Abruzzo and Molise
Abruzzo and Molise, one region until 1963, together make Italy’s transition from north to south. Both are sparsely populated mountainous regions prone to earthquakes, and both have been outside the mainstream of Italian affairs since the Middle Ages. In April 2009 Abruzzo hit the international headlines as a massive earthquake struck, with its epicentre in L’Aquila, the regional capital, virtually destroying the city, killing over 300 people and leaving 65,000 homeless. In spite of the widespread destruction, L’Aquila is slowly being pieced back together again, and these two little-visited regions continue to be among the few areas of Italy where there is still plenty to discover.
Bordered by the Apennines, Abruzzo holds some of Italy’s wildest terrain: silent valleys, abandoned hill-villages and vast untamed mountain plains, once roamed by wolves, bears and chamois. The Abruzzesi have done much to pull their region out of the poverty trap, developing resorts on the long, sandy Adriatic coastline and exploiting the tourist potential of a large, mountainous national park and some great historic towns. Following the earthquake, Sulmona, to the southeast, may be the most logical base. L’Aquila, at the foot of Gran Sasso – the Apennines’ highest peak – is still worth a visit, and though it’s an unsettling experience wandering scaffolding-lined streets patrolled by the guards of the Protezione Civile, several sights have reopened, and a new museum is set to open, where exhibits rescued from the partially destroyed museum and churches will be on display.
The rising stars of Abruzzo are the hill-villages around L’Aquila, deeply rural places, where time seems to have stopped somewhere in the fifteenth century, whose traditions, cuisine and architecture are only now coming to be appreciated. South of Sulmona, in Scanno elderly women wear costumes that originated in Asia Minor, and make intricate lace on cylindrical cushions known as tomboli. Just down the road, the scruffy hill-village of Cocullo hosts one of Europe’s most bizarre religious festivals, in which a statue of the local saint is draped with live snakes before being paraded through the streets. The main resort on the Abruzzo coast is Pescara, departure port for ferries to Croatia and a good base for excursions inland to Chieti, home to an excellent archeological museum. However the best spot for a sun-and-sand break is further south at Vasto, with its gently shelving sandy beach and lively old centre.
Gentler, less rugged and somewhat poorer than Abruzzo, Molise has more in common with southern than central Italy. Much of the region still seems to be struggling out of its past, its towns and villages victims of either economic neglect or hurried modern development. The cities, Isernia and Campobasso, victims themselves of earlier earthquakes, are large and bland, with small historical centres, but Molise has its compensations: a scattering of low-key Roman ruins – most interestingly at Saepinum, a quintessential Roman provincial town and a site that’s still well off the tourist track. Wandering among the ruins, and looking out over the green fields to the mountains beyond, you get some inkling of how Italy’s first Grand Tourists must have felt. A less-refined but equally interesting attraction takes place in the village of Ururi, settled by Albanian refugees in the fifteenth century, where the annual chariot race is as barbaric as anything the Romans dreamed up.
Finally there’s the sheer physical aspect of the place. Forty percent of Molise is covered by mountains, and although they are less dramatic than Abruzzo’s, there are masses of possibilities for hiking. Visitors are also starting to explore the area’s ancient sheep-droving routes, known as tratturi, which are gaining new life as mountain-bike or horseback-riding trails, served by occasional farmhouse guesthouses and riding stables along the way.
Don’t expect to rush through Abruzzo and Molise if you’re relying on public transport; in both regions, getting around on bus and train demands patience and the careful studying of timetables (www.arpaonline.it in Abruzzo; in Molise at www.viaggiomolise.it).
L’Aquila >
Sulmona and around >
Parco Nazionale d’Abruzzo >
Northeast Abruzzo: Téramo >
The Abruzzo coast >
Térmoli and around >
Isernia >
Campobasso and around >
Travel details >
Highlights
Corno Grande Hike in the wild and craggy Gran Sasso massif, out of which rises Italy’s highest peak, the Corno Grande.
Parco Nazionale d’Abruzzo Get back to nature in this lovely park, which has around one hundred indigenous species of fauna and flora.
Museo delle Genti d’Abruzzo, Pescara Poetry and intricately carved objects bear witness to the industry of Abruzzo’s shepherds.
Museo Archeologico, Chieti Head here for the best and most comprehensive display of Abruzzese antiquities, including the unique Capestrano warrior.
Bull race at Ururi The ordinary town of Ururi turns into a scene of frenetic activity once a year as horses, bulls and carts career through the streets.
Saepinum This enchanting archeological site in rural Sepino is a throwback to the original Grand Tour, with overgrown Roman ruins dotted with inhabited dwellings.
L’Aquila
Until April 6, 2009, L’AQUILA was Abruzzo’s main cultural attraction. An ancient university town overlooked by the bulk of Gran Sasso, it was founded in 1242, when the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II legendarily drew together the populations from 99 of Abruzzo’s villages to form a new city. Each village built its own church, piazza and quarter, and one of the city’s most-loved (and surviving) sights is a medieval fountain with 99 spouts.
Since the earthquake, much of L’Aquila’s centro storico has been out of bounds, and the city is rigorously monitored by the Protezione Civile and other forces of order, but it’s still possible to visit. Buses and trains still run here, while several hotels, B&Bs and restaurants have reopened (with more opening all the time) to serve the 20,000-plus workers who have poured into the area to build new houses on the outskirts, and to restore the ancient buildings in the city centre.
