An Italian travel expert shares the best hidden-gem destinations in Italy to visit in the offseason

• Visiting Italy in the offseason offers unique experiences and fewer crowds.
• Seasonal foods like mushrooms and chestnuts replace summer staples like tomatoes.
• Hidden gems and local festivals provide a distinct cultural experience in the fall and winter.

If you visit Italy in the offseason, you probably won’t be eating tomatoes.

That’s according to Maria Nuzzolillo, an Italian native from San Lupo who created a tour company called Vita Villaggi with her husband, Dan, specifically for under-the-radar destinations in Italy.

“Italians are very seasonal,” she said. “In the fall and winter, you will eat mushrooms, chestnuts, walnuts, and the delicacies around the holidays — things that you wouldn’t be able to taste in July.”

Besides avoiding crowds, visiting Italy outside summer, the peak season, will give you a different take on the country.

“The deciduous trees will lose their leaves,” she said. “In the vineyards, the grape vines will go from bright-green leaves to subtle orange and yellow.”

Nuzzolillo said Italy’s hidden-gem destinations are the most charming spots in the country in fall and winter. Fall is the tourism sector’s shoulder season, while winter is the offseason.

“You get to participate in the harvests and festivals. You can go fruit picking and taste the local specialties without the tourist veil,” Nuzzolillo said. “The beauty of Italy, especially if it’s off the beaten path, is that even though towns may be half a mile away from each other, each has their own unique take on the holidays and the fall.”

Nuzzolillo shared with Business Insider her favorite spots in Italy that you’ve probably never heard of — and why you must visit in the fall or winter.