Breathtaking

Italy appeals to the heart and soul of every Indian traveler, whether young or old, traveling alone or with a group, on a budget or seeking luxury. People in both countries share the same passion and love for cinema and movie stars.

It would be no surprise to discover that Italy’s cities, villages, countryside and coastlines with their picture-postcard beauty can form an ideal backdrop to great outdoors location shooting for films besides making for the most beautiful, natural movie sets on earth.

Tourists can tread the cobblestones of Rome where Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck rode on a scooter, experience Tuscany’s rolling hills where Diane Lane found solace, and lose their selves in the landscape of Mastroianni, Loren, Fellini, Bertolucci, Cardinale, Pasolini and Antonioni.

Just this year the tourist flow to Italy has grown by leaps and bounds, a fact confirmed by the number of tourist visas issued by the Italian consulate in Mumbai, which has seen an increase of over 50% compared to 2005, whilst the Embassy in Delhi has registered an increase of over 30%.

This year has truly been a landmark for Italy as a tourist destination, as it was the 1st time ever that 2 of the biggest tour operators in India, Thomas Cook and Kesari tours, have launched a brochure with various itineraries dedicated only to Italy. This itself speaks of the importance Italy has generated amongst the travelers.

Not only has Italy managed to lure the travelers to visit the regular circuit of Rome-Florence-Pisa-Venice through the direct flights operated by Alitalia from New Delhi and Mumbai, but it has now created a demand to visit the lesser known regions of the country.