Naturally things are changing rapidly, but at the time of writing, the Protezione Civile had created a route through the historic centre (partly through tunnels) which is considered safe. In the unlikely event that you decide to stay, the extremely helpful tourist office, housed in a container outside the rugby stadium, will be able to advise on the best places to stay and eat, and whether any more of the city’s monuments are accessible.
The City
Following the Protezione Civile route that has been created through town, you can visit the Castello on the northeast edge of the historic centre, built by the Spanish in the sixteenth century to keep the locals under control, and home, until the earthquake, of the Museo Nazionale d’Abruzzo.
From here you can follow the route to the church of San Bernardino. The church is closed, but the sumptuous facade, with three magnificent white tiers bedecked with classical columns, is visible. The route continues down to Piazza del Duomo, once the scene of a bustling daily market, now home to tents belonging to civic advisory bodies. The Duomo itself is boxed in wood. From here, the route follows Corso Federico II south, and then east to Santa Maria di Collemaggio (daily 8.30am–noon & 3–6pm, but subject to change; free), its massive rectangular bulk faced with a geometric jigsaw of pink and white stone. It was founded in the thirteenth century by Pietro of Morrone, a hermit unwillingly dragged from his mountain retreat to be made pope by power-hungry cardinals who reckoned he would be easy to manipulate. When he turned out to be too naive even for the uses of the cardinals, he was forced to resign and was posthumously compensated for the ordeal by being canonized.
Finally, close to the train station, is L’Aquila’s famous Fontana delle 99 Cannelle, tucked behind the medieval Porta della Riviera (currently boxed in wood). Set around three sides of a sunken piazza, each water spout is a symbol of one of the villages that formed the city. This constant supply of fresh water sustained the Aquilani through plagues, earthquakes and sieges, and was used for washing clothes until after the war.
Regional food and wine
Abruzzo and Molise are mountainous regions where agriculture is difficult and sheep-farming dominates. Consequently, lamb tends to feature strongly in the local cuisine. You’ll come across abbacchio, unweaned baby lamb that is usually cut into chunks and roasted or grilled; arrosticini, tiny pieces of lamb skewered and flame grilled; and intingolo di castrato, lamb cooked as a casserole with tomatoes, wine, herbs, onion and celery.
In Abruzzo, a crucial ingredient is olive oil, a product that has gained international acclaim in recent years. Around Sulmona aglio rosso (red garlic) is believed by many locals to be a cure for ailments ranging from neuralgia to arthritis; around L’Aquila in particular saffron (zafferano) is also found widely in sweet and savoury dishes, grown in fields southeast of the city.
Probably Abruzzo’s most famous dish is maccheroni alla chitarra, made by pressing a sheet of pasta over a wooden frame, and usually served with a tomato or lamb sauce. Cheese tends to be pecorino – either mature and grainy like parmesan, or still mild, soft and milky.
The wines of Molise are rarely found outside the region. The most interesting is the Biferno DOC, which can be red, white, or rosato. The best-known wine of Abruzzo is Montepulciano d’Abruzzo, a heavy red made from the Montepulciano grape with up to 15 percent Sangiovese. Pecorino, a local varietal and DOC, produces a fresh and mineral white. One of Italy’s most important wine events, Cantine Aperte (“open cellars”) was born in Abruzzo and takes place the last weekend in May. Hundreds of producers open their doors to enthusiasts for free tastings and gastronomic events (www.movimentoturismovino.it).
Practicalities
L’Aquila’s train station is to the west of the centre, a short walk from the Fontana delle 99 Cannelle. Long-distance buses arrive at the Collemaggio terminal near Porta Bazzano. The tourist office (Mon & Wed 9am–1pm, Tues, Thurs & Fri 9am–1pm & 3–6pm, may open Sat in the summer; 0862.410.808, www.abruzzoturismo.it) is in a container to the west of the city in the suburb of Acquasanta, at Parcheggio Stadio Rugby, a car park near the rugby stadium and the cemetery. Take bus #5 or #8 from the train station, or any bus going to the cemetery from the bus station. The staff are enthusiastic and efficient, and have up-to-date information on places to stay and restaurants, as well as accessible sights. One happy survivor of the earthquake is La Cantina del Boss at Via Castello 3, a wine bar with a good selection of local and national wines.
The 2009 earthquake
At 3.32am on the morning of Monday, April 6, 2009, an earthquake of 5.8 on the Richter scale rocked central Italy. The shocks were felt as far as Rome and Campania, but the epicentre was L’Aquila, the regional capital of Abruzzo. Built on the bed of an ancient lake, the geological structure of the terrain amplified the seismic waves.
The city has a history of earthquakes, the worst being in 1703 when 5000 people were killed, and the city virtually flattened. This time, thousands of buildings in the city were badly damaged, and some surrounding villages, such as Onna, which lost 38 of its 351 inhabitants, was virtually destroyed. However, nearby medieval hill-villages survived virtually untouched, and it is clear that much of the damage and many of the deaths were due to shoddy building standards; an official of the Protezione Civile commented that in California an earthquake on this scale would have killed no one.
