Formigine

Province: Modena · Region: Emilia-Romagna · Population: 33,667 · Postal code: 41043

Formigine's castle greets arrivals from the Via Giardini like a manifesto: a thirteenth-century stronghold intelligently restored, it hosts a multimedia museum telling its history and sieges, and in summer the park becomes an events arena. Around it, a well-kept centre of low porticoes and strolling squares.

This is Motor Valley and ceramic-district land: Maranello and its red cars are ten minutes away, Modena fifteen. Balsamic vinegar matures in family lofts here too, and the tortellini fear no comparison: the Emilian province in its most liveable format.