It’s nicknamed the Eternal City for a reason. In Rome, you can drink from a street fountain fed by an ancient aqueduct. Or see the same profile on a statue in the Capitoline Museum and the guy making your cappuccino. (Which, of course, you know never to order after 11 am.) Rome is also a city of contrasts—what other place on earth could be home to both the Vatican and La Dolce Vita?

History lovers should know that Milan is not all about trendy shops and designer clothes. Among the city's many historical attractions are La Scala Opera, the Milan Cathedral, the National Museum of Science and Technology and Santa Maria della Grazie, the church that preserves da Vinci's "Last Supper".

Everyone’s heard the Doors of Paradise, the Duomo, and Michelangelo’s David are captivating, but in Florence, beauty can sneak up on a traveller unexpectedly. You’ll duck into a random church to escape the heat only to spend two hours staring at an impossibly pure blue in a fresco. Or you’ll consider writing a sonnet about pear gelato. It’s just that kind of place. Don't miss the sunset over the Arno and the famous wines of the Chianti region just south of town.

With its gondolas, canals, amazing restaurants, and unforgettable romantic ambiance, Venice is definitely a city for one's bucket list. Waterfront palazzos, palaces, and churches make drifting down the Grand Canal feel like cruising through a painting. To really experience Venice you must go to the opera or to a classical music performance, nibble fresh pasta and pastries, and linger in the exhibit halls of an art gallery. Label lovers will drool over the high-end shopping in Piazza San Marco.

Romantic Naples, two hours south of Rome, is the largest city in southern Italy. It has some of the world's best opera and theatre houses and is often called an open-air museum, due to its many historic statues and monuments. Join families on the promenade as the sun sets on the Bay of Naples. View finds from Pompeii and Herculaneum, destroyed by Mount Vesuvius in 79 A.D., at the Museo Archeologico Nazionale or revel in the art and architecture of Museo Cappella Sansevero, built in the late 1500s.

While crowds of tourists fill Venice, Florence and Rome, Bologna remains relatively quiet in comparison. This mediaeval university town is charming, historic and fun to explore… and you'll find Bologna's local cuisine is light-years away from the American deli meat bearing the city's name.

Land of Mermaids. Land of Orange and Lemon Groves. Land of Colors. This small city in Campania has earned a plethora of alluring names. Famed for its sea cliffs, the town's steep slopes look out over azure waters to Ischia, Capri and the Bay of Naples. The birthplace of Limoncello liqueur offers some good diving, great sea fishing, boat cruises and appetizing restaurants. Excellent hiking trails cross the peninsula. Rent a car or take a taxi if the steep streets look too intimidating.

Visitors have flocked to Abano Terme to soak in its thermal waters for more than 2,000 years. Situated on the outskirts of Padua, on the edge of the verdant Euganean Hills, the spa town is still popular among wellness seekers today.

To the first-time visitor, Palermo is a city of ever-changing character. An abundance of dusty museums, Arabian domes and flourishes of baroque splendor jostle with boisterous markets, chaotic traffic and oppressive summer heat. The Sicilian hotspot is a noisy, polluted, often dangerous, but always fascinating city. Don't miss marvels of Arab-Norman architecture, such as 12th-century Palazzo dei Normanni or San Giovanni degli Eremiti. Ask your hotel to arrange cabs and negotiate fares before setting off.

The ancient Flavian Amphitheater was built by the Flavian emperors in 70 C.E. as a gift to the Roman people. As the largest Roman theater ever built, it was designed to house over 50,000 people, and had played host to gladiator games, plays and even public executions. Purchase skip-the-line tickets online to avoid long lines at the door, or join guided tours which allow for special access to restricted areas. While here, you might want to visit the adjacent Palatine Hill and Roman Forum as well. – Tripadvisor

Dedicated to the seven planetary divinities and featuring an interior of gorgeous marble, the Pantheon is one of the most impressive monuments of Augustan Rome.

Certainly the most famous and photographed fountain in Rome, legend has it that whoever throws a coin into the pond will return to Rome.

The centerpiece of Milan, the Duomo is one of Europe’s greatest architectural and cultural landmarks. As Italy’s largest church and one of the largest in the world, it took over 600 years to build. Today, the Duomo has a capacity of 40,000 people and is home to the world’s second-largest organ. Admire the wide selection of religious art on display inside, or marvel at the 3000 statues that line its Gothic exterior. Be sure to join one of the available Duomo tours, which include art tours and even rooftop tours, where you might be able to see as far as the Italian Alps. – Tripadvisor

Arguably one of the finest Cathedrals in the entire world, St. Peter's is the spiritual center of the Vatican and the product of many of Italy's great Renaissance's architects, among them Bramante, Raphael and Michelangelo.

This neoclassical-style piazza built by Giuseppe Poggi in the 19th century offers some of the best panoramic views of Florence's historic center. The plaza is also home to several replicas of Michelangelo's famous sculptures, including David and the Medici Chapel statues. To get to the piazza, you'll need to climb up a steep hill, but the unobstructed views are worth it. Sunset is a popular time to visit when the plaza is bathed in golden light. You can take a taxi or car tour up the hill, or for a unique experience, pass by the piazza on a Vespa tour through Tuscany from Florence. – Tripadvisor

One of the great museums of the world, the Uffizi houses the premier collection of Italian Renaissance art, featuring works by such masters as Botticelli, Titian, Michelangelo and da Vinci.

Venice's main water thoroughfare, lined with great Renaissance palaces, is a colorful and busy spectacle of gondolas and vaporetti.

The most outstanding square of the Baroque period in Rome features Bernini's Fountain of Rivers at its center as it faces Borromini's church, Sant' Agnese in Agone.

Built in the late 1500s, this gem of Italian artistic heritage was greatly influenced by the famous Raimondo de Sangro VII, Prince of Sansevero, a genius of science and invention.