Camel trains and indigenous people will not be found on the road to San Marino. Most holidaymakers, using the services of San Marino vacation rentals, make the trip up from Rimini to send their postcards.

From the town of Borgomaggiore, a cable-car carries some of the punters up to the capital, San Marino town.

Those who arrive by coach miss this little delight as they are driven up to the heart of medieval commercialism.

As in Italian cities, the streets fill with the smell of pizza and pasta sauces, but the breeze that chases the aroma has a cooling effect because of San Marino's hilltop position; seven hundred and fifty metres above sea level.

Apart from buying postcards and tacky souvenirs, the highlight of a trip to San Marino is a walk through the forest paths to the three tower fortresses that crown the peaks of Mount Titano.

No cars are allowed in the city itself, but there are plenty of modern parking areas beyond the thick stone walls.

Much of what is seen in San Marino town is a reconstruction; right down to the detailed fancy dress.

Outside the palace, reconstructed in 1894, tourists queue up to have their person recorded alongside a Ruritanian guardsman.

The men in green jackets with brass buttons stand serious while the rabble in beach wear smile stupidly beside them.

With stunning views across the neighbouring countryside to Rimini and the Adriatic Sea, it is easy to see how this tiny republic was so defendable.

The modern armies of tourists are welcome of course, and even the Church has changed with tradition for them.

Where Catholics used to put a few coins in the box and light a candle for loved ones, the Basilica del Santo has now installed rows of electric candles.

As wave upon wave of tourists ebb and flow, the curator periodically switches off the candle lights to encourage the deposit of more money into church funds.

After a few hours in the medieval streets, most of the tourists then switch off their culture craving and return to Italy's number one beach resort.

San Marino doesn't have as hectic an events calendar as Milan or Rome, but the Feast of the Foundation of the Republic, with crossbow challenge, is always held on Sept. 3rd.