Italy without the crowds: The ultimate guide to off-season travel in Italy

Italy has always been a favourite destination of travellers – from the historic monuments of Rome to the sun-drenched beaches of the Amalfi Coast – Italy is hardly considered off-the-beaten-track.

If you’re looking to experience la dolce vita but have concerns about the crowds and often eyewatering costs associated with peak season travel, perhaps off-season travel in Italy is for you?

I recently embarked on a month-long winter exploration of Italy, and while beach days weren’t high on the agenda (as Aussies, who needs to travel to the other side of the world to visit a decent beach anyway?), there were many benefits to travelling at this time of year.

Here’s my ultimate guide for making the most of off-season travel in Italy, including what sort of weather you can expect, places to go and avoid, and other tips when planning your trip.

The weather

We began our trip in late January by flying into Venice, in northern Italy, then picking up our hire car and travelling a further hour or so north to the hilly Prosecco region; a beautiful little town called Valdobbiadene to be exact. Here we were donning puffer jackets and scarves, because even though we enjoyed clear blue skies and sunshine during the day, the powdery snow on the hilltops made for icy air.

As we progressed further south, we shed layers of clothing, with temperatures of high teens coupled with sunshine in Naples and the Amalfi Coast meaning jeans and T-shirts were appropriate. By the time we made our way all the way south to Sicily in mid-February, I was even able to throw on a maxi-dress and enjoy balmy temperatures of low twenties (don’t judge me, I’m from Melbourne!) with sunshine-filled days. Even for a Melburnian, the nights were chilly though, so don’t leave your accommodation without a jacket once the sun goes down.

Places I would recommend for off-season travel in Italy

Obviously the three big drawcards of off-season travel are fewer crowds, which means less queues, a better ability to get bookings at restaurants and attractions of your choosing and often cheaper, off-season prices.

Some of the places we particularly enjoyed for these reasons were:

Florence

While Florence was still very crowded compared to some of the smaller towns and villages we visited, we’ve also been there in summer and trust me, it was even more crowded then!

Tuscany is known for its cuisine and the main perk of visiting its capital in the off-season was that we literally walked into several Michelin star restaurants without a booking and enjoyed some incredible meals spontaneously.

The queues to visit some of the big attractions like the Duomo and the Statue of David inside the Accademia Galleria were very manageable and we were able to take our iconic photos on the Ponte Vecchio without any crowds around us, which was pretty special! On a whim we visited the Basilica di Santa Croce, which is the burial place of both Michelangelo and Galileo and walked straight in without a booking to explore this historic, beautiful site. We did the same at the Boboli Gardens, the picturesque gardens located behind the Pitti Palace that boast stunning views of the Florence skyline. We basically had them to ourselves and could wander at our leisure (and the gardens were surprisingly lush given it was the middle of winter!).

Plus, we were able to book lovely accommodation with views of the Duomo for a very reasonable price.

Emilia-Romagna, specifically Bologna

If you’re a foodie, my opinion is that there is no better place in the world to visit than the Emilia-Romagna region in Italy. The birthplace of Bolognese alla ragu (or spag bol as you might know it), parma ham/prosciutto, parmesan cheese, balsamic vinegar and more, these cities are teeming with history and incredible culinary experiences.

Even in the off-season, they can be quite busy, but you will still manage to walk-in to some incredibly iconic restaurants or at least get same-week bookings once you’re there. We decided off-the-cuff to take the train from Bologna to Modena and Parma one day, which was very easy to do at the last minute, plus both cities had wonderful winter markets running, which meant the atmosphere was still very vibrant despite it being the off-

season.

We were keen to do a cooking class while there, and while we did book in advance, we were able to easily secure two spots on our preferred day with the exact itinerary we were hoping for. When speaking to the teacher, Luigi, he mentioned that in summer he runs three classes a day that are often booked up months in advance, so it felt like we got very lucky!

Pompeii (we visited from Naples)

This recommendation is for the history-buffs. I’ve heard horror stories of people queuing for hours in 35-degree + heat to get into Pompeii and then once inside, spend the day fighting crowds to get a glimpse of the main attractions. We had a private guide, walked straight in and had our run of the site in pleasantly cool temperatures for a big half-day of sightseeing. One of the most magical places I’ve ever visited and you couldn’t pay me to go back in peak season and fight the crowds (and the heat) – highly recommend!

Matera

While it’s a small town, Matera's tourism has exploded over the past six years, largely thanks to its 2019 European Capital of Culture win. Annual visitors of around 600,000+ significantly outnumber its population of approximately 60,000, so it’s definitely worth visiting in the off-season to avoid the peak of the influx.

