The 25 April and 1 May long weekends: 13 villages to visit before high season

In 2026 the calendar hands us two convenient anchors: 25 April falls on a Saturday and 1 May on a Friday. Four strategically chosen days off at the end of April are enough to stitch together a long break, and spring is the ideal time for the villages: mild days, meadows in flower, restaurants open and old town centres still empty compared with the July and August crush. If you're looking for where to go for the 25 April and 1 May long weekends without queues and without inflated prices, here are thirteen stone villages from north to south, chosen so you can reach them over a weekend and come home rested.

From the Alps to the sea

We start in the Alps. In the Aosta Valley, Bard gathers a few medieval houses at the foot of the Fort: by late April the snow has already retreated to higher ground and it's good walking among the alleys and the halls of the Alps museum. In Piedmont, in the Ligurian Alps, Garessio combines thermal waters and chestnut woods: a slow destination, perfect if you want to pair the village with a walk. Heading down towards the sea, in Liguria, Triora is the famous "village of the witches" in the upper Valle Argentina, with its dark carruggi and its traditional bread: spring finds it cool and walkable, far from the summer heat of the interior.

On the plains and hills, Emilia offers Castell'Arquato, in the Val d'Arda near Piacenza: a high medieval square, the Rocca Viscontea and hillside cellars that begin their tasting season in May. Further east, in Friuli, Venzone is the citadel rebuilt stone by stone after the 1976 earthquake: the walls, the cathedral and the lavender (which flowers later, in June, though the village is already worth it now) make it a surprising stop on the way to the Julian Alps.

Central Italy

In the heart of Italy, Tuscany offers two different faces. Anghiari, in the Valtiberina, is climbed on foot among artisan workshops and steep alleys, with the plain of Leonardo's battle spread out below. Further south, in the hilly Maremma, tiny Pereta is a ring of walls and a clock tower amid the olive groves: April and May are the best months for the Maremma, before the heat empties the days. In the Marche, between Carpegna and the Montefeltro, Frontino is a nest of stone surrounded by woods, ideal for anyone who wants to combine village and nature.

The tufa country of Lazio offers Celleno Vecchia, the "ghost village" between the Castello Orsini and the badlands near Viterbo: now restored and open to visitors, it's especially photogenic in the long light of spring. Pushing on into Molise, Civitacampomarano surprises with the large murals that have turned the houses below the Angevin castle into an open-air gallery of urban art, enjoyable at any time of year.

The south

The south closes the tour in style. In Basilicata, Castelmezzano is wedged among the spires of the Lucanian Dolomites: in May the green is vivid and the Volo dell'Angelo, the zipline that links it to Pietrapertosa, reopens in spring. In Sicily, in the Madonie, Gangi cascades down the mountainside with its dark roofs, while inland near Caltanissetta Sutera guards the Rabato, the Arab quarter of white houses clinging below the crag of San Paolino: in spring the island is mild but not yet scorching, perfect for the inland villages.

Practical tips

A few practical tips. Book your accommodation a month ahead: rooms in the villages are few and the long weekend sells them out fast. Check the local festivals, which in many villages come alive on the last weekend of April and on 1 May. And consider destinations near those on this list, such as Apricale in Liguria or Santo Stefano di Sessanio in Abruzzo, to build a mini-itinerary of two or three stops. Travelling at the end of April means enjoying these places at their finest moment, and leaving them to breathe before the summer.

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