Rome

A travel writer who visited Italy with her mother earlier this year said she visited two cities that gave a more authentic experience of Italy than the likes of Rome or Venice

A woman who visited Italy with her mother elected not to visit popular cities like Rome, Florence, or Venice, instead opting to try less famous and more unusual destinations.

Travel writer Jenna DeLaurentis took her mother on a “retirement trip” to the iconic European country frequented by millions of tourists each year and her verdict was that the likes of Padua and Ravenna would result in a “more authentic” experience of Italy.

For geographical context, Ravenna is located in the north east, 50 miles from Bologna whilst Padua is just 20 miles from Venice.

Jenna said that whilst Ravenna receives a lot of tourists, these mainly appeared to be day trips from Bologna which meant many of them left during the afternoon, leaving the area calm.

Meanwhile, in Padua, Jenna wrote in Business Insider that they encountered a “similar scenario”. She explained: “Sites like the Basilica of St. Anthony and Scrovegni Chapel were busy in the morning, but most tourists seemed to be gone before it got dark.

“As crowds dwindled in both Ravenna and Padua, my mum and I spent our evenings trying local cuisine and sipping cocktails at outdoor bars.”

Jenna’s conclusion was that visiting smaller cities like Padua and Ravenna gave them a much better experience than visiting major tourist hubs such as Rome and Venice.

She explained: “Though the attractions are noteworthy, they’re often overshadowed by overwhelming crowds.

“Visiting Ravenna and Padua, on the other hand, gave us the best of both worlds. We made wonderful memories together while exploring each city’s historical attractions, and loved spending quiet evenings wandering around picturesque city centres.”

Jenna’s comments about her trip in late May come as Europe recovers from another heavy tourism season and the annual questions about overtourism, a phenomenon that has raised questions about how many tourists as city can take.

However, at the start of next year, the tourism season may start earlier in Italy as the country prepares to host the Winter Olympics and Paralympic Games due to take place between February 6 and February 22 and March 6 to March 15 respectively.

In response, the UK’s Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) has updated its travel guidance for Italy, encouraging Britons to get travel insurance. In an update they said: “If you choose to travel, research your destinations and get appropriate travel insurance. Insurance should cover your itinerary, planned activities and expenses in an emergency.”

Addressing the Olympic Games directly, they added: “Get advice on weather and avalanche conditions before you travel and familiarise yourself with local skiing laws and regulations. You can contact the Italian State Tourist Board for advice on safety and weather conditions before you travel.”

A worker who was trapped after part of a medieval tower collapsed in the heart of Rome, has died, according to hospital officials.

Octay Stroici was pulled free at 23:00 local time (22:00 GMT), nearly twelve hours after a section of the Torre dei Conti, on the edge of the famous Roman Forum and close to the Colosseum, gave way and trapped him beneath.

His heart stopped in the ambulance, and doctors at the hospital he was rushed to were unable to save him.

The Romanian foreign ministry said Stroici was a Romanian national, as was another worker among three others pulled from the rubble. One is said to be in a critical condition.

Stroici’s rescue was initially described as an exceptional feat by firefighters who had worked late into the night. Rescue teams used drones and rubble clearers to try to reach him, despite the risk that the fragile tower could collapse further.

He had been conscious and talking to the emergency workers throughout the rescue. His wife was also at the scene.

Stroici had been carrying out conservation work on the medieval tower which is part of the Roman Forum, one of this city’s busiest tourist sites. But this particular building had been empty and abandoned for many years.

The Rome Prosecutor’s Office has opened an investigation into the incident.

Efforts to rescue Stroici – reported to be in his 60s – were interrupted when a second section of the 29m (90ft) high tower began crumbling again, with bricks raining down, creating a huge cloud of dust.

Earlier, Rome prefect Lamberto Giannini had described it as a “very complex situation”. Giannini said that after the initial collapse firefighters had “put up some protection” around the trapped man, so when the second collapse happened, “they obviously shielded him”.

He added that the rescue was a long operation due to having to “mitigate…the enormous risks faced by the people trying to carry out the rescue”.

One firefighter was taken to hospital with an eye problem, according to local media, but the rest were unharmed, eventually resuming their search for the man.

A police chief said there was no imminent danger that the tower will disintegrate.

“My thoughts and deepest sympathies go out to the person currently fighting for his life beneath the rubble, and to his family, for whom I sincerely hope that this tragedy finds a positive outcome,” wrote Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on X before the rescue was complete.

Another worker, 67-year-old Ottaviano, who was inside at the time of the collapse but escaped from a balcony uninjured, told the AFP news agency: “It was not safe. I just want to go home.”

Rome’s mayor and Italy’s culture minister visited the scene.

The 13th Century tower is part of the Roman Forum, a major tourist attraction in the centre of Rome, but it is separated from the main visitors’ area by a road. The streets all around have been taped off by police as a precaution.

The medieval tower was built by Pope Innocent III as a residence for his brother.

Video shows part of Rome’s medieval Torre dei Conti collapse for a second time during a restoration near the Colosseum. One seriously injured worker remained trapped Monday evening with firefighters continuing a high-risk rescue as the tower’s stability is assessed.