Italy is the country of the Divine Comedy, the Decameron, The Prince, and consequently the country where bookshops and literary cafés have a density and a quality unmatched in Europe. From Venice (the first book printed in Italy, Aldo Manuzio, 1494-1515) to Turin (the most intense concentration of publishing houses in Italy), the culture of the Italian book is one of its most alive and least-known legacies to international tourism.
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The most extraordinary Italian bookshops
Libreria Acqua Alta, Venice
The Libreria Acqua Alta (Calle Lunga Santa Maria Formosa 5176, Venice) is the most photographed bookshop in the world, and for legitimate reasons, not just for its Instagram appeal. The owner, Luigi Frizzo known as "Coccodé" (died in 2024), had filled every surface of the shop with used, vintage, and rare books, stuffed into gondolas, bathtubs, and stairways of books that reach the windows. The bookshop has no computer system, you find the books by searching. The Venetian canal laps at the back threshold (hence the name: the acqua alta enters regularly). The "stairway of books", steps made of books leading to a back terrace overlooking the canal, is the most photographed image. Costs: used books from €2, rarities on request.
Libreria Bocca, Milan
The Libreria Bocca (Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, Milan, www.libreriabocca.com) has been in business since 1775, the oldest bookshop in Milan and one of the oldest in Italy. Specialized in art, architecture, and design, it's set in the 19th-century Galleria that is itself an architectural masterpiece. In 250 years of activity it has had clients like Verdi, D'Annunzio, Marinetti, and today the Milanese designers and architects looking for rare catalogs and out-of-print books. It isn't a bookshop for tourists, it's a bookshop for collectors.
Libreria Internazionale Antiquaria Baldacci, Rome
At Via del Babuino 49 (Rome), the Libreria Baldacci is the main Roman antiquarian bookshop, rare books, first editions, antique maps, 18th-19th-century engravings. Founded in 1880, it has served collectors, bibliophiles, and researchers for 140 years. You don't go there to buy a novel, you go to find the 1750 first edition of Goldoni, or a 17th-century map of Rome, or Piranesi's engravings in the original folio.
Libreria Feltrinelli Storica, Rome
The Feltrinelli on Via del Babuino is the big Italian bookshop with the best English-language selection in Rome, a section dedicated to international travelers with guides, travel fiction, international nonfiction. Feltrinelli has chains all over Italy but the historic Milan store in Piazza del Duomo (actually on Via Manzoni) is the most beautiful architecturally. The founder Giangiacomo Feltrinelli (1926-1972) published Pasternak's Doctor Zhivago in 1957 when no Italian publisher dared, and was the first Western publisher to publish the Russian novel banned in the USSR.
The historic Italian literary cafés
Caffè Florian, Venice (since 1720)
The Caffè Florian (Piazza San Marco 57, Venice, www.caffeflorian.com) is the oldest café in Italy and one of the oldest in Europe, opened in 1720, it has never closed (during the Napoleonic and Austrian dominations it stayed open, during the First and Second World Wars it stayed open). It has served Casanova, Goldoni, Byron, Dickens, Proust, Thomas Mann, and every European intellectual who has passed through Venice in the last 300 years. An espresso at an outside table: €15-20 (the price includes the orchestral service, a small ensemble plays in the afternoon and evening). Inside it's cheaper and you can admire the original 18th-century furnishings.
Caffè San Marco, Trieste (since 1914)
The Caffè San Marco (Via Cesare Battisti 18, Trieste) is the literary café that no guidebook cites enough. Opened in 1914, closed by the Fascists in 1919 (the owner was of Slavic origin), reopened in 1920, having survived everything, it's the place where Umberto Saba wrote his poems, where the Triestine intellectuals of Mitteleuropa gathered (Joyce lived in Trieste for 10 years from 1904 to 1915 and frequented these circles). The original Art Nouveau furnishings, the marble tables, the stained-glass windows, all intact. An espresso: €1.50. Trieste, the most European Italian city, deserves an article of its own.
