Not the usual towns for Italy -

There are so many options!!

Two that come to mind for the fall would be Piemonte, for wine, truffles, foliage....you could stay, for example, in or near Alba and end in Turin.

Another idea is to go to Abruzzo, or even combine Abruzzo with Le Marche or part of Umbria. We did this one October not very long ago......drove direct from from Rome FCO to Norcia, drove to Castellucio, spent a few days in fabulous Senigallia on the coast, , drove on to Ascoli Piceno and ended up in Sulmona, taking days trips from Sulmona to various towns including Scanno.

October is a fabulous time for that area as well.

I'm all for getting off that beaten path....somewhere I read that 90% of tourists to italy go to 10% of the country....something like that!!

It would help to list your "etc." places so we don't repeat them.

Chiusi, Perugia.

Recommend Piemonte based on my trip from 2017. I started a trip report but got caught up in some life events that consumed my time and will to write.

We stayed at Ada Nada Agriturismo outside of Alba, and had a wonderful 5 days of exploring Asti, Alba, small hill towns, and chancing into Michelin stared and noted restaurants by accident. The scenery is gorgeous, the wines are great and the food is to die for. And there are some things to see, and you can go a long while without meeting another American.

Look into Mantua, for some reason it never gets mentioned here, it's great town to visit if you like art and renaissance stuff.

Also look into Arezzo and Sansepolcro.

Torino (Turin) is an absolute gem! I visited in June 2025 — no crowds. Plenty of things to do and see. I was there for four days but wished I had a week. The Egyptian Museum is a must.

https://turismotorino.org/en

Loads of great places in Italy.
In the center (Tuscany and Umbria):

Siena(use it as a base to visit: Lucca, San Gimignano!!, Volterra in Tuscany
Spoleto, Assisi, Perugia, Spello, Gubbio, Orvieto in Umbria
Bologna, Ravenna, Verona, Genoa, Milan, Lake Como

Torino and Alba as suggested above. Also look at the Abruzzo & Marches for some smaller cities, great coast line, natural beauty.

Umbria is also tempting: Perugia was mentioned but smaller places like Spello, Bevagna, Spoleto, Deruta.

IMO, a car is best in Umbria and Abruzzo, probably Marches as well.

I'd add Brescia to the list for easy access on the northern fast train line. I really enjoyed the city, a series of good piazzas strung together, great Roman ruins and museums, and a castle on top of the hill to top things off.

Arezzo is pretty easy train access and is an interesting blend of modern Italian life blending slowly with the ancient as you head up the hill. Arezzo has always been the poor sibling of Siena which sits on the opposite side of the valley and was on pilgrimage path while Arezzo was more of military outpost.

I haven't been but Treviso is increasingly on the tourist radar and even friends from Venice were impressed when they visited -which is saying something. Maybe go see it before it gets too popular.
Grosseto is on my list of Tuscan cities no one talks about but this is strongly influence by their museums.
On my list of "towns not known outside Italy" I really want to visit is Ascoli Piceno.

Just a reminder that the further you stray from tourist areas the faster English proficiency drops off.

Have a great trip,
=Tod

Take a look at Viterbo. We liked Treviso. Abruzzo is filled with treasures, Sulmona, Scanno, L’Aquilla, Sibillini mts. Ferrara very nice.
Brad

Montefalco in Umbria. And have some Sagrantino wine! Or Ptigliano in southern Tuscany, enjoy the walk through the old town built on a cliff.

Agree with Piedmonte. We stayed outside of Alba in an agritourismo for almost a week with daily trips out to various towns and wineries. One day took us to Noli on the ocean and our little group had the place to ourselves.

Another thought is Aosta and Aosta Valley. Interesting Roman history, some amazing castles, lovely food and wine, and Gran Paradiso National Park.

Alba and that area pair well with the Aosta Valley and also easy to add Turin. That could be a pleasant two or so weeks.

A pleasant surprise last year was Caserta. Small town about 30 minutes from Naples by train. And it’s right on the train line from Rome. We used it as a base for four nights. The palace there is amazing, and it was very quiet when we were there in April.

To my knowledge, none of the places above are in the RS guidebooks, therefore may not be so busy or crowded. And all well worth visiting.

Here’s the list of cities where I’ve stayed. Almost all of these were by train - a couple by bus. Having a car would give you even more options. Feel free to ask me a question about anything that appeals to you.

Trentino-Alto Adige - 3
Moena
Castelrotto (Alpe di Siusi)
Trento

Piemonte - 2
Torino - MITO Music Festival (2X)
Asti

Lombardy - 7
Stresa (Lake Maggiore) - Music Festival (4X)
Varenna (Lake Como)
Milan (2X)
Bergamo (Citta Alta) (2X)
Cremona
Mantova
Pavia

Veneto - 4
Venice - Regata Storica Festival (6X)
Padova
Verona - Opera Festival (3X)
Vicenza

Emilia-Romagna - 5
Ferrara (2X)
Ravenna (2X)
Bologna (2X)
Parma (2X)
Modena

Liguria - 1
Monterosso al Mare (Cinque Terre)

Tuscany - 7
Lucca
Pisa - Luminara Festival
Florence (3X)
Arezzo - Jousting Festival
Siena (2X)
Montepulciano
Grosseto - Night Luminara Festival

Umbria -2
Perugia
Spello - Infiorate Festival

Lazio - 3
Rome (4X)
Fiumicino
Tivoli

Abruzzo - 1
Sulmona

Campania - 3
Caserta
Salerno
Amalfi

Basilicata - 1
Matera

Puglia - 9
Polignano a Mare (2X)
Bari - San Nicola Festival (2X)
Alberobello (2X)
Locorotondo
Martina Franca
Lecce
Trani
Ostuni
Monopoli

Sicilia - 1
Palermo

Wow, all great suggestions. Looking at it all, and Jean! Yes, will have some questions!

Throughout Italy tho choices are endless. The reason why there are huge crowds on some places is because people from the rich Anglophone world tend to congregate on the usual suspects (Florence, Venice, Cinque Terre, Montepulciano and the many other places in Rick Steves’ guidebooks). But there are many places that are well known tourist destinations among Italians and even Europeans, that most North Americans have never heard of, and that don’t have the same level of crowds. Some of them are even more beautiful and quainter than the usual suspects.

Let me tell you something that might shock some of you. Last year my wife and I were in Tuscany and decided to take my American sister in law and her husband to Montepulciano from my house near Arezzo. A University friend of mine from Florence wanted to see me along with his daughter whom I know since she was born. He has lived in Colle Val d’Elsa, in the province of Siena, for 35 years, since he married his Colligiana wife. So I told him: “Let’s meet in Montepulciano, I want to take my American relatives there. It’s only a little over one hour drive for you and a little over one hour drive for me, so it would be perfect.” His response was: “that’s a great idea. It will give me a chance to see Montepulciano, since none of us have never been there”.
Can you imagine? Someone who has lived for most of his life near Siena, just over one hour from the Val d’Orcia, and definitely not poor or unable to travel, who has never been to Montepulciano, a place that most Americans know as the must see place to visit in Tuscany.
I’d like to add that none of my Italian friends in Florence have ever visited Civita di Bagnoregio or ever seen Deruta or Kastelruth, including a friend who was a professional skier and goes to Sud Tyrol every month in winter. Apparently many places that are very high in the must see list of Rick Steves’ guidebooks are not high in the Italians’ list of destinations to be visited. But there are many others in their list that do not appear in Rick Steves’ guidebooks or TV programs.
Here is a good website for Tuscany:
https://www.borghiditoscana.net/en/