In all, 308 people died, and over 65,000 were made homeless; 40,000 people were evacuated to tented camps, prompting Prime Minister Berlusconi to make his infamous comment that the earthquake victims should cheer up and consider themselves on a camping weekend. Others were housed in hotels along the coast, or went to stay with relatives. The scale of the project to rehouse the victims is hard to imagine. All around L’Aquila new estates of houses, mobile homes, wooden cabins and prefabs are springing up – including 19 estates of C.A.S.E, sustainable, ecofriendly, anti-seismic houses – though there are understandable suspicions that a large percentage of the money available for building contracts has ended up in the hands of the Mafia.
On December 24, 2009, eight months after the earthquake, Christmas Eve Mass was held in the stunning thirteenth-century basilica of Santa Maria di Collemaggio, which lies just outside the city’s walls. The intricate pink-and-white inlaid facade was still boxed in wood, and the roof was made of plexiglass, but the opening of the church – the city’s most famous – seemed a clear sign that life was going on. Meanwhile, the less glamorous task of clearing four million tonnes of rubble from the centre of the town was left untouched. Finally the people of L’Aquila decided to take things into their own hands, and in February 2010 locals organized a series of “wheelbarrow Sundays”, descending in their thousands to L’Aquila, to make the point that if the will was there, the work could be done. Though initially ridiculed by politicians, in May 2010 the official operation to clear L’Aquila began in earnest. Adding fuel to the criticisms of the way the crisis has been handled, Sabina Guzzanti’s low-budget, satirical film Draquila: Italy Trembles received a Special Screening at Cannes in May 2010.
L’Aquila’s treasures
The entire collection of the Museo Nazionale d’Abruzzo, previously in the city’s Castello, is now held for safe keeping at the Museo di Preistoria Le Palude at Celano, 50km west of L’Aquila, close to the Celano exit of the Rome–Pescara autostrada. If you want to see the collection, call in advance to make an appointment (0863.790.357) and the director will show you around.
The objects will remain here until a new temporary museum, in an ex-slaughterhouse near the Fontana delle 99 Cannelle opens, possibly as early as spring 2011. For up-to-date information on the progress of the museum, contact L’Aquila’s very helpful tourist office.
Parco Nazionale del Gran Sasso
Whether you approach Abruzzo from Le Marche in the north or Rome in the west, your arrival will be signalled by the spectacular bulk of the Gran Sasso massif, containing by far the highest of the Apennine peaks as well as a national park (www.gransassolagapark.it) with hiking trails. If you come by autostrada from Le Marche, you’ll actually travel underneath the mountains, through a ten-kilometre tunnel, passing the entrance to a particle-physics research laboratory bored into the very heart of the mountain range. The massif itself consists of two parallel chains, flanking the Campo Imperatore plain that stretches for 27km at over 2000m above sea level.
Fonte Cerreto
FONTE CERRETO is the gateway to the Gran Sasso park. It consists of little more than a few hotels, a restaurant and a campsite clustered around a cable-car station. Most of these were built in the 1930s as part of Mussolini’s scheme to keep Italians fit by encouraging them to take exercise in the mountains. Ironically, he was imprisoned here in 1943, first at the Villetta inn (now the Fior di Gigli), and then at the Ostello Campo Imperatore, a grim hotel at the top of the cable-car route. Il Duce supposedly spent his days at the hotel on a diet of eggs, rice, boiled onions and grapes, contemplating suicide. Hitler came to his rescue, dispatching an ace pilot to airlift him out in a tiny plane.
There is a cable car running up the mountain, closed for maintenance at the time of writing, but due to reopen in December 2010 (0862.606.143). The small tourist office (www.ilgransasso.it) was also closed following the earthquake, but local hotels are a good source of information on walks in the Gran Sasso park, and should be able to supply you with maps of trails and information on wildlife.
As for accommodation, the Fior di Gigli (0862.606.171 & 0862.606.172, www.fiordigigli.com; €61–90), over a snack bar at the base of the cable car, has been pleasantly modernized since Mussolini was imprisoned here. There’s also accommodation in two places run by CAI (the Italian Alpine Club); one of these is the Ostello Campo Imperatore (335.879.6640, www.hotelcampoimperatore.com; €30 per person for a hostel bed with breakfast or €45 for dinner, bed and breakfast), which occupies the old cable-car station; the other is the Hotel Campo Imperatore (phone and website as above; June to mid-Sept; €91–120).
Gran Sasso trails
Snow can continue to fall on the park’s highest mountain, Corno Grande (2912m), until late May, and remain thick on the ground well into June, so outside July and August, the ascent should only be attempted by experienced and fully equipped climbers. At all times you should be prepared for some fairly strenuous scree-climbing and steep descents. If you are fit, but not experienced, it is probably wiser to take a guide: contact the local association of mountain guides (347.817.9989; €240 per day; maximum four people when there is snow cover). Perhaps the most challenging route is the tough trek from the Ostello Campo Imperatore right across the mountain range, taking in the Corno Grande, sleeping over at the Rifugio Franchetti (0861.959.634 or 333.232.4474, www.rifugiofranchetti.it; June–Sept; €20, or €32 for dinner, bed and breakfast). The website has several suggested itineraries (in Italian only), and the staff are also very knowledgeable. If you’re going to do any of the Gran Sasso trails, you’ll need the CAI Gran Sasso d’Italiamap (on sale in newsagents around the region), and should check out weather conditions with your hotel or online at www.meteomont.net first.
