# Italian regions by protected land: the two on top

> Campania holds 11% of Italy's protected land and Abruzzo 9.6%, of 3,175,554 ha in 843 areas. A 2026 register now lists 1,048. What the ranking can show.

URL: https://myitalia.it/best/protected-land-by-region
Last updated: 2026-09-11

Campania and Abruzzo hold the largest shares of Italy's protected land, 11% and 9.6% of a national total of 3,175,554 ha in 843 areas on ISPRA's 2024 figures, and no other region's share is in the sources we can verify, so this is a ranking with two names.

## The criterion: hectares in the official register

A region ranks here on its share of the 3,175,554 ha of land inside officially protected areas, as counted by ISPRA on the national register, the EUAP. What a region feels like, how green it looks from a train, or how many parks it advertises doesn't enter.

The measure is each region's share of the national protected total, which is what ISPRA publishes. It isn't the share of each region's own land that's protected, a different and more useful number that we don't have.

## The two regions ISPRA names

| Rank | Region | Share of Italy's protected land | National parks with their main seat in the region |
|---|---|---:|---|
| 1 | Campania | 11% | Vesuvio; Cilento, Vallo di Diano and Alburni |
| 2 | Abruzzo | 9.6% | Gran Sasso and Monti della Laga; Majella; Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise |
| | the other 18 regions | not in our sources | |

Eleven percent of the national total is a little under 350,000 ha, and 9.6% a little over 300,000 ha, by our arithmetic. Together the two regions hold a fifth of Italy's protected land.

## Why Campania and Abruzzo come first

Campania's share rests on one very large park: the Cilento, Vallo di Diano and Alburni covers 178,172 ha on the environment ministry's figures, the largest national park by that measure. Vesuvio adds a second national park, much smaller.

Abruzzo counts three national parks by their main seat. The Gran Sasso and Monti della Laga alone covers 150,000 ha, though across three regions, Abruzzo, Lazio and Marche, so not all of it is Abruzzo's. The Majella and the Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise park complete the set. For each park by region, see [national parks by surface](/best/national-parks-by-surface).

## The national total: 843 areas on 3,175,554 ha

ISPRA's 2024 count gives 843 protected areas on land, covering 3,175,554 ha, roughly 10.5% of the national territory.

| Type of protected area | Number |
|---|---:|
| National parks | 26 |
| State nature reserves | 148 |
| Regional nature parks | 133 |
| Regional nature reserves | 365 |
| Other protected areas | 171 |

Regional reserves are the most numerous by far, but national parks, only 26 of the 843, carry most of the surface.

## The 2026 register moved the baseline

The seventh update of the official register of protected areas, approved by ministerial decree on July 29, 2026, lists 1,048 protected areas: 3,356,239.55 ha on land, 2,868,914.05 ha at sea and 3,456.97 km of coastline.

That's more areas and more land than the ISPRA base the regional shares were calculated on. The 11% and the 9.6% belong to the older count, and when ISPRA recalculates on the 2026 register, the order may change.

## What counts as protected, by law

Framework law 394 of 1991 sorts Italy's protected natural areas into six categories: national parks; regional and interregional parks; nature reserves; wetlands of international importance under the Ramsar Convention; other protected natural areas, such as NGO oases and suburban parks, public or private; and areas identified for future protection on land and at sea.

The breadth of that last group is why counts differ between sources. The full regional table, with every region's protected hectares, is not in our verified sources, and it's the first number we've asked to add. For marine protection, see [marine protected areas](/best/marine-protected-areas).

## FAQ

### Which Italian region has the most protected land?

Campania, with 11% of Italy's protected land area, followed by Abruzzo with 9.6%, according to ISPRA's 2024 figures. Those are shares of the national protected total of 3,175,554 ha, not of each region's own surface. ISPRA's summary names no other region.

### How much of Italy is protected?

Roughly 10.5% of the country's land: 3,175,554 ha in 843 protected areas on ISPRA's 2024 figures. The official register updated on July 29, 2026 counts 1,048 areas, with 3,356,239.55 ha on land and 2,868,914.05 ha at sea.

### How many protected areas are there in Italy?

843 on ISPRA's 2024 count, made up of 26 national parks, 148 state nature reserves, 133 regional parks, 365 regional nature reserves and 171 other protected areas. The seventh update of the official register, approved on July 29, 2026, lists 1,048.

