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| The Leaning Tower of Pisa, located in Pisa, Italy. |
With more than 43.2 million tourists a year, Italy is the fourth highest tourist earner, and fifth most visited country in the world. People mainly come to Italy for its rich art, cuisine, history, fashion and culture, its beautiful coastline and beaches, its mountains, and priceless ancient monuments, especially those from the Greek civilization and Roman civilization. Tourism is one of Italy's fastest growing and most profitable industrial sectors, with estimated revenue of $42.7 billion.
Rome is one of the most visited cities in the world, with an average of 7-10 million tourists a year. The Colosseum (4 million tourists) and the Vatican Museums (4.2 million tourists) are the 39th and 37th most visited places in the world. Other main sights in the city include the Pantheon, the Trevi Fountain, Piazza Navona and the Spanish Steps.
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| The setting behind the famous balcony scene of Romeo and Juliet |
Another well-known city in Italy is the very popular Verona. This city is known for the seeting of Romeo and Juliet. Unlike most of the larger cities in the country, you are likely to find only a small percentage of tourists in historic Verona Italy. As you can imagine, seeing a performance of the story of Romeo and Juliet in its true setting is a staple of most travelers' visit to the city, and the summer months bring about Verona's famous Shakespeare festival, which includes performances by the Royal Shakespeare Company.