The Campo Imperatore plain
The road continues from Fonte Cerreto across the vast Campo Imperatore plain, long the stomping ground of nomadic shepherds, who bring their flocks up to the plain for summer grazing after wintering in the south – a practice that endured since Roman times. The plain is fringed with hill-villages, many of them owing their existence to the medieval wool-trade.
Among them is Castel del Monte, heavily fortified and crowned with a ruined castle and church, scene of a chilling episode at the beginning of the last century when workers discovered a series of caves containing hundreds of clothed skeletons sitting on cane chairs. The skeletons no longer exist, having been burnt as a health precaution, though their discovery perhaps lies behind the town’s biggest event of the year, a festival of witches that takes place one night in mid-August (see www.lanottedellestreghe.org for the exact date), with locals acting out all manner of spooky scenarios. For the rest of the year, the main attraction is the cheesemaker’s Aromatorio Mariano at Via delle Vittorie 7 just above the main piazza, where a single woman keeps local traditions alive with a creative range of cheeses – among them goat’s cheese in juniper ash, ricotta with saffron preserved in olive oil, and sheep’s cheese matured in grape must, or wrapped in fig.
Close by is Rocca Calascio, its pale-honey castle crumbling above a village that is just beginning to be repopulated and restored after years of abandonment, as people revalue the potential of its medieval houses as holiday homes. Beyond is Santo Stefano di Sessanio, a bustling Medici stronghold in the fifteenth century, virtually abandoned, and seemingly destined for nothing, until visionary entrepreneur Daniele Kihlgren turned up there on his motorbike in 1999 (see The culture of poverty).
Bominaco
From L’Aquila, the SS17 follows the ancient route of the local shepherds across the saffron fields south to Sulmona. If you have your own transport, it’s worth making a short detour on the way to see two of Abruzzo’s most beautiful churches at BOMINACO (also accessible by bus from L’Aquila). The village itself is an inauspicious knot of grubby houses in a marvellous setting at the head of a valley, but the endearingly askew and lichen-mottled facade of San Pellegrino, founded by Charlemagne, conceals floor-to-ceiling thirteenth-century frescoes in vivid hues reminiscent of a peacock’s plume (open on request; see Sulmona and around). The frescoes include pictures of the life of Christ, the Virgin and a huge St Christopher, as well as an intriguing calendar with signs of the zodiac. If you put your ear to the hole at the side of the altar, tradition says you’ll hear the heartbeat of San Pellegrino buried below.
The church of Santa Maria Assunta (opened on request; see Sulmona and around), just beyond, stands on the foundations of a Roman temple to Venus. Beyond its coolly refined exterior, the creamy-white carvings are so exquisitely precise that it seems the mason has only just put down his chisel; in fact they’re eight hundred years old. You can ask for admission to both churches from a local lady known as Signora Chiara (0862.93.764; tip expected). Bring change to illuminate the interiors (€2).
The culture of poverty
The son of an Italian mother and Swedish father, Daniele Kihlgren was born heir to the vast fortune his mother’s family had accrued by producing cement. Like many rich kids, he rebelled, getting himself expelled from three schools, then dabbling in hard drugs. A motorbike trip around Italy opened his eyes to the immense damage cement – and illegal development – had done to his country, especially in Sicily and the south, but in 1999, biking through Abruzzo, he discovered Santo Stefano di Sessanio, a hill-village that was so poor that no one had ever bothered to build anything new. In other similar villages around the south, those who wanted to make anything of their lives had emigrated, to America, Australia, Germany, Switzerland, often returning to build huge modern houses that had nothing to do with local traditions, materials or landscape. Returnees wanted to demonstrate their wealth and cosmopolitanism, and did so by constructing the horrendous Swiss-type chalets or American-style bungalows – most of them built with breezeblocks and cement but no planning permission – that make eyesores of so many small southern villages. Santo Stefano di Sessanio, it seemed, was so insignificant that no one who left bothered to return.
Kihlgren bought a house on the spot, then set about securing a deal with Santo Stefano’s local authority. He promised to make a substantial investment in the village, in return for which the authority agreed to place a blanket ban on new building. Kihlgren bought eight more houses in Santo Stefano, and €4.5 million and eight years later opened Sextantio (Via Principe Umberto; 0862.899.112, www.sextantio.it; €201–250), an “albergo diffuso”: a hotel whose rooms, restaurant and reception areas are diffused among the medieval houses of the village.
The aesthetics and philosophy behind the restoration were radical. Kihlgren was sick of what he considers the over-valuation of planned cities, big-name architects, high art and culture, as opposed to the anonymous, organic, rural architecture of poverty and survival. And though not denying his guests the comfort of under-floor heating (and Philippe Starck bathtubs) he was determined that the spartan realities of rustic life were not papered over. Literally. Walls were stripped back to their ancient plaster and left bare, many preserving blackened patches where a fire once roared. Floors too were left bare, and original oak doors and locks lovingly restored – so that today guests are given iron keys to lug around, the size of a forearm. In the stone-vaulted restaurant, traditional dishes have been revived, and olive oil and pulses produced on the Sextantio’s own land are served, along with local cheeses, salamis, home-made liqueurs and locally raised lamb.
