Land of Mermaids. Land of Orange and Lemon Groves. Land of Colors. This small city in Campania has earned a plethora of alluring names. Famed for its sea cliffs, the town's steep slopes look out over azure waters to Ischia, Capri and the Bay of Naples. The birthplace of Limoncello liqueur offers some good diving, great sea fishing, boat cruises and appetizing restaurants. Excellent hiking trails cross the peninsula. Rent a car or take a taxi if the steep streets look too intimidating.

Pompeii is a Roman town frozen in time, thanks to a devastating eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. Explore houses from modest to majestic; see Roman shops, baths and brothels; or apply your high-school Latin to the graffiti that's still visible on some of the walls. End your visit at the Villa of the Mysteries, and try to interpret its amazing, bizarre frescoes—scholars have debated their meaning for years.

The crags and grottoes of Capri have been dazzling visitors since the Ancient Greeks first settled the island. It’s easy to understand why artists and writers have been immortalizing Capri’s beauty and history for centuries. Climb aboard a wooden boat to tour the Grotto Azzurra, a cave filled with spectacularly blue water. Savor some gelato while you stroll around the harbours of Marina Piccola or Marina Grande, an ancient Roman fishing port.

If it's your first time visiting the Amalfi Coast, chances are you'll do a double-take the first time you see a roadside lemon stand. Yes, those are lemons, and yes, they are the size of your head. But despite their freakish appearance, you will grow to love these lemons because the locals use them to produce limoncello. And take it from us, there's nothing like a glass of limoncello as you gaze out at the sea from the balcony of your hotel in Amalfi. It's pretty much perfection.

Romantic Naples, two hours south of Rome, is the largest city in southern Italy. It has some of the world's best opera and theatre houses and is often called an open-air museum, due to its many historic statues and monuments. Join families on the promenade as the sun sets on the Bay of Naples. View finds from Pompeii and Herculaneum, destroyed by Mount Vesuvius in 79 A.D., at the Museo Archeologico Nazionale or revel in the art and architecture of Museo Cappella Sansevero, built in the late 1500s.

The Costa Dorada is one of the main tourist destinations on the Mediterranean. It is a rich and varied territory, with a long coastline bathed in sunshine and an interior dotted by quiet villages and cultivated fields. The Costa Dorada is much more than sun, sea and sand. It offers its visitors a wide range of leisure activities, culture, nature and history in an ideal setting of peace and tranquillity, perfect for holidays with the whole family.

Comprising the provinces of Alicante, Valencia and Castellon, Valencian Country basks on the Mediterranean Coast in central southeastern Spain. The densely populated area is a prime tourist destination, with Valencia city having the reputation as the place the Spanish go to party. The area offers budget resorts, such as those on the Costa Blanca, to upscale villas in elegant Valencia. Small villages are scattered through the mountainous inland region, but it's the coast that remains the main draw.

Portuguese, French and Berber architecture frame the maze-like streets of Essaouira, a charming and vibrant port and resort town on the Atlantic Ocean. Nearby, couples and families stroll the beaches of Cape Sim and Sidi Kaouki, which also attract surfers of all types. Relaxation is easy to find here, as is a bus to Marrakech, for those looking for a daytrip.

Mangroves meet sandy beaches in laid-back Maragogi, a growing town whose locals and visitors both head to the sea for sunset drinks and socializing. The most sought-after treasures are off the coast, where the Gales de Maragogi marine reserve shelters crystal-clear ponds, coral reefs, and colorful fish.