The Daily Telegraph - Saturday - Travel
Why savvy insiders visit Italy in the cooler late season
Hunt for winter truffles while still enjoying lunches al fresco – all without the crowds,
Few visitors to Italy’s main tourist hotspots in the past six months can have failed to notice that they were stuffed to breaking point. Overcrowding has reached such extremes that cities such as Florence and Venice have risked buckling under the strain.
The case for off-season travel has never been stronger, and outside cities and larger towns, an increasing number of hotels are extending their seasons, banking on visitors choosing to sacrifice reliable weather and a full choice of eating and drinking options for smaller crowds and lower prices.
In the old days, “off-season” meant from early October until Easter. Now, especially in hotspots such as Lake Como and the Amalfi Coast, things really don’t calm down until after the November 1 (All Saints’ Day) public holiday, while the major art cities remain packed right through Christmas and the New Year, only emptying out after the Befana on January 6.
Autumn and early winter is a brilliant season in which to travel, with often balmy, golden days, and in the south, it’s still quite possible to swim even in early December. It’s sagra (festival) season too, when small towns and villages come out in force to celebrate their seasonal produce.
Many hotels offer seasonal activities to fill the days with typical pursuits including truffle hunting, mushroom foraging, wine and olive oil tasting, cooking classes and guided walks.
Here’s where to go, and where to stay, for a superlative off-season slice of La Dolce Vita.
Prices are low-season rates; bargains are to be had, especially if you book directly with the hotels. Avoid the busy Immacolata public holiday weekend if possible (December 8-10)
ABRUZZO
The isolated Abruzzo region is all rugged mountains, silent valleys and timeless mediaeval stone villages, a place for lovers of nature and outdoor pursuits. But while a third of the region is a protected nature reserve, home to wolves and bears, there is culture too in L’Aquila and Pescara, plus a sandy coastline for winter walks along the beach. Sextantio Albergo Diffuso is spread throughout a tiny medieval mountain village and with its atmospheric, dimly lit rooms, open fires and underfloor heating is particularly welcoming in winter. Seasonal activities include bread and soap making; delicious Abruzzese food is served beside a crackling fire in the arched dining hall.
Sextantio (0039 0862 899112; sextantio. it) offers doubles from £193. Closes Jan 7
AREZZO
For art lovers, the corner of Tuscany where the provinces of Florence and Arezzo meet hides many treasures. You need a car to navigate the so-called Piero della Francesca trail, a meandering itinerary that takes in glorious scenery, now aglow with autumn colours, plus the masterful monk’s Pregnant Madonna in tiny Monterchi, his masterpieces in Sansepolcro and the great Legend of the True Cross fresco cycle in Arezzo. Make Palazzo Tiglio, a noble Residenza d’Epoca overlooking the Valdambra, your base; you can expect open fires, an outstanding gourmet restaurant and activities such as truffle hunting and wine tasting. The Mall designer outlet is a 30-minute drive away and Florence is a short hop on the train. Palazzo Tiglio offers doubles from £181 (0039 0559 955584; palazzotiglio.com), with special weekend packages including dinner also available. Closes Jan 25
PIEDMONT
Late autumn is the best time to visit the Langhe area of rural Piedmont if you are into food and wine, as Italy’s premier eno-gastronomic region sings when the burnished, vine-striped hills are shrouded in mist. Stay at sleek, modern Arborina Relais, set among the Barolo vineyards; there’s a good spa and a restaurant serving up a creative take on the traditional cuisine. Foodie activities and festive menus abound. Alba (full of enoteche, restaurants serving tartufo and delis selling them), and Bra (HQ of the Slow Food movement) are a short drive away, along with wineries such as Cerreto, Vietti and Castello di Verduno for tastings.
Arborina Relais (0039 0173 500351; arborinarelais.it) offers doubles from £242. Closes Jan 8
LAKE COMO
Inverted Y-shaped Lake Como is blissfully peaceful in winter. Many of its celebrated villas have reduced visiting hours and boat services are limited, but you can still access the pretty villages of Bellagio, Menaggio and Varenna by water, and Como town, a centre of silk-making since the 1400s, is well worth a day for its fine churches and Silk Museum. Grande dame hotel Villa d’Este, on the southwestern shore, makes a big fuss of the winter and Christmas season with sumptuous decorations and a series of gastronomic treats, festive feasts and seasonal cooking and cocktails classes. The cosy pop-up lakeside Greenhouse offers mesmerising views to accompany traditional afternoon tea and cocktails.