Kihlgren has property in nine other villages scattered around the south, and has teamed up with UK architect David Chipperfield for the next phase of development. Down in the cave-city of Matera in Basilicata, he has also linked up with a similar project, Sassi di Matera, the brainchild of another passionately committed visionary, Margaret Berg.
Sulmona and around
Flanked by bleak mountains and bristling with legends about its most famous son, Ovid, SULMONA is a rich and comfortable provincial town owing its wealth to gold jewellery and sugared almonds. Although it sustained some damage during the 2009 earthquake, most of it was internal, and it remains an atmospheric little place, with a dark tangle of a historical centre lined with imposing palaces and overshadowed by the mountainous bulk of the Majella. Sulmona’s sights can be seen in a day, but the town makes a good base for exploring the surroundings – from ancient hermitages to towns with snake-infested festivals.
Arrival, information and accommodation
Buses arrive at the Villa Comunale next to the centro storico. The train station is 1.5km outside the centre of town; bus A runs from the station to the villa. The tourist office (July–Sept Mon–Sat 9am–1pm & 4–7pm, Sun 9am–1pm; Oct–June Mon–Fri 9am–1pm & 3–6pm; 0864.53.276) is at Corso Ovidio 208. There’s a second office in the old pharmacy of the Palazzo Santissima Annunziata, with very helpful staff, maps and details of Sulmona’s churches and palaces (daily 9am–12.30pm & 3.30–7pm; 0864.210.216).
One of the victims of the earthquake was the lovely old hotelItalia, which sustained considerable internal damage. The friendly owners, however, have several comfortable apartments with views of the Majella scattered along Via Quatrario in the historic centre, which they run on a B&B basis (0864.52308, www.bedandbreakfastcasebonomini.com; €61–90). Another good option is the Stella, Via Mazara 18 (0864.52.653, www.hasr.it; €61–90), a relaxed, family-run establishment where you should book ahead. Northeast of town, near the village of Marane, the friendly B&B L’Eremo offers comfortable rooms with panoramic views just 1km from the Parco Nazionale della Majella (0864.52.749, www.leremo.it; €61–90).
The Town
Corso Ovidio, Sulmona’s main street, cuts through the centre from the park-side bus terminus, leading up to Piazza XX Settembre. From here, Sulmona’s sights are within easy strolling distance.
The Annunziata
A couple of minutes back up Corso Ovidio stands the Annunziata, a Gothic-Renaissance palazzo adjoining a flamboyant Baroque church. It was established by a confraternity to take care of the citizens from birth until death, and its steps were once crowded with the ill and destitute. These days they are a hangout for the town’s teenagers during the evening passeggiata, who naturally pay no attention whatsoever to the external decoration designed to remind onlookers of the cycles of life and death. The most intriguing statue, however, is just inside the entrance: Ovid, metamorphosed from pagan poet of love into an ascetic friar.
Inside the Annunziata are several museums, most of which, thanks to the earthquake and a lack of staff, seem fated never to open regularly. The most interesting is the Museo del Costume Popolare Abruzzese-Molisano e della Transhumanza (erratic hours; free), devoted to local costumes and transhumance – the practice of moving sheep to summer pastures – along with examples of work by Sulmona’s Renaissance goldsmiths, a trade that continues here today, as evidenced by the number of jewellers’ shops along the Corso; another, the Museo Civico (closed following the earthquake), has local sculpture and paintings from the sixteenth to seventeenth centuries; and a third, the Museo “in situ” (Tues–Sun 10am–1pm; free), shows the excavations of a Roman villa inhabited from the first century BC to the second century AD, abandoned suddenly along with many other houses in the valley when a landslide or an earthquake struck. Among the fragments of fabulously coloured wall-painting are depictions of Pan, Eros, Dionysus and Ariadne, and there are several floor mosaics, all well labelled.
The rest of the town
As well as gold, the Corso’s shops are full of Sulmona’s other great product – confetti – a confection of sugared almonds or chocolate wired into elaborate flowers with the aid of coloured cellophane, crêpe paper and ribbons. Through ingenious marketing the Sulmonese confetti barons have made gifts of their intricate sculptures de rigueur at christenings, confirmations and weddings throughout Catholic Europe.
At the end of the Corso is Piazza del Carmine, where the weighty Romanesque portal of San Francesco della Scarpa was the only part of the church solid enough to withstand a 1703 earthquake. The church gets its name – della Scarpa (of the shoe) – from the fact that Franciscans wore shoes instead of the sandals worn by other monastic orders. Opposite, the impressive Gothic aqueduct, built to supply water to the town and power to its wool mills, ends at a small fifteenth-century fountain, the Fontana del Vecchio, named for the bust of a chubby-cheeked old man on top. On the other side of the aqueduct is Piazza Garibaldi, a vast square dominated by the austere slopes of Monte Morrone, on which the hermit Pietro Morrone lived until he was dragged away to be made Pope Celestine V. There’s a former nunnery in the corner – take a look at the courtyard, where there’s a tiny door at which unmarried mothers were permitted to abandon their babies.