Caffè Fiorio, Turin (since 1780)
The Caffè Fiorio (Via Po 8, Turin) is one of Turin's historic cafés, opened in 1780, frequented by Cavour (the father of Italian unification, who lived a few steps away), Cesare Balbo, and the entire Piedmontese ruling class of the Risorgimento. Fiorio's gelato bavaresi (the summer specialty, layered gelato in a crystal glass) have remained unchanged since the 1800s.
Questions and answers about Italian bookshops and literary cafés
Italian bookshops: are there bookshops with English-language sections in the Italian cities?
Yes, in the big cities the bookshops with good English sections: Feltrinelli (in all the cities, an "International" section in English, French, German). Mondadori (a national chain, a foreign section in the main stores). The Corner Bookshop (Rome, Via del Moro 45, Trastevere, a historic English-language independent bookshop in Rome). Almost Corner Bookshop (Via del Moro 45, Rome, another historic English-language retailer in Rome, near the previous one). In Florence: BM Bookshop (Borgo Ognissanti 4r), the best-stocked English bookshop in Florence. In Venice: Libreria Marco Polo (Calle del Teatro 5886, Cannaregio), books in English and German.
Italian literary cafés: can you just have a coffee or do you have to order more?
In all the historic cafés mentioned, ordering just a coffee is absolutely acceptable, even at the Florian in Venice, if you go inside instead of sitting at the outside table with the orchestra. There's no obligation to order pastries or anything else. The espresso at the counter is always the cheapest option (even in the historic places). At the Florian the price at the inside counter is about €4-6. At the outside table with the orchestral service it goes up to €15-20. The distinction isn't "how much to order" but "where to sit". In the historic Italian cafés, having just a coffee is a perfectly normal act, no one will look at you with disapproval.
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Venice: the complete guide Milan in one day Italian breakfast Rome's secret spots Art exhibitions 2026 Roman lifestyle Brera: neighborhood guide Scandinavians in ItalyThe Caffè Pedrocchi in Padua: the café that never closes
The Caffè Pedrocchi (Via VIII Febbraio 15, Padua, www.caffepedrocchi.it) deserves a separate paragraph for its extraordinary history. Opened in 1831, it was for decades known as the "café without doors", it never closed, not even at night, and the public could sit without ordering (a tradition that lasted until the Fascist era). During the Risorgimento it was the headquarters of the Paduan patriot students, on February 8, 1848, in the Green Hall on the upper floor, the revolt of the University of Padua students against the Austrian occupation broke out (the "Caffè Pedrocchi revolution"). A bullet fired during the uprising is still visible in the wall of the Green Hall. The architecture is neoclassical-Gothic (a rarity), the lower floor with the three halls (white, red, green) and the neo-medieval upper floor. An espresso: €1.80 at the counter. Padua is 30 minutes from Venice by train, a natural combination for literary travelers.
Frequently asked questions from travelers: practical tips for Italy
How to get around between the Italian cities without renting a car?
Italy has a railway network connecting all the main cities, the train is almost always the best choice between the big cities. The High Speed trains (Frecciarossa, Italo) connect Rome-Milan in 3h, Rome-Florence in 1h30, Rome-Naples in 1h10, often faster than the plane if you count the airport time. The regional trains (slower, less comfortable but very cheap, €5-15) cover the secondary routes. Car rental is useful for: the coasts without a railway (the Amalfi Coast, the Cilento, Tyrrhenian Calabria), agriturismo (farm stay) in the countryside, the Dolomites outside the main centers, the inland villages the train doesn't reach. The apps: Trenitalia (www.trenitalia.com) and Italo (www.italotreno.it), book online for the best prices.
Tipping in Italy: how much do you leave as a tip in restaurants, taxis, and hotels?
