Urbino

A town rarely visited by coach tours.

Most tourists in Italy are content to stay by the sea, perhaps to explore Rome or to visit the numerous Tuscan towns (Lucca, Siena, Florence, Pisa) plus Sorrento and the Amalfi coast.

The wonderful thing about Urbino is its distance from any of the usual tourist sites.  For a start, it is on the other - Adriatic - side of the Appenine mountains.  In order to get there you will need to hire a car or use the excellent Italian bus service.

Urbino is an almost perfectly preserved walled medieval/renaissance town.  It was the birthplace of Italy's beloved painter, Rafael, and was home to Federico da Montefeltro, one of the greatest warriors and art collectors of the Renaissance.  His majestic palace (at centre of photo) will not be swarming with visitors, you can enjoy it at your leisure.

If you sit at a restaurant in the town centre you are very unlikely to hear people talking in any language but Italian.  But don't worry, this is a major university town and it will be difficult to find anyone who does not speak English as well.