Geographically, Italy is a boot shaped peninsula extending into the
central Mediterranean sea. It is approximately 1,130 kilometres long
and has a total area of approximately 301,238 square kilometres
comprising some of the most varied and scenic landscapes on earth.
Italy's land borders are with Switzerland, France, Austria and Slovenia.
There are two independent states within Italy's borders: San Marino and
Vatican City.
The Mountains
Italy is mostly mountainous with ranges over 700 metres covering a third
of the country. The best known ranges are the Alps, the Dolomites and
the Appenines.
The Italian Alps are divided into three main groups. The first group,
the Western Alps run north to south from Aosta to the Cadibona Pass,
with the highest peaks of Mount Viso 3,841 metres and Gran Paradiso
4,061 metres which is regarded as the highest mountain completely within
Italy. The second group, the Central Alps run west to east from the
Western Alps to the Brenner Pass, leading into Austria and the Trentino -
Alto Adige valley. This group also has high peaks, such as Monte
Bianco (Mont Blanc) with a summit of 4,807 metres just over the border
in France, Monte Cervino (Matterhorn) 4,478 metres, Monte Rosa with a
summit of 4,634 metres just over the border in Switzerland, and Mount
Ortles 3,905 metres. The last group, the Eastern Alps run west to east
from the Brenner Pass to Trieste and include the Dolomites and Mount
Marmolada 3,343 metres. The Italian foothills of the Alps, which reach
no higher than 2,500 metres, lie between these great ranges and the Po
valley.
The Apennines form the backbone of the country running down the full
length of the Italian peninsula from the Cadibona Pass to the tip of
Calabria, continuing onto the island of Sicily. The range is about 2,000
kilometres long. Although narrow at each end, only about 32 kilometres
wide, it is about 190 kilometres wide in the Central Apennines, east of
Rome, where the "Great Rock of Italy" (Gran Sasso d'Italia) provides
the highest Apennine peak at 2,912 metres. This area also includes the
only glacier in Italy, Calderone, the southernmost in Europe.
The Plains
Between the Alps and the Appenines lies the Padan Plain. This is
drained by the longest river of Italy, the Po, stretching for 652
kilometres eastward from the Cottian Alps to the Adriatic. Plains cover
less than a quarter of the total area of Italy, and the Padan Plain is
the most extensive and important in Italy. It occupies more than 44,000
of the 77,000 square kilometres of Italian plain land. It ranges in
altitude from sea level up to 550 metres but most of it lies below 100
metres. The waters of the Po River and all its tributaries, together
with the Reno, Adige, Piave, and Tagliamento rivers, eventually provide
vital irrigation for the intensive agriculture of the fertile lower
plain.
Other notable plains include the Maremme of Tuscany and Lazio, the
Pontine Marshes, the fertile Campania Plain around Vesuvius and the
rather arid Apulian Plain. In Sicily the Plain of Catania is a good area
for growing citrus fruit.
The Lakes
There are about 1,500 lakes in Italy. Most of these are small Alpine
lakes that are used for hydroelectric schemes. Other lakes, such as
Bolsena and Albano in Lazio, occupy the craters of extinct volcanoes.
There are also coastal lagoons, such as Lakes Lesina and Varano in
Puglia, and lakes resulting from prehistoric faulting, such as Lake
Alleghe, near Belluno. The best-known, largest, and most important of
the Italian lakes are Lakes Garda, Maggiore, Como, Iseo, and Lugano.
They are situated in the north of Italy around Milan. They have a
semi-Mediterranean climate and are surrounded by groves of olive and
citrus trees. Italy also has considerable areas in which, as a result of
porous rock, the water systems run underground, forming subterranean
streams, sinkholes, and lakes. These are often associated with caves,
the most famous of which are those of Castellana, in Puglia.
The Coast
Including islands, Italy has a total coastline of 7,600 kilometres, much
of which is extremely varied. Along the two Ligurian rivieras, on
either side of Genoa, the coast alternates between high, rocky zones and
level gravel. The most famous of the rocky areas is called Cinque
Terre, running from Sestri Levante down to La Spezia. The coast
southwards from Tuscany to Campania consists of long, sandy, crescent
beaches mixed with higher, more rocky stretches. The Tyrrhenian coasts
of basilicata and Calabria are high and rocky, though sometimes broken
by short beaches, many of them with spectacular white sand, particularly
towards the south. The coast of Puglia is flat, as is most of the
Adriatic coast of Italy, although it is dominated by terraced hills
behind. The majestic delta of the Po River, extending from Rimini to
Monfalcone, is riddled with the lagoons most famously around Venice. The
Carso, the limestone coastal region between Trieste and Istria, is
rocky.
The Islands
Italy is surrounded by sea on three sides. To the north west is the
Ligurian sea, to the west and south west the Tyrrhenian sea, to the
south and south east is the Ionian sea and to the east is the Adriatic
sea. The two largest islands in the Mediterranean, Sicily and Sardinia,
are both a part of Italy. There are many other island groups too:
Tuscan Islands | Pontine Islands | Napolitan Islands | Aeolian Islands
Egadi Islands | Tremeti Islands | Pelagie Islands
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