While Italy is no doubt the place to be right now—with travelers flocking back to Venice, Rome, and Sicily after the height of the pandemic—chances are you haven’t been to Bergamo and Brescia before. The two cities in Lombardy are often overlooked in the midst of Italy’s countless unmissable destinations, despite being less than an hour away from Milan and a 40 minutes’ drive from each other.

Their lesser-known status, however, might change next year, when Bergamo and Brescia are Italy’s Capital of Culture for 2023. The two are picking up the baton from the island of Procida, in the Gulf of Naples (another travel underdog in the boot-shaped country). And the dual nomination isn’t business as usual—nor is the use of the singular ‘capital,’ rather than ‘capitals,’ a choice meant to signify unity and collaboration.