San Gimignano

San Gimignano takes 1 day to see: 14 medieval towers still standing -out of the original 72 from the 13th century- earned it the nickname «medieval Manhattan». April-October is best, avoiding the August crowds. It's expensive for its size given its huge tourist inflow into a village of barely 7,000 residents. The towers were status symbols for rival noble families, who competed to build the tallest; today it's a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of Italy's best-preserved medieval skylines.