Europe on a shoestring - Italy & Malta (Chapter)

This is the Italy & Malta chapter from Lonely Planet's Europe on a Shoestring guidebook.

The land that's turned its lifestyle into a designer accessory, Italy is one of Europe's great seducers. Ever since the days of the 18th-century Grand Tour, travellers have been falling under its spell and still today it stirs strong emotions. Despite being made up of three tiny islands on the southern edge of Europe, Malta groans under the weight of its rich history and fascinating cultural influences.

• lap up the dolce vita in Italy's mesmerising capital, Rome
• maps
• take a vaporetto ride past grand but crumbling canalside palaces in Venice
• transport
• marvel at the Medicis' art collection in the Uffizi Gallery, Florence
• restaurants & accommodation
• absorb centuries of dramatic history, enjoy great food and walk the mighty fortifications of delightful Valletta
• revel in the picture-postcard coastal scenery around Dwejra
• step back in time in the silent streets of the graceful old capital, Mdina

Coverage includes: Rome, Around Rome, Ostia Antica, Tivoli, Tarquinia, Cerveteri, Northern Italy, Genoa, Cinque Terre, Turin, Milan, Verona, Mantua, Padua, Venice, Ferrara, Bologna, Ravenna, the Dolomites, Canazei, Val Gardena, San Martino di Castrozza, Central Italy, Florence, San Gimignano, Pisa, Siena, Lucca, Perugia, Assisi, Urbino, Southern Italy, Naples, Pompeii, Capri, Sorrento, Amalfi Coast, Matera, Bari, Lecce, Sicily, Palermo, Aeolian Islands, Taormina, Mt Etna, Syracuse, Agrigento, Sardinia, Cagliari, Alghero, Understand Italy, History, People, Arts, Food & Drink, Environment, Survival Guide, Directory, Getting There & Away, and Getting Around, Valletta, Around Malta, Sliema, St Julian's & Paceville, Hypogeum, Mdina & Rabat, Gozo, Victoria (Rabat), Maralsform, Xagħra, Comino, Understand Malta, History, People, Environment, Survival Guide, Directory, Getting There & Away, and Getting Around.