Eating and drinking
Sulmona has some excellent, reasonably priced restaurants, with mains generally around the €7–8 mark. Cesidio, Via Solimo 25 (0864.52.724; closed Tues), is a popular local place with some great home-made pasta dishes including pasta alla chitarra alla spazzacamino, with capers, olives, tomato and herbs, for €7. Expect to pay around €25 for a full meal. The slightly more expensive 
Clemente, Vico Quercia 20 (0864.210.679; closed all day Thurs & Sun dinner), is a bright, family-run place in an old palazzo that’s been serving home-produced salumi and dishes such as agnello con aglio, rosmarino e pecorino (pan-seared lamb with garlic, rosemary and pecorino cheese) for over fifty years. For an excellent choice of wines head for La Cantina di Biffi (0864.32.025; closed all day Mon & Tues lunch), an elegantly countrified place in Via Barbato 1 off Corso Ovidio, where you can eat handmade pasta and other local dishes, and expect to spend around €20 a head for a full meal.
Parco Nazionale della Majella
The Parco Nazionale della Majella, 10km to the east of Sulmona, is named after the mountain – Monte Majella – that dominates the area. Dedicated to the Italic goddess Maja, the mountain was held sacred by the ancient people of Abruzzo, and the region around it was named Domus Christi by Petrarch, or the “House of God”, for its proliferation of hermitages and abbeys. Over a hundred hermits made their retreat here in the Middle Ages; some reused cave dwellings, others built churches into the rock, haunting constructions to this day. There’s information at the park’s visitors’ centre on Via Roma in Pacentro (April, May & Sept 10.30am–1.30pm; June–Aug 10.30am–1.30pm & 5–8.30pm; 349.153.9782, www.parcomajella.it).
Cocullo’s snake festival
A tatty hill-village west of Sulmona, connected by infrequent trains and even less frequent buses, Cocullo is understandably neglected by outsiders for 364 days of the year. However, on the first Thursday in May it’s invaded by what seems like half the population of central Italy, coming to celebrate the weird festival of snakes, an annual event held in memory of St Dominic, the patron saint of the village, who allegedly rid the area of venomous snakes back in the eleventh century.
The festival is an odd mixture of the modern and archaic. After Mass in the main square, a number of snake-charmers in the crowd drape a wooden statue of St Dominic with a writhing bunch of live but harmless snakes, which is then paraded through the streets in a bizarre celebration of the saint’s unique powers (he was apparently good at curing snake-bites too). It’s actually thought that Cocullo’s preoccupation with serpents dates back to before the time of the saint, when in the pre-Christian era local tribes worshipped their goddess Angitia with offerings of snakes.
For information on the festival or the village in general, contact the comune’s Pro Loco tourist office (0864.490.006, www.comune.cocullo.aq.it).
Scanno and around
Some 20km down the road from Cocullo, and accessible by bus from Sulmona, SCANNO is a popular tourist destination, reached by passing through the narrow and rocky Saggitario Gorge, a spectacular drive along galleries of rock and around blind hairpin bends that widen out at the glassy green Lago di Scanno. Perched over the lake is a church, Madonna del Lago, with the cliff as its back wall, and nearby there are boats and pedaloes for rent in the summer, and a good restaurant, the Trattoria sul Lago (0864.747296), which specializes in home-made pasta such as gnocchi con brocoletti and maccheroni alla chitarra for €7; you could eat a whole meal for €22. If you’re planning on staying there’s a campsite, I Lupi (0864.740.100, campingilupi@libero.it; open all year), 2km away outside the town of Villalago, on the shore of the lake, but be warned that it gets packed out in summer.
The village
A couple of kilometres beyond, Scanno itself is a well-preserved medieval village encircled by mountains. In 1951, Henri Cartier-Bresson photographed the village, in a series of atmospheric shots focusing on the traditional dress worn by Scanno’s women. Some elderly women can still be seen wearing the long, dark, pleated skirts and bodices with a patterned apron that suggest a possible origin in Asia Minor. Scannese jewellery also has something of the Orient about it – large, delicately filigreed earrings, and a star, known as a presuntuosa, given to fiancées to ward off other men. If you want to see the costume and jewellery at close quarters head for the shops on Strada Roma and Corso Centrale.
It’s a pleasure strolling around the old town, built into the steep hillside, the squares and alleyways lined with solid stone houses built by wool barons when business was good. Though shepherding as a way of life is virtually extinct and the population has dwindled, it’s still a living village, with enough work available in Sulmona and in tourism to keep people from moving away. A chair lift, signposted 300m from the centre, takes skiers up to a handful of runs on Monte Rotondo, operating also in the short summer season when it’s worth going up just for the view of lake and mountains, especially at sunset.
If you’re around in August, you might catch Scanno’s summer festival, with a series of cultural events and fireworks displays held throughout the month (see www.scanno.org or contact the tourist office), and on January 17 there’s a lasagne festival – more properly called the Festa di San Antonio Abate – involving the cooking of a great cauldron of lasagne and beans outside the door of the church, which is then blessed and doled out with a somewhat unholy amount of pushing and shoving.