### What counts as a protected area in Italy?

Six categories, under framework law 394 of 1991: national parks, regional and interregional parks, nature reserves, Ramsar wetlands of international importance, other protected natural areas such as NGO oases and suburban parks, and areas identified for future protection on land and at sea.

## Sources

| Fact | Source | Confidence | Valid until |
|---|---|---|---|
| Campania e Abruzzo sono le regioni che contribuiscono di piu' alla superficie protetta terrestre italiana, rispettivamente con l'11% e il 9,6% del totale nazionale (ISPRA 2024). | [ISPRA - Annuario dei dati ambientali](https://indicatoriambientali.isprambiente.it/en/protected-areas/terrestrial-protected-areas) | medium | 2027-06-30 |
| Le aree protette terrestri italiane sono 843 e coprono 3.175.554 ettari, circa il 10,5% della superficie terrestre nazionale (dato ISPRA 2024). | [ISPRA - Annuario dei dati ambientali](https://indicatoriambientali.isprambiente.it/en/protected-areas/terrestrial-protected-areas) | medium | 2027-06-30 |
| Composizione delle 843 aree protette terrestri italiane secondo ISPRA (2024): 26 parchi nazionali, 148 riserve naturali statali, 133 parchi naturali regionali, 365 riserve naturali regionali, 171 altre aree protette. | [ISPRA - Annuario dei dati ambientali](https://indicatoriambientali.isprambiente.it/en/protected-areas/terrestrial-protected-areas) | medium | 2027-06-30 |
| Il VII aggiornamento dell'Elenco Ufficiale delle Aree Protette (EUAP), approvato con decreto del Ministro dell'Ambiente il 29 luglio 2026, censisce 1.048 aree protette in Italia: 3.356.239,55 ettari a terra, 2.868.914,05 ettari a mare e 3.456,97 km di costa. | [Ministero dell'Ambiente e della Sicurezza Energetica (MASE)](https://www.mase.gov.it/portale/web/guest/-/natura-mase-1048-aree-protette-in-italia.-pichetto-patrimonio-comune-da-difendere-e-calorizzare-) | medium | 2028-12-31 |
| La legge quadro 394/1991 classifica le aree naturali protette italiane in sei categorie: parchi nazionali; parchi naturali regionali e interregionali; riserve naturali; zone umide di interesse internazionale (Convenzione di Ramsar); altre aree naturali protette (oasi delle associazioni ambientaliste, parchi suburbani, a gestione pubblica o privata); aree di reperimento terrestri e marine. | [Ministero dell'Ambiente e della Sicurezza Energetica (MASE)](https://www.mase.gov.it/pagina/classificazione-delle-aree-naturali-protette) | medium | 2099-12-31 |
| I 24 parchi nazionali operativi italiani (2026), con la regione della sede/localizzazione principale indicata dal MASE. | [Ministero dell'Ambiente e della Sicurezza Energetica (MASE)](https://www.mase.gov.it/aree-protette/mappa-parchi-nazionali); [doc 2](https://www.mase.gov.it/portale/elenco-dei-parchi) | medium | 2027-12-31 |
| Il Parco Nazionale del Pollino, istituito nel 1993, si estende su 171.132 ettari a cavallo fra Basilicata e Calabria ed e' il secondo parco nazionale italiano per superficie secondo i dati del MASE, dopo il Cilento, Vallo di Diano e Alburni (178.172 ettari); l'Ente Parco ha sede a Rotonda, in provincia di Potenza | [MASE - Ministero dell'Ambiente e della Sicurezza Energetica](https://www.mase.gov.it/portale/web/guest/parco-nazionale-del-pollino); [doc 2](https://www.mase.gov.it/portale/web/guest/parco-nazionale-del-cilento-vallo-di-diano-e-alburni) | medium | 2029-12-31 |
| Il Parco Nazionale del Gran Sasso e Monti della Laga, istituito dalla legge quadro 394/1991 e perimetrato in via definitiva con DPR del 5 giugno 1995, copre 150.000 ettari su tre regioni (Abruzzo, Lazio, Marche) e cinque province. | [Ente Parco Nazionale del Gran Sasso e Monti della Laga](https://www.gransassolagapark.it/pagina.php?id=131); [doc 2](https://www.gransassolagapark.it/pagina.php?id=41) | medium | 2029-12-31 |

## Image

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Author: Martuna.22. License: CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0).
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Costiera_amalafitana_(1).jpg

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