Villa d’Este (0039 031 348873; villadeste.com) offers doubles from £430. Closes Jan 7
THE DOLOMITES
The months that straddle late summer walking and ski season is downtime in the Dolomites, but not that many hotels stay open right through. One exception is the strikingly contemporary Hotel de Len in Cortina d’Ampezzo, all fragrant wood, glass, stone and majestic mountain views. When you are not enjoying the cosseting top-floor panoramic spa, superb food or snuggling up in the cosy lounge with a good book, there is much to see and do in the area, including endless walking and biking in the mountains or a cable-car trip 3,000 metres up to the Tofane peaks. Traditional Christmas markets open in late November/ early December; Cortina has its own, but the best is in Bolzano.
Hotel De Len (0039 0436 4246; hoteldelen.it) has doubles from £222. Open all year
UMBRIA
For foodies, autumn-winter is a brilliant time to visit Umbria, when local menus are awash with truffles, mushrooms, game, chestnuts and tangy, freshpressed olive oil. You can sample all this and more at Vocabolo Moscatelli, a 12th-century monastery turned boutique hideaway close to the Tuscan border. It also serves a slap-up all-day breakfast and the likes of Pine Spritz around the firepit before dinner. You can sign up for truffle hunting, market tours and cooking classes, as well as wine tasting, pottery classes and massages. Assisi, Spoleto, Perugia and Cortona are all within easy reach and there are local food fairs and Christmas markets to explore. Jazz fans should also check out the Umbria Jazz programme. Vocabolo Moscatelli (0039 0755 455815; vocabolomoscatelli.com) offers doubles from £279. Closes Jan 8
PUGLIA
There is much more to Puglia than its lovely beaches, and autumn-winter is an ideal time to visit if you want to explore the inland towns and villages – although with daytime temperatures often pushing 20C, sunbathing is never off the cards. Devoid of people, the tiny town of Alberobello is charming, as are Locorotondo, Cisternino, Martina Franca and dazzling white Ostuni, which has a big Christmas market and is done up to the nines for the holidays. Nearby is Masseria Il Frantoio, a centuries-old farmhouse filled with antiques and offering warm, family-style hospitality, open fires and wonderful home-cooked food. It pushes the boat out at Christmas and New Year with decorations, a traditional presepe and festive menus. Masseria Il Frantoio (0039 0831 330276, masseriailfrantoio.it) offers doubles from £94, two-night minimum stay. Open all year
AMALFI COAST
Visit the Amalfi Coast after the November 1 holiday and you will experience one of the world’s most spectacular stretches of coastline in relative solitude. While Positano and Ravello will be blissfully empty (and virtually closed), Amalfi and Vietri sul Mare remain active. The scenery doesn’t close down of course, and the twisting, turning Amalfi Coast Drive will be traffic-free. With clear, sunny yet fresh days, it’s a perfect season for walking the famous Sentiero degli Dei footpath. The new super-luxe Anantara stays open through the holidays offering fabulous views plus a slew of festive activities, special spa treatments and gourmet feasts.
Anantara Convento di Amalfi Grand Hotel (0039 0898 736711; anantara. com) offers doubles from £336. Closes Jan 15
SORRENTO
Pretty, clifftop Sorrento is a yearround resort, delightful in winter when the crowds thin out and days are often warm and sunny enough for an al fresco lunch on the beach. It’s a good launch pad for trips to Pompeii and Herculaneum, the magnificent Greek temples at Paestum and, of course, the Amalfi Coast, which is a nightmare in season. The shoreline either side of Sorrento is broken by tiny coves and the odd fishing hamlet while the mountainous interior is a hiker’s paradise. Seaside-chic Maison la Minervetta makes a brilliant base; all its rooms have knock-out views across the bay to Vesuvius as does the wide, sun-trap terrace where a slap-up breakfast is served each morning.
La Minervetta (00 39 0898 774455; laminervetta.it) offers doubles from £330. Closes Jan 7
SICILY
For an off-season seaside break, Cefalù, a medieval treasure of a town on the relatively unexplored north coast of Sicily, is a good base, and beach resort Le Calette is staying open this year. If the weather holds, you’ll be able to chill out at the beach club or loll by the pool, but there’s plenty to do if not. Cefalù has a remarkable Norman Duomo, a maze of narrow old lanes to explore and a glorious sandy beach. Bracing mountain walks and even skiing are on offer in the Madonie mountains to the south, and the Greek temples at Agrigento are an hour’s drive away. Dinner at the gourmet Cala Luna restaurant is a treat after a day’s exploring, and you can sign up for cooking classes and mushroom-hunting expeditions. The low-season offers at the excellent spa are worth a look too.
Le Calette (0039 0921 424144; lecalette.it) offers doubles from £161, with offers available for longer stays. Closes Dec 17