It's all ups and downs in the Amalfi Coasts steep-sided towns

This is Europe's most breathtaking stretch of coast.

A hair-raising cliff-top road winds for 50 kilometre between the major towns of Sorrento and Salerno.

Vernazza clings perilously to the cliff in the Cinque Terra

One coastline, five villages and a trillion and one picture-perfect vistas - the Cinque Terra is the stuff of Italian fantasies.

Vineyards and sun-baked villas punctuate the timeless Tuscan countryside.

Venturing into the Tuscan countryside is like stepping into a Renaissance painting.

All rolling hills strewn with cypress trees, vineyards and olive groves, the verdant countryside comes punctuated with monasteries, farmhouses and sun-baked Tuscan villas.

Winding down on the island of Capri

The island playground of the rich and famous, lovely Capri rises dramatically out of the Bay of Naples.

A mere 6km long and 3km wide, Capri was the one-time retreat of emperors Augustus and Tiberius. Some 2000 years on, the island has lost little of its natural charms to the constant stream of summertime day-trippers.

Filthy Naples looks out to Mount Vesuvius

Chaotic, noisy, polluted, smelly, lawless, down-at-heel and utterly maddening, Naples appears to have more in common with Delhi or Cairo than other Italian cities.

Mount Vesuvius looms over the ancient ruins of Pompeii

One of the world's most significant archaeological sites, the ancient city of Pompeii has been wonderfully preserved thanks to the 79AD eruption of Mount Vesuvius which buried the city beneath metres of pumice and volcanic ash.

When in Rome you could drive through the narrow streets like a maniac, scoff panini on the run and cast blaze glances at the surrounding glut of ancient ruins.

Milan raises its hand to high-end fashion

Unless you're coming here to shop or ogle da Vinci's Last Supper, save your cash and keep on trucking.

A big, bustling, superficial city, Milan is an economic hub that is as far away from the Tuscan countryside as you can get.

View over Florence from the Duomo

Florence is an art-lover's dream city, although you needn't know a thing about Renaissance masters to appreciate the superb behind on Michelangelo's David exposed to all at the Galleria dell'Accademia.

In contrast to most Italian cities (which are more often than not chaotic and gritty affairs), Florence is laid-back and strangely sanitized.

Splash out on a gondola ride in atmospheric Venice

Believe the hype. Venice is quite simply the world's most stunning city - 15 million visitors a year (and some 15 trillion pigeons) can't be wrong.

Built on 177 small islands complete with 150 canals, Venice is a mesh of narrow streets, atmospheric bridges, Gothic cathedrals and colourful Moorish and Renaissance palaces.