Abruzzo is in the centre of Italy, on the Adriatic coast. It has four provincial capitals: L’Aquila, Chieti, Pescara and Teramo.

In these places there are a lot of nature reserves and oases run by

environmental groups.

The various lakes are home to many rare bird species.Scattered here and there are beech woods, birch trees, woods of oak, hazel, the endemic subspecies of the black pine

Abruzzo offers golden beaches, creeks and cliffs lined with pinewoods and green hills. There is also a vast number of landing places and tourist harbours (the one in Pescara is the largest on the Adriatic).

The pinewoods of Pineto, on the Abruzzo coast

On the beaches you can practice a wide range of activities: water games, beach volley, swimming, beach soccer, fishing, sailing, windsurfing.

They are old constructions

suspended above the sea for fishing.

Along the coast, around Fossacesia

the fishermen’s “trabocchi” stand out.

A rolling, green, hilly countryside rises directly out of the sea. Pleasant villages are scattered all around.

In the west of the region there are high mountains, the most significant are the Majella and the Gran Sasso massifs, which are visible from most parts of the territory.

On the mountains you can do a lot of activities: excursions on foot, on horseback and mountain-bike, cycling, free-climbing, canoeing and above all skiing.

The history of Abruzzo goes back to the Palaeolithic, Neolithic and Italic ages

and there are traces in the various “grotte” scattered here and there.

The double Italic walls to protect the peak of Mt Secino

The Theatre of Juvanum

The Italic temple of Schiavi d’Abruzzo

Also evidence of the Romanic period can be seen all over the region with Theatres, Temples, ruins of Town Walls, Thermal baths, Forums and Amphitheatres.

The Roman amphitheatre of Amiternum, built before the 1st century BC

In the Middle Ages Abbeys, Monasteries, Cathedrals, Town Halls and were built in Abruzzo.

The 13th-century church of S.Giusto in Bazzano, near L’Aquila

The imposing portal of S.Maria Maggiore started in 1317 in Lanciano

The Basilica of S.Maria di Collemaggio, the most famous medieval monument of L’Aquila

The caves and forre (deep narrow gorges carved by rivers) were the scenes of many pagan rituals, then in the Middle ages impressive and sometimes almost inaccessible hermitages were created.

Built into the vertical wall of a canyon, the hermitage of S.Bartolomeo is one of the most spectacular celestine hermitages in the Maiella

The hermitage of S.Giovanni cut into the rock

Abruzzo abounds with craftsmen of all types, including ceramists, stone cutters…

A stone sculptor in Lettomanoppello working on a slate of bright limestone from the Maiella

…goldsmiths, engravers, carvers, weavers…

A craftsman working at a

“Taranta”, a colourful

woollen blanket from Taranta

Peligna

The “conche” one of the most famous copper products of Abruzzo

…coppersmiths Their products are on sale across the region. …

…The saddles from L’Aquila area are sent to Buckingham Palace, the official residence of the British royal family

The making of a saddle in a

workshop in L’Aquila

Abruzzo could be described as a “healthy area” so you can enjoy food that arrives directly from the uncontaminated mountains, lakes, hills and coast.

Abruzzo cheeses mostly made with sheep milk

Fresh vegetables coming from the Fucino fields and the hills of Abruzzo

An extra-virgin olive oil maker shows some of his precious bottles

A wine experts tastes Montepulciano d’Abruzzo wine which has been aged in oak

A typical Italian food served with tomato sauces and a sprinkling of grated cheese.Thanks to De Cecco’s idustries from Abruzzo Italian pastas are now widely available on foreign markets all over the world

A Navelli farmer shows the flowers of Crocussativus from which the precious saffron is collected

Since the 18th century confetti (sugared almonds) have been produced in Sulmona and are still one of the region’s favourite sweets