Practicalities
The tourist office (summer daily 9am–1pm & 4–7pm; winter Tues, Thurs & Fri 9am–1pm & 3–6pm; 0864.74.317, www.abruzzoturismo.it) is at Piazza Santa Maria della Valle 12. It has a list of half a dozen B&Bs, while other accommodation options include Mille Pini, next to the chair lift at Via Pescara 2 (0864.74.387, 347.117.5515, www.millepiniscanno.it; closed Oct & Nov; €60 and under), a large chalet overlooking the village that is probably the most atmospheric place to stay. Between the lake and the village, Hotel Nilde, Viale del Lago 101 (0864.74.359, www.hotelnilde.it; €60 and under), is a simple family-run place with great views. They also have a nice place out of town towards the lake, the Albergo Rifugio del Lupo (0864.74.397, www.ilrifugiodellupo.it; €60 and under). Both hotels have good half-board deals, and a full-board deal for skiers that includes lunch on the slopes.
As for restaurants, Gli Archetti (0864.74.645; closed Tues), on Via Silla 8 inside the Porta della Croce entrance to the old town, cooks up imaginative variations on traditional Abruzzese cuisine – look out for dishes with wild vegetables, and save room for the apple cake with ginger cream; while Birreria La Baita (0864.747.826; daily July–Oct & Dec–Feb; Fri–Sun only March–June & Nov), in an Alpine-style chalet on the Circonvallazione, serves hearty mountain food from Abruzzo and Alto Adige, with occasional live music. It also has some cabin rooms available (www.labaitadiscanno.it; €60 and under).
Parco Nazionale d’Abruzzo
At four hundred square kilometres, the PARCO NAZIONALE D’ABRUZZO is Italy’s third-largest national park and holds some of its wildest mountain land, providing great walking and a hunter-free haven for wolves, brown bears, chamois, deer, lynx, wild boar and three or four pairs of royal eagles. The central village, PESCASSÉROLI, is the main hub for visitors, a rather commercialized spot, liberally decorated with the park’s logo – a cuddly brown bear – and surrounded by campsites, holiday apartments and hotels.
The best way to strike out from Pescasséroli is to hike. Take advantage of the comprehensive information service, and get walking as quickly as possible: as soon as you get away from the vicinity of the tourist villages, the wild Apennine beauty really makes itself felt.
Arrival and information
Pescasséroli is served by bus from Avezzano, 30km west of Sulmona and a stop on the Pescara–Rome rail line (buses to the park leave from outside Avezzano’s train station). There are also bus services direct from Naples and Castel di Sangro on the border with Molise. In summer a daily service also runs from Rome.
There’s a helpful tourist office in Pescasséroli on Via Santa Lucia (daily: summer 9am–7.30pm; winter 10am–5.30pm; 0863.911.3221, www.parcoabruzzo.it). In the same building, is the excellent natural history museum (same hours; €6), which fills you in on the park’s flora and fauna and acts as a clinic for sick animals.
There are other tourist offices – all with leaflets outlining walks and hikes for all fitness levels – in Opi (Palazzo Comunale; daily 9.30am–12.30pm & 3.30–6.30pm; 0863.910.622; closed Wed), which also has a chamois museum (July & Aug daily 10am–12.30pm & 4–7pm, rest of year Sat & Sun only) and a ski museum (same hours as tourist office); inside the Museo dell’Orso (Bear Museum) in Villavallelonga (April–Sept Tues–Sun 9am–1pm & 2.30–4.30pm; Oct–March Sat & Sun 10am–noon & 2.30–5.30pm; 0863.194.0278, www.sherpa.abruzzo.it), and in Villetta Barrea (Mon–Sat 9.30am–1pm & 3–7pm, Sun 9.30am–1pm; 0864.89.333).
Accommodation
In high season, there’s little chance of finding a room on arrival; you need to book at least a month in advance and be prepared for compulsory half-board in July & August. If you’re coming here for a week or more, you might consider B&B accommodation in a private house or an apartment rental – the tourist office can supply you with a list, or try Agenzia Wolf in Civitella Alfadena (0864.890.213; €60 and under). Campers should manage to find space on one of the campsites, though be warned that temperatures are low even in summer.
Hotels
Al Castello Via Gabriele d’Annunzio 1, Pescasséroli 0863.910.757, www.pensionecastello.it. Off the main piazza, this small, stone-built guesthouse comes with squeakily clean and pretty rooms. €60 and under
Degli Olmi Via Fossata 8, Villetta Barrea 0864.89.159, www.hotel-olmi.it. Highly polished and quiet hotel, with half-board obligatory in Aug. €61–90
La Torre Via Castello 3, Civitella Alfadena 0864.890.121, www.albergolatorre.com. Small, friendly hotel set in an eighteenth-century palace near Pescasséroli. €60 and under
Paradiso Via Fonte Fracassi 4, Pescasséroli 0863.910.422, www.albergo-paradiso.it. Delightful hotel run by Scottish Geraldine and her Italian husband Marco, with warm rustic decor and good country cooking (half-board €49). Ask to see Geraldine’s pub. €61–90
Campsites
Agenzia Wolf Civitella Alfadena 0864.890.213. As well as apartment rental, this agency runs a campsite 300m from the centre (mid-June to Sept).
La Genziana Villetta Barrea 0864.88.101, www.campinglagenzianapasetta.it. This campsite has an on-site bar and is only five minutes’ walk from the town.