Tipping in Italy isn't mandatory and there's no Anglo-Saxon social pressure. Restaurant: the coperto (€1-3/person) is already included in the bill, if the service was excellent, rounding up the bill or leaving €2-5 is appreciated. Taxi: rounding up to the next whole figure (from €12.40 to €13) is the norm. Hotel: €2-3 a day for the cleaning staff (left in the room in the morning) is appreciated. Coffee bar: no tip expected, at most 10-20 cents left on the counter. Never leave the tip with a card, in Italy the tip always goes in cash to be sure it goes to the staff and not to the owner's till.
Shopping in Italy: where to buy authentic Italian products without paying the tourist price?
Quality Italian products at the right price are found outside the tourist areas. The rule: the farther you are from a famous monument, the more real the prices. For food: Italian supermarkets (Esselunga, Coop, Conad) sell DOP prosciutto, pecorino, artisan pasta, DOP EVO oil at normal prices, the shops near the Pantheon or the Duomo sell them at 3x the price. For fashion: the Italian factory outlets (Fidenza Village in Emilia, The Mall near Florence for Gucci, Prada, Ferragamo at outlet prices) offer the big brands at 30-70% off. For leather: Florence has quality leather artisans outside the center (Oltrarno, Via dello Studio), prices 40-50% lower than the tourist boutiques on Via de' Tornabuoni.
Useful info for every season in Italy
- Spring (March-May): temperature 15-22°C in the Central-Northern cities, already 20-26°C in Sicily and Sardinia. The tourist season starts at Easter, book ahead for the Easter weekend.
- Summer (June-August): high season, maximum prices, maximum crowds, intense heat in the cities. Book everything 2-4 months ahead.
- Autumn (September-October): the best season for value, ideal temperature, reduced crowds, falling prices, the grape harvest underway.
- Winter (November-February): low season in the seaside destinations, high season in the ski destinations. The museums of the big cities are accessible without lines.
Why Italy is different from any other European destination
Italy is the only country in the world that was for 1,500 years the cultural, religious, artistic, and political center of the European continent. Rome was the capital of the Roman Empire for centuries. Then Rome was the seat of the Pope, the spiritual center of 1.3 billion Catholics in the world. Italian was the language of European diplomacy from the 14th to the 17th century. The Italian Renaissance (Florence, Venice, Rome, Milan) redefined the art, architecture, literature, and science of the entire Western civilization. This historical weight is physically present in Italy, not in textbooks but in the walls, the floors, the museums, the churches, the streets. Walking through Rome is walking on 28 centuries of layered history. This historical density is what no other European destination can replicate, not France, not Spain, not Greece. Each of these countries has its own greatness, but the concentration and the continuity of the Italian legacy has no parallel.
Is Italy still the right destination in 2025-2026 given overtourism?
Yes, with a caveat. The most overcrowded destinations (Venice, the Cinque Terre, Positano, the Colosseum in the central summer hours) have real overtourism problems that degrade the experience. But Italy has 300,000+ villages, 58 UNESCO sites, 20 regions with different cuisines, and the vast majority of this heritage isn't overcrowded. Those who arrive in Italy and go only to Venice-Rome-Florence in August see the worst version of Italy. Those who add Matera, Tropea, Alberobello, inland Sardinia, Molise, the Cosenza area of Calabria, see the best version. Italian overtourism is a problem of distribution, not total saturation.
Is it worth learning Italian to visit Italy?
For a 1-2-week trip: the basics (grazie, prego, buongiorno, quanto costa, dov'è) are enough, and they're rewarded with human warmth proportional to the effort. For those who move or make repeated trips: Italian is one of the easiest languages for those who already speak a Romance language (Spanish, French, Portuguese, Romanian), and one of the most beautiful in the world. Learning Italian profoundly changes the way you experience Italy: reading the menus in the original, understanding the historical signs, listening to the conversations in the bar, reading the local newspapers, it transforms the trip from an external view into participation.