Castrovillari

Stress the first i when you pronounce the name of this provincial Calabrian city, nestled in the deep valley beneath 7,375-foot Mt. Pollino. The town is notable as a venue for summer's Calabria-wide Peperoncino Jazz Festival (www.peperoncinojazzfestival.com). Its synagogue, which you can visit, dates from the early Middle Ages; its San Giuliano church from the 16th-century. The world-class restaurant La Locanda di Alia has also made Castrovillari something of a gastronomic destination.

The city is also a great jumping-off point for exploring both the Albanian-speaking village of Cìvita and Pollino National Park, Italy’s biggest national park and a walkers' paradise.