A low-cost holiday in Italy is entirely possible, the country of the Colosseum, the canals of Venice, the vineyards of Tuscany, and the Amalfi Coast is also the country of the aperitivo (the early-evening drink that comes with a free buffet of snacks, the best-value meal in Italy), the agriturismo (a farm stay, a room in a working farm with home-cooked meals for a fraction of the price of a hotel), and the lesser-known regions (Le Marche, Abruzzo, Basilicata) where you can eat like a king for €25, stay in a beautiful medieval village for €60 a night, and experience the beauty of Italy without the crowds and the prices of the famous destinations. Here is how to holiday in Italy on a budget.

Quick Facts: Low-Cost Holidays in Italy

• 1. Choose the right region: The most expensive regions: the Amalfi Coast, Venice, the Lakes (Como, Garda), Tuscany, and the Cinque Terre, beautiful, iconic, and with prices to match. The best-value regions: Puglia (the heel, whitewashed towns, beautiful beaches, excellent food, fraction of the Amalfi Coast prices), Basilicata (Matera, the cave city, one of the oldest continuously inhabited settlements in the world, and the wild, empty beaches of the Ionian coast), Le Marche (the Adriatic region between the mountains and the sea, the “new Tuscany,” with medieval hill towns, excellent wine and truffle country, and prices 30–40% lower than Tuscany), and Abruzzo (the highest mountains in the Apennines, the beaches of the Adriatic, and the food of the interior, arrosticini, the lamb skewers that are the essential Abruzzo experience, still largely undiscovered by international tourism)
• 2. Eat the aperitivo: The most important budget tip for Italy. In the early evening (usually 7–9pm), bars across Italy serve the aperitivo, a drink (a spritz, a glass of wine, a Negroni) accompanied by a free buffet of snacks: cheese, cured meats, bruschetta, olives, small sandwiches, sometimes pasta or risotto. For €6–12, you get a drink and enough food to constitute a light dinner. The aperitivo is the best-value meal in Italy and a genuinely local tradition, not a tourist gimmick. The best aperitivi are in Milan (the Navigli district, dozens of bars competing for your business with ever-more-elaborate buffets) and Turin, but the tradition exists across the country
• 3. Stay in an agriturismo: A farm stay, a room or an apartment on a working farm, often in a beautiful rural location, with meals made from the farm’s own produce. Agriturismi are regulated by the Italian government and are generally excellent value, ~€60–100/night for a double room, with dinner (a multi-course feast of local specialities) for ~€25–35 per person. An agriturismo in the countryside is almost always better value, and a more authentic experience, than a hotel in the city. Book through the official Agriturismo.it website
• 4. Travel in the shoulder season: May–June and September–October are the best months for value and weather. July–August is the most expensive, the Italian school holidays run mid-June to early September, and the entire country is on the move. Flights and accommodation are 30–50% more expensive in peak season. January–February (excluding the Venice Carnival, when prices spike) is the cheapest period for flights and hotels across Italy
• 5. Embrace the street food and the markets: Italian street food is world-class: pizza al taglio (pizza by the slice, crispy, light, topped with combinations you will not find in a sit-down pizzeria) in Rome and Naples; panino con la milza (spleen sandwich, the classic Palermo street food, an acquired taste but an essential Sicilian experience); arancini (deep-fried rice balls stuffed with ragù, mozzarella, and peas) in Sicily; panzerotti (deep-fried pizza dough pockets filled with tomato and mozzarella) in Puglia; lampredotto (tripe sandwich) in Florence; and the endless variations of foccaccia across Liguria. A market lunch, bread, cheese, cured meat, olives, and a bottle of wine from a local supermarket or market, eaten on a park bench or a beach is always better and cheaper than a restaurant