Page 9 - DK Eyewitness: Back Roads Northern and Central Italy (Travel Guide)

About this Book 7

About this Book

The 25 drives in this book capture the diversity Our drives embrace the region’s world-famous
of Northern and Central Italy, from the snow- art towns, but rather than being treated as
capped mountain ranges on the borders with isolated spots on a weekend break, they are
France and Austria to the hill towns of Tuscany included in tours that encourage a wider
and Umbria; from the dramatic coastline of the exploration of the history, culture and landscape
Ligurian Cinque Terre to the lakes of Lombardy that gave rise to them. Other drives go right
and the Veneto. A modern, industrialized nation off the beaten track – to enchanting villages,
with its finger on the commercial and cultural remote mountain outposts, hidden rocky coves
pulse of Europe, Italy is also a country where and rarely visited archaeological sites – allowing
traditional values are maintained, and the pace visitors to explore facets of Northern and Central
of life outside of its cities is still refreshingly slow. Italy that many never experience.

Getting Started and a clearly mapped itinerary. There
The guide begins with all the practical is advice on the best time of year to Using the Sheet Map
information you need to plan and do the drive, road conditions, market A pull-out road map of the entire
get the most out of a driving holiday days and major festival dates. The region is supplied at the back of
in Northern and Central Italy: how to drive pages contain detailed descrip- the guide. This map contains all
get there; tips on bringing your own tions of each sight and activity, the information you need to drive
vehicle or hiring one; details of the linked by clear driving instructions. around the country and navigate
documentation required; and motor- Side panels offer information on between the different tours.
ing advice, from the quirks of Italian places to stay and eat. Tinted boxes All motorways, major roads,
driving and road signage to where feature suggestions for extra activi- ferry ports and airports – both
you can buy petrol and what to do if ties and background information. domestic and international – are
your car breaks down. Health, money These might include details of a local clearly identified. There is also a
and communications are also cov- festival or speciality; tips for a wine- comprehensive index, allowing
ered and there is an overview of din- tasting tour; or where to go hiking. you to locate sights quickly
ing and accommodation options. A The flexible nature of the tours and easily. The map is further
language section at the back lists means that some can be linked supplemented by a handy
essential words and phrases, includ- together to create a longer driving distance chart, to enable you
ing key driving-related vocabulary. holiday, or simply dipped into to plan to gauge the distances between
day trips while based in one particu- the major cities. All of these
The Drives lar region. Each drive also features a features make the pull-out
The main touring section of the mapped town or countryside walk- map an excellent addition
guide is divided into leisurely drives, ing tour, designed to take no more to the individual drive-itinerary
ranging in duration from one to than three hours at a leisurely pace maps within the book.
seven days. Most of the tours are with stops on the way.
on paved roads, and where they are
not, they are on good-quality unmet-
alled roads, which should pose no
problems for a standard vehicle.
The drives encompass every area of
Northern and Central Italy. To help
visitors choose and plan a trip, each
drive begins with a list of highlights
Top left Manarola, a Cinque Terre town in Liguria
Top right Fishing boats moored at Lazise, on the
eastern shore of Lake Garda Centre left
Grey-stone houses in the medieval heart of
Abbadia San Salvatore Centre right The rolling
Tuscan landscape near Montisi Below left Fiat
500, Greve in Chianti Below right A fresco in the
Neo-Classical Villa Melzi, Bellagio Above Driving in the Upper Tiber region of northern Umbria

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