Abruzzo & Molise

Abruzzo lies east of the region of Lazio and is as close as you get to real mountain conditions so close to Rome and so far south. For skiers, there are even some well-equipped resorts such as Campo Felice, and also the largest glacier in southern Europe: the Calderone.

The regional capital is L’Aquila, which means ‘the eagle’. For centuries, this city has sat proudly upon a hillside in the middle of a narrow valley with the tall snow-capped mountains of the Gran Sasso flanking it. It is a city shrouded in history, important religious events and mystique, where the terrible earthquake of 2009, which caused so much tragic devastation, is still all too fresh in the minds of the citizens.