When it comes to travel, we like to think of ourselves as being somewhat intrepid. A week’s all-inclusive in Tenerife? No thanks, we’re taking a road trip across Kyrgyzstan this year.

Yes, the travel savvy have their fingers on the pulse. They’re one step ahead of the hoi polloi; they know that Wroclaw is the new Kraków, that astro-cruising is having a moment (Google it) and that luxury train travel is booming.

And yet… like putting on a pair of slippers and watching Friends, there is beauty in familiarity. Like eschewing the chef’s special for a chicken tikka masala, sometimes we just like to know what we’re getting.

Italy consistently ticks all the “perfect vacation” boxes. It’s one of the world’s most popular countries to visit – attracting close to 60 million tourists a year, a figure that has exploded in post-lockdown times. It’s got something for everyone; pristine coastline along Amalfi and Sardinia, verdant countryside and world-class wine in Tuscany, designer fashion aplenty in Milan, the jaw-dropping beauty of Venice and more ancient art and architecture than you can shake a selfie stick at across the entire country. Oh, and did we mention the food?

All of this brings us to Acqua di Parma, the venerable Italian fragrance brand born in Parma in 1916. At 110 years old, it’s a veritable pup in the context of Italian history, but its age and reverence are testament to the timeless allure of Italian style and craftsmanship.

The company was founded by art collector and bon vivant Baron Carlo Magnani, who launched the brand with Acqua di Parma’s original and still-bestselling scent, Colonia; a light, sophisticated cologne created as an alternative to the heavy, cloying French perfumes popular at the time.

Scent is arguably the most powerful of the senses; immediately pulling us back to a specific time and place. And we don’t need to be able to literally smell the freshly brewed espresso and zesty lemons to be drawn hook, line and sinker into the world of Acqua di Parma – which this year takes us on a tour of Parma with Hollywood A-lister Michael Fassbender and Italian actress Sabrina Impacciatore in a new campaign to celebrate its 110th anniversary.

In The Art of Living Italian, we follow Fassbender on a day out in Parma as he rides a bicycle through charming cobbled streets, enjoys a leisurely alfresco lunch and flirts with Impacciatore, who also narrates the short film. At the heart of the sun-drenched footage is a message about going with the flow and reflecting on the beauty of Italy that filters through the smallest details.