinations. The Trabocchi Coast cycle path runs parallel to the sea along the former Adriatic railway, now converted into one of Italy's most scenic cycling routes.

Landscapes

Campo Imperatore on the Gran Sasso plateau is Italy's "Little Tibet": a vast and silent grassy expanse above 2.000 meters, where in summer the Catria horse grazes amidst flocks of sheep and the whistles of marmots. The Piani di Pezza and the Majella prairies are equally spectacular in their natural architecture. The Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise National Park, with the village of Civitella Alfedena and Lake Barrea, is a sanctuary for Apennine fauna: here, more than anywhere else, nature has remained pristine. The Rocche plateau, with the medieval villages of Rocca di Cambio and Rocca di Mezzo, is one of the highest in Italy and offers breathtaking views. The saffron of Navelli—the most prized in the world—the nougat of Sulmona, and the lentils of Santo Stefano di Sessanio complete the portrait of a unique region.