Most beautiful Italian regions according to foreign visitors

Of course foreign visitors are not just North Americans, otherwise neither Abruzzo nor Molise would make the list.

What struck me is that the Italian preferences include Sicily, Sardinia and Calabria - all notable for their beaches. I am surprised that Umbria is at the top with Tuscany down in 4th place.

And looking at the photos just makes me long even more for another visit to Italy

Woo hoo! Visiting both Alte Adige and Valle d’Aosta in September. Totally agree with visiting Sicilia and Sardegna. I’ve made two trips to Sicilia and would like to return to Sardegna again. Amazing islands and I’m not a beach person.

Italians’ ranking is heavily tilted toward regions with great beaches or seascape. Italians are addicted to the sea. That is why you see Sardinia and Calabria in the Italians’ list, even though the two regions aren’t very famous for their art treasures.

"Of course foreign visitors are not just North Americans, otherwise neither Abruzzo nor Molise would make the list."

Who are the foreigners who are going to Abruzzo and Molise? Are these places famous among Europeans, or Asians, or some other groups? I'm truly curious, as they don't have any "brand name" cities (like Rome or Venice) or attractions (like the Last Supper or Michelangelo's David). So, who does go there - and how do they hear about it?

I guess that Abbruzzo is famous for its national park, the Gran Sasso Mountain Massif and the high number of villages admitted in the "most beautiful villages" club. Maybe it's becoming more and more popular with specific market segments.

I'm truly wondering who knows about or visits Molise from abroad as most Italians think Molise to be a fake place, a mythic region that doesn't really exists.

Edit: The Corriere writes about "most loved" regions by Italians and foreigners, not "most known" or "most visited". Those few who visit Molise love it and give it an higher rating. I doubt TripAdvisor has hired a pool of statisticians to analyze those data.

Harold,

Like Dario, I’m surprised by Molise making the list myself. The only foreigner who knows Molise is Robert De Niro, because his Great Grandparents came from Ferrazzano (Molise) and he was made honorary citizen and given asylum by the mayor when Trump won the election (since De Niro threatened to punch him during the campaign). Incidentally Abruzzo and Molise was one region only which split into two in the 1970s.

Abruzzo is now very popular with Europeans. It has majestic mountains like the Alps and one of the largest national parks in Europe.

I saw beautiful photos somewhere of the ancient Roman city of Saepinum in Molise and wanted to go see the ruins ----it was easy to drive there while on a trip to northern Puglia, so we did. We had the whole site all to ourselves except for some goats and a dog. Spent the whole day just wandering around discovering things on our own and taking photographs with no people in them. Such a different experience from the much more famous sites of Pompeii, the Forum in Rome, and Ostia Antica. Italy is so rich in top-notch places to visit that most non-Italians never make it to the less popular places.

My husband’s family is from Abruzzo and we’ll be staying there this September. We’ll have a great time on the Adriatic, and several days in the mountains- and the many, many villages there. What’s not to love? To me, it seems like it will be an embarrassment of riches. We’ll spend a couple of days in Rome at the end, so will see some of the other sights there. (We’re Americans, too!) 😉

I am surprised that the Puglia region didn't make it in the top ten for Italians. We made our first visit here last October and loved it. It was past beach season but there are beautiful beaches and many lovely towns and sights.