Recognitions
10 recognized borghi within an hour of an airport
Ten towns: what each is best for, what a home costs, and the catch. A square meter runs from €640 in Nicolosi to €2,900 in Matera.
Comuni holding at least one major recognition, within a 60 minute drive of an airport hub. 10 towns shown, ranked by recognitions held.
Table no. 30 · Ranked by recognitions · 10 towns
The recognized borgo and the low-cost flight rarely share a map. These comuni are the exceptions: at least one major recognition each, within an hour of an airport hub.
Ranked by recognitions held. For the long-weekend traveler this is the efficient frontier, landing to piazza in the time a city transfer takes.
- 1.Matera8 recognitionsMatera · BasilicataBest for a World Heritage site. UNESCO lists a site in the comune.1 h from Bari · homes €1,650 to €2,900 a m² in the center · 59,628 peopleCave dwellings carved into limestone since the Paleolithic, called the shame of Italy in the 1950s and made European Capital of Culture in 2019.
- 2.Nemi6 recognitionsRoma · LazioBest for a stage of a long walk. The Via Francigena passes through.52 min from Rome · homes €1,150 to €1,650 a m² in the center · 1,861 peopleThe smallest comune in the Castelli Romani, perched at 521 meters above a volcanic crater lake the Romans called the mirror of Diana.
- 3.Monzambano6 recognitionsMantova · LombardiaBest for a day out from Verona. It is 39 min by car.39 min from Verona · homes €850 to €1,200 a m² in the center · 4,814 peopleA Mincio commune at 88 meters in the moraine hills west of Mantova, whose frazione Castellaro Lagusello sits on a heart-shaped lake inside fortified walls.
- 4.Asolo6 recognitionsTreviso · VenetoBest for a wine weekend. It belongs to the national association of wine towns.57 min from Vicenza · homes €1,800 to €2,900 a m² in the center · 8,911 peopleA walled hill town at 205 meters that Caterina Cornaro ran as her court after trading Cyprus to Venice in 1489.
- 5.Follina5 recognitionsTreviso · VenetoBest for a long lunch. Food guides list three tables here.1 h 13 min from Venice · 3,607 peopleA Prosecco-hills borgo at 191 meters around the Cistercian Abbey of Santa Maria, with a cloister finished in 1268.
- 6.Oriolo Romano5 recognitionsViterbo · LazioBest for a soak. The comune has thermal baths.1 h 15 min from Rome · homes €900 to €1,350 a m² in the center · 3,696 people
- 7.Brisighella5 recognitionsRavenna · Emilia-RomagnaBest for a trip without a car. The train stops in the commune.36 min from Forlì · homes €1,100 to €1,500 a m² in the center · 7,181 people
- 8.Nicolosi5 recognitionsCatania · SicilyBest for a ski week. There is a mapped ski area in the comune.29 min from Catania · homes €640 to €950 a m² in the center · 7,696 peopleThe southern gateway to Etna at 698 meters, twice destroyed by the 1669 eruption.
- 9.Senigallia5 recognitionsAncona · MarcheBest for a swim. The comune's beach holds a Blue Flag.41 min from Ancona · homes €1,700 to €2,500 a m² in the center · 43,863 peopleThirteen kilometers of fine sand on the Adriatic, hometown to a chef and a photographer whose names carry beyond the region.
- 10.Andria5 recognitionsBarletta-Andria-Trani · PugliaBest for walks in a national park. Part of the comune lies in a national park.45 min from Bari · homes €1,100 to €1,400 a m² in the center · 96,750 peopleThe city Frederick II carved in stone as his faithful Andria, the birthplace of burrata, ruling the Murge plateau eighteen kilometers north of its most famous castle.
We write letters from the Italian towns we visit: the town, what is worth eating there, and when to turn up. It is free, and you can leave whenever you like.
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