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Fact Sheet for Italy
Size: 301,338 sq km (116,346 sq miles).
Population: 58,145,360 (official estimate 2004).
Population Density: 193 per sq km.
Capital: Rome. City Population: 2,546,804 (2001).
Language: Italian is the official language. Dialects are spoken in different regions. German and Ladin are spoken in the South Tyrol region (bordering Austria). French is spoken in all the border areas from the Riviera to the area north of Milan (border with France and Switzerland). German is spoken around the Austrian border. English, French and German are also spoken in the biggest cities and in tourism and business circles.
Religion: 90 per cent Roman Catholic with Protestant minorities.
Time: GMT + 1 (GMT + 2 from last Sunday in March to Saturday before last Sunday in September).
Electricity: 230 volts AC, 50Hz.
Population: 58,145,360 (official estimate 2004).
Population Density: 193 per sq km.
Capital: Rome. City Population: 2,546,804 (2001).
Language: Italian is the official language. Dialects are spoken in different regions. German and Ladin are spoken in the South Tyrol region (bordering Austria). French is spoken in all the border areas from the Riviera to the area north of Milan (border with France and Switzerland). German is spoken around the Austrian border. English, French and German are also spoken in the biggest cities and in tourism and business circles.
Religion: 90 per cent Roman Catholic with Protestant minorities.
Time: GMT + 1 (GMT + 2 from last Sunday in March to Saturday before last Sunday in September).
Electricity: 230 volts AC, 50Hz.
What would it be like to wake in the heart of the Roman Empire, lunch in a sumptuous 16th-century Renaissance villa, and go to bed in the capital of 21st-century designer chic? Visit Italy, taking in Rome, Florence and Milan, and the experience is yours.
But that’s not all. Italy combines art history and contemporary fashion with stunning natural landscapes: the turquoise waters of the Costa Smeralda offer one of Europe’s most beautiful stretches of sand, sea and sunshine, while the snow-covered slopes of the Dolomite mountains are a haven for winter sports enthusiasts.
Besides the renowned cities of Venice, Genoa and Naples (each with its own unique identity – Italy was only unified in 1870), there are romantic Medieval hill towns, such as San Gimignano in Tuscany, and unspoilt fishing villages, like the unforgettable Positano on the Amalfi coast. Visit vineyards and cellars to taste the very best regional wines: the Veneto, famed for the sparkling white prosecco, and Tuscany, home of the highly acclaimed robust red, Brunello di Montalcino. And to really get away from it all, take a boat to the islands of Sicily or Sardinia to experience rural hospitality in the blissful Mediterranean. Italy: still so much more to discover.
Source: worldtravelguide.net
But that’s not all. Italy combines art history and contemporary fashion with stunning natural landscapes: the turquoise waters of the Costa Smeralda offer one of Europe’s most beautiful stretches of sand, sea and sunshine, while the snow-covered slopes of the Dolomite mountains are a haven for winter sports enthusiasts.
Besides the renowned cities of Venice, Genoa and Naples (each with its own unique identity – Italy was only unified in 1870), there are romantic Medieval hill towns, such as San Gimignano in Tuscany, and unspoilt fishing villages, like the unforgettable Positano on the Amalfi coast. Visit vineyards and cellars to taste the very best regional wines: the Veneto, famed for the sparkling white prosecco, and Tuscany, home of the highly acclaimed robust red, Brunello di Montalcino. And to really get away from it all, take a boat to the islands of Sicily or Sardinia to experience rural hospitality in the blissful Mediterranean. Italy: still so much more to discover.
Source: worldtravelguide.net