For many it’s a revelation that an untrammelled outpost like Abruzzo still exists in a country as perennially popular as Italy.  Whilst being a rugged redoubt for Marsican bears, Apennine wolves and understandably watchful Apennine chamois, Abruzzo is also home to 19 of Italy’s ‘most beautiful’ villages.  Low cost flights serve Pescara, its largest city, complementing excellent European rail and road links to a region only 15km from the border with Umbria.  Bradt’s first edition guidebook by Abruzzo-born Luciano Di Gregorio, invites readers to share the author’s insights and give Abruzzo the attention it has always deserved.

At the centre of Italy’s ‘leg’, almost two thirds of Abruzzo is mountainous.  Three national parks are covered in the guide, Gran Sasso and Monti della Laga, Majella and the National Park of Abruzzo, together encompassing the two highest peaks in the Apennines and 25 summits over 2,000 metres.  Di Gregorio suggests hikes, some following ancient transhumance routes, in these and other parks, and highlights wildlife watching opportunities, ski pistes of varying difficulty and of course where to kick back on the Adriatic’s sandy beaches.  Elsewhere, descriptions of traditional Italian life amongst the narrow cobbled streets of timeless hilltop villages vie with those of fast-moving fashionistas in Pescara, arrival point for most air travellers. This being an Italian guidebook, food and drink receive a higher profile than they otherwise might.  An hour by hour schedule for eating like an Abruzzese features unforgettable street staples such as Porchetta Abruzzese and the childhood food of generations, Sagne e fagioli.  Wines and spirits are also considered, from endlessly quaffable Montepulciano D’Abruzzo to the acquired bitter taste of Genziana liqueur.  Finally, it would be wrong to ignore the regional capital of L’Aquila.  Here, despite the severe destruction of 2009 and continuing travel restrictions, the guide retains pre-earthquake descriptions of churches, cathedrals and castles.  Notes indicate severity of damage and estimated period for painstaking reconstruction.  As Di Gregorio says, ‘Piano, Piano…con calma. That’s the way of it in Abruzzo.’

Luciano Di Gregorio was born and raised in Pescara, leaving for Australia during his teens before returning to Abruzzo in his 20s.  He is fluent in three languages – Italian, English and Spanish and dabbles in French and Japanese.  After a spell in London as a secondary-school English and language teacher he is now based in Melbourne, teaching and contributing to various newspapers and magazines on a freelance basis.

Publication: February 2010
Price: £14.99
ISBN: 978 1 84162 270 5