This UNESCO World Heritage town is famously known for its famous vista of cave dwellings, making it a favourite filming destination of Hollywood, as well as a tourist’s delight. We spent a few days there, simply wandering around the town and walking atop the cliffs, exploring all the nooks and crannies and marvelling at the views.

There are also many ancient rock churches, dating back as far as the 11^th century, which are highly unusual and beautiful and absolutely worth a visit.

The only downside of being there in the off-season was that some of the restaurants were closed and at night the town was very quiet, but given we only spent three days there, there was enough open that we had a few different places to eat at, all offering local, regional cuisine. Once again, we managed to secure centrally located accommodation with stunning views, for a fraction of the peak-season price and we even caught a Benedict Cumberbatch movie being filmed, which was pretty unique!

Sicily

I would recommend an off-season holiday in Sicily for much the same reasons as many of the other places – less crowds, better value and an ability to be spontaneous when choosing transport and restaurants.

But mostly, because it was Carnival Festival, which only happens in winter! We got to experience the vibrant celebrations, parades and specialty Carnival cuisine that is unique to this time of year, and we were lucky to, once again, dine at several Michelin star restaurants without having booked.

The only downside was that the weather/visibility up Mt Etna meant a trip to the top was not recommended the day we wanted to visit, so if this is important to you, it’s definitely a consideration.

Places I wouldn’t recommend for off-season travel in Italy

Spoleto

We headed to Spoleto, Umbria in search of truffles (for which the region is famous and are abundant in winter) and while we had a successful day of truffle hunting with a gorgeous dog named Barto and local forager guide, I would recommend doing it as a day-trip from Rome rather than staying in the region.

Put simply, almost everything in Spoleto was shut. It seemed like in summer it would be a vibrant and interesting place to stay – it’s built on a steep hill, with travelators that take you all the way up through the centre of the hill – but we could scarcely find places to eat in town as everything was boarded up and abandoned for the winter.

A Tuscan farm stay

The reason we ended up with some extra nights in Florence was because we had booked a Tuscan farm stay ourselves. I decided to confirm with them the night before we were heading there and they informed me they had decided to close for the winter. Luckily, our Travel Advisor booked us our incredible accommodation in Florence at the last minute and organised new train tickets for us, so we weren’t left high and dry!

A place I might recommend for off-season travel in Italy

The Amalfi Coast

This one is a double-edged sword. We stayed in Ravello which is a gorgeous little town perched atop the cliffs, about a 15-minute bus ride from Amalfi town itself. I’ve heard about how congested the winding Amalfi roads can get in peak season, and we were easily able to get a bus from town-to-town without any traffic!

However, in Ravello, nothing was open outside of the stunning Villa Cimbrone Gardens (which were definitely worth visiting!) and a small convenience store. We took buses into sunny Positano, Priano and Amalfi to explore and it was much the same – most restaurants and hotels were completely shut down, either undergoing renovations or simply abandoned for the winter months.

Luckily, we were staying in an apartment with stunning views and a decent kitchen, and Amalfi had supermarkets that were open for limited hours, so we could buy food to prepare and make the most of the scenery from the comfort of our accommodation. The obvious perk was that there were no crowds, so we had these beautiful towns almost to ourselves. The downside was there was very limited choice of eateries, and not much of a ‘vibe’ – so if you want to see the coast come alive, it’s not the time to visit.

A few other tips:

• Some places use the off-season for renovations or restricted opening hours – so if there is a specific museum or attraction you’re very excited to see, make sure you check opening days and times before booking and work around that.

• If you want to attend a football match, the Serie A season runs from September to May, so that is something you can’t do in peak summer season. Even if you aren’t a traditional sports fan, watching the raucous crowds at Italian football games is almost more fun than watching the players!

• Pre-book everything! If you’re normally the type of traveller who prefers to wing it – don’t. Unless you plan on spending all your time in the big cities, many smaller towns or villages are almost completely shut down over winter.

This is also why I’d recommend leaving all your bookings to the experts at FBI Travel – as they will work with their reliable hotel partners including Virtuoso, Leading Hotels of the World and more, to ensure you have the best accommodation locked in before you arrive. Plus, if there are any changes to your itinerary (just like we had in Tuscany), the FBI Travel team can manage all the logistics for you so you can just relax and enjoy your trip.

Looking to book your dream trip to Italy, without the crowds? The team at FBI Travel can design your itinerary from scratch, find premium accommodation to suit your needs, and can also arrange day tours if you’d like a bit more structure and a few unique experiences. Get in touch today.