The perfect tiny seaside village of "Giglio Porto" with multi colored houses, an ancient defensive ... [+]
Two destinations in Italy have made it into the rankings of the best villages in the world for tourists.
The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) recently unveiled its list of the top small communities catering to tourism around the world.
The list includes 32 places across the globe, including in Spain, China, Israel and Vietnam.
Two Italian hamlets appear in the rankings, which also recognize efforts to improve social and environmental sustainability.
Breathe pure mountain air in Sauris-Zahre
Sauris, or Zahre as it was once called in the local dialect, is a handful of dark wooden houses surrounded by lush green slopes. In the distance is a backdrop of snowy mountain peaks.
The small community is the highest in the northeastern Friuli Venezia Giulia region, lying between 1,000 and 1,400 meters above sea level.
Visitors will find themselves immersed in a typical Alpine landscape of dense woods and flowering meadows dotted with shepherds’ huts known as malghe.
Visitors to Sauris will find themselves immersed in a typical Alpine landscape of dense woods and ... [+]
Due to centuries of semi-isolation, the community has retained ancient traditions, costumes, language and architecture.
The traditional dialect derives from German, for example, and was the language of the first settlers in the area.
But Sauris is not stuck in the past. Residents have opened new businesses over the years, including a speck factory, a craft brewery and a cheese refinery.
This means that, unlike many rural villages, Sauris has a thriving population.
To entice tourists, the village opened a ‘scattered hotel’ in 1994. Guests stay in structures dotted throughout the hamlet allowing them to mingle with local residents and learn about village life.
Gaze over the glittering Tyrrhenian sea from Isola del Giglio
Located off the coast of Tuscany, the two neighboring islands of Giglio and Giannutri have also made it onto the UNWTO rankings.
Isola del Giglio rises out of the shimmering Tyrrhenian sea, one of the top draws for visitors.
The community is committed to preserving the cleanliness of its marine environment with systems to monitor sea pollution and collect waste.
Isola del Giglio rises out of the shimmering Tyrrhenian sea, one of the top draws for visitors.
The island’s tourism initiatives also include plastic-free policies. Tourism operators like hotels and bathing establishments have almost eliminated single-use plastics, according to the UNWTO.
Visitors should also delve into the island's history, which goes back to the Neolithic period.
There are Etruscan artifacts and Roman ruins like the seaside villa built by emperor Domitian on Giannutri.
