Archive for 'Must See Attractions'

Caffè Florian is an incredibly famous and historic coffee house located in the Procuratie Nuove of Piazza San Marco in Venice, Italy, that was established in 1720 and, along with Café Procope in Paris, is the oldest café in continuous operation. It has been visited by Charles Dickens, Henry James, Lord Byron, Goethe, Marcel Proust, Casanova, and countless celebrities over the centuries and has always been a favourite haunt of the rich and famous. Beautifully decorated, with large, lavish interiors, and boasting excellent coffee, it is a key foodie experience for those who have found one of our private villas in Venice and are planning a trip to the city.

Sperlonga is a stunning seaside resort in the Latium region of Italy. Charming and full of character, it is a well-kept secret among locals and a long-held favoured holiday destinations among Romans. It is also one of the many sites of major Ancient Roman archaeological discoveries in Italy but boasts some especially fascinating finds. If you're interested in art, culture and ancient history, a vacation rental in Latium and a visit to the town is a must.

If you have found a villa rental in Padua and are exploring the city, it is unlikely that you will miss Prato della Valle, or “Prà deła Vałe” in Venetian, a 90,000sqm elliptical piazza in the city and the largest square in Italy as it is so vast and exceptionally beautiful. However, just in case, we're warning you: don't miss out on this stunning part of the city or you'll be kicking yourself later!

Before 1635, the area now occupied by Prato della Valle was actually a large and unpleasant swampy terrain, just south of the old city walls. Then, in 1636, a group of Venetian and Veneto public figures and nobles decided to finance the construction of a temporary, but lavish, theatre for mock battles on horseback on the site.

The Palazzo della Pilotta is a palace and complex of structures that is located between the Piazzale della Pace and the Lungoparma in the historic centre of the lovely Italian city of Parma. Vast but incomplete, the palace was built for the Farnese family in the 16th and 17th centuries, at the order of Duke Ottavio Farnese and then under Duke Ranuccio I. Built around a preexisting Visconti stronghold and a church, it was designed as a headquarters for the court and state services – such as stables, store rooms, arms rooms, theatre, barracks and more – rather than as a residence.

The charming city of Cosenza in the region of Calabria in the south of Italy is filled with surprises around every corner. If you have found a vacation rental in Calabria and are planning a day trip to this historic city, then be sure to head to Corso Mazzini, a pedestrian area between Piazza Bilotti and Piazza dei Bruzi, which is home to Cosenza’s Bilotti Open-air Museum. This street is dotted with works by famous sculptors like Mimmo Rotella, Emilio Greco, Giacomo Manzù, Giorgio De Chirico, Pietro Consagra, Justin Peyser, Sacha Sosno, and Salvador Dalí and is a museum that you can visit for free and whenever you want.