Skip Rome and Florence: These Are the Best Italian Adventures to Take Right Now

Someone’s gotta take in all the ancient fortresses and temples.

There ’s something aboutcrawling into the bowel of Italy — manner beyond well - trodden Firenze and poor , overwhelmed Venice — that makes you sense likeIndiana Jones . Whether you ’re in a Holy Inquisition prison , a gem - filled WWII bunker , pagan temples next to mud baths , or even near the oozing lava of volcanoes , the country ’s more underground rubber-necking will have you reach for a torch , brownish felt hat hat , and ripped - unresolved khaki shirt .

Despite the goose pimple and maybe just a tinge of claustrophobia , you could combine these already fascinating excursions with adrenaline - fill paragliding , jet skiing , scuba diving event , and ill-tempered - country cycling . And , fine , there may be a gentle sheep or two along the way .

We love pail list destinations like Florence as much as the next guy wire . But when you ’re quick to go beyond the tourist hub , you could prove that not all road lead to Rome with these unique adventures in Italy .

View of the town of Civita di Bagnoregio, Italy

There’s a lot going on beneath the surface in Latium.|Lucky Team Studio/Shutterstock

Shear sheep in Tuscany

Italians go wild for agriturismi , which are farm turned into eating house and B&Bs just screaming with rural vibration survives — and often also animals . Do n’t be surprised if you see geese , rabbits , goats , and hens running freely in courtyard .

Toscana in particular is the heaven ofagriturismi , where several farmers turn over hotelkeeper keep small herds of sheep so guest can learn how to make cheese — and also how to shear the beast . With the help of shepherd - private instructor , you ’ll learn the enigma of slew off fluffy , woolen fleece from a cute baa - ing animal . It ’s quite an idyllic , archaic throwback .

Climb the Etna volcano

Mount Etna in Sicily is Europe ’s biggest volcano — and the most dynamic . There are frequent irruption that draw even the most amateur of volcano lovers from across the world to admire the instinctive fireworks and the so - called ' sciare ' red lava hang that scorch the spate slopes and leave deep burn scar .

You ’ll needan expert guideand at least some level of physical fitness for a long tramp of about two to five minute . Prepare for a sensational scene of jet - black volcanic rocks dotted with bright blossom and heaps of ashes lined up along roads .

Scuba dive in the Tremiti Islands

Myth has it that Greek warrior Diomedes confound a fistful of endocarp into the ocean that turned into the pristine Tremiti archipelago . Hopefully for that reasonableness , this Aqua-Lung diving mecca has Anguilla sucklandii fish the size of sharks .

There are a smattering of diving centers to choose from . The toughest , most thrilling dive of all , the Devil ’s Eyes , necessitate adept perkiness : it ’ll take you through two underwater caves with holes and show edges that resemble a demonic face .

Get Stranded Like Odysseus on Italy’s Most Secret, Mythical Islands

Hear fisherman tales, sleep in sea caves, and see the ancient underworld.

Paraglide over a bunker in Latium

Imagine jump off the drop of the mystical Mount Soratte , where mediaeval troglodyte once claim resort , to paraglide over a World War II bunker where it ’s said the Nazis hid stolen treasure . Turns out pilot in the sky withAvventura Soratteis one way to take in some story . From up in the air , you might also spot uncivilised boars .

Within theSoratte Bunkerlies a maze of burrow fresco by soldiers , while chapel , sway altar , and over-embellished rocks dot the hills and old lead switch off through a impenetrable wood . At the top is a bird’s-eye sanctuary ofSaint Sylvester , a localization cited by Dante inThe Divine Comedy .

Sleep in a ghost town while biking across rural Sicily

There ’s no better manner toexplore rural Sicilythan by bike , cut back through sleepy villages , rolling green hill , and wheat study . Acountry routestretches from seacoast to seacoast , from Trapani to Catania .

Along the way , bicycler can sleep in farm and B&Bs located in bucolic semi - abandoned hamlet . You ’ll also happen workshop to fix wheels or grease one’s palms whatever you may call for along the means . Top highlights admit Marsala ’s pink - blood-red salt pans , Sambuca ’s Orange Lake besiege by vinery , and the trace crossroads of Ghibellina .

Get a Taste of the Good Life on This Stunning, Old-School Italian Island

A timeless island is being re-energized by a new generation.

Take a ride to the mud baths on the coast of Naples

You could easy spend an intact day roaming the old districts of Naples , the buzzing Spaccanapoli road that cut through the city , and then on to the coast to explore the volcanic Phlegrean Fields and admire the eyeshot ofCapri , Ischia , and Procida islands . In the town of Pozzuoli , you ’ll find a champagne mud bath with seep vapor and pagan temple covered in fossils .

The best way to get around Naples is via hack ; and if you ’re lucky , you may come across one of many driver who not only knows all the hidden spot but also all the storytelling that goes with it . You might hear the mythologic tales of how Odysseus descended into the Underworld decently below your foot and then get one of the ripe ricotta - fill up sfogliatella pastry you ’ll ever have atAttanasio pastry store .

Dreamy Underrated Towns to Hit on the Italian Riviera

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Jet-ski on the Tiber River

Justoutside Rome ’s metropolis wall , the Tiber River flows through pristine field and ancient papistical colonisation . local may be out here lunching on the banks — but while the people watching may be tempting , there ’s another , more unusual turn you could prefer for on your Roman Catholic holiday .

The clear , calm waters are perfect for anyone try out jet - skiing for the first time , pulled along by a tiny motorboat . you’re able to also opt forwakeboard and fly board lessonsinside two natural ponds filled with river body of water . Be on the sentinel for otters along the way .

Go underground in Umbria

In the Umbrian town of Narni , you could descend inside a privy garden right intounderground prisonswhere the Holy Inquisition tortured so - called heretics . Cells are traverse in old writing , and there ’s a twisting room with the skeleton of a burn witch . Nearby , there are guided tours inside a sullen ancient romish aqueduct wide enough for just one soul , where you need to walk out to over wearing a Verbascum thapsus mounted helmet .