Sant’Andrea Località Sant’Andrea 0863.912.173, www.campingsantandrea.com. Close to town off the SS83, with bungalows (€60–80) as well as plots for caravans and tents.
Hiking routes
The tourist offices sell maps on which all hiking routes in the park are marked, along with an indication of the difficulty involved, the time needed, and the flora and fauna you’re likely to see on the way. There are nearly 150 different routes, starting from 25 letter-coded points, so making a choice can be difficult. Note that from July 15 to September 15, some of the most popular routes, including Val di Rosa and Monte Amara, are open by reservation at the information offices only for a fee of €10–15. It’s usually sufficient to book the day before. The rest of the year, these routes are open without restriction or fee, though guided tours can still be arranged.
Park wildlife
The Abruzzo National Park (www.parcoabruzzo.it) is an area of exceptional biodiversity with around a hundred indigenous species. One of the most important animals in the park is the Marsican brown bear. Until recently an endangered species, there are now thought to be around thirty to fifty in the park, but they are extremely shy, solitary and lazy, and difficult to spot – you’re more likely to find traces of their presence than see an actual bear. Another key park inhabitant is the Apennine wolf, of which there are around forty to fifty. As with the bears, the wolves offer no danger to humans, and they are also difficult to spot – the closest you’re likely to get to either in the wild are footprints in mud or snow. Look out, too, for the chamois d’Abruzzo, deer and roe deer, wildcats, martens, otters, badgers, polecats and the edible dormouse. Wolves can also be seen at the dedicated wolf museum at Civitella Alfadena; others can be seen close up at the fascinating clinic and natural history museum in Pescasséroli.
Among birds, the park’s species include the golden eagle, the peregrine hawk, the goshawk and the rare white-backed woodpecker. Higher up are snow finches, alpine accentors and rock partridges.
The park’s flora includes many local orchids, among which the most important variety is Venus’s little shoe or Our Lady’s slipper, which thrives on the chalky soil in the park. There are also gentians, peonies, violets, irises and columbines, and black pine woods at Villetta Barrea and the Camosciara.
Eating, drinking and entertainment
Eating out in most of the park’s villages means fairly cheap pizza and pasta, and general stores that will make up sandwiches for picnics. For local specialities try Plistia at Via Principe di Napoli 28 (0863.910.732; closed Mon), where you can eat hearty mountain primi such as soup with local vegetables and pulses, or, in spring, gnocchi with asparagus and local saffron, for around €8; expect to pay about €25 for a full meal. The slightly more expensive Il Pescatore on Via Roma in Villetta Barrea (0864.89.347, www.albergoristorantepescatore.com), is a large restaurant and hotel where you can feast on superlative fresh trout from the lake and home-made pasta dishes.
Two festivals worth trying to coincide a trip with are the Festa della Transhumanza (May or June; contact tourist office for dates), commemorating the work of local nomadic shepherds by retracing their routes on foot or on horse, followed by a tasting of local products in Pescasséroli’s main square. The town’s Festa della Madonna, on July 15 and 16, sees the Black Madonna carried 9km from her sanctuary on Monte Tranquillo to Pescasséroli and back to celebrate the town’s miraculous escape from being bombed during World War II after prayers were offered to the Madonna.
Northeast Abruzzo: Téramo
Rising from the Adriatic and rolling towards the eastern slopes of the Gran Sasso, the landscape of northeast Abruzzo is gentle, and its inland towns are usually ignored in favour of its long, sandy and highly popular coastline. TÉRAMO, capital of the province of the same name, is a modern town with an elegant centre, and if you’re heading for the sea you may well pass through.
Téramo’s main attraction is the Duomo (daily 7am–noon & 4–8pm; free) at the top of Corso San Giorgio, which has been recently restored. Inside is a remarkable silver altarfront by the fifteenth-century Abruzzese silversmith Nicola da Guardiagrele. It has 35 panels with lively reliefs of religious scenes, starting with the Annunciation and moving through the New Testament, punctuating the narrative with portraits of various saints. The artist was famous enough to feature in a sumptuous polyptych by a Venetian artist, Jacobello del Fiore, in a Baroque chapel to the left. It features a model of Téramo, set against a gilded sky, with Nicola wearing a monk’s habit on the left, Jacobello in the red gown on the right.
South of the Duomo, Via Irelli leads to the heart of Roman Téramo, with fragments of the amphitheatre, and the more substantial walls of the theatre, where two of the original twenty entrance arches remain. Between Piazza Garibaldi and the Villa Comunale at Viale Bovio 1 is the town’s modest Pinacoteca (May–Sept Tues–Sun 9am–1pm & 5–8pm; Nov–April Tues–Sun 9am–1pm & 4–7pm; €5 with Museo Archeologico). The collection of local art over the centuries is best represented by the Madonna Enthroned with Saints – a polyptych in which the colours are lucid and the forms almost sculpted, the work of local fifteenth-century artist Giacomo da Campli. The Museo Archeologico off Via Carducci on Via Delfico 30 (same hours and ticket) is strong on Roman finds from excavations in Téramo and includes a first-century mosaic of a lion among the forum columns and marble busts.
Practicalities
Buses to Téramo stop at Piazza Garibaldi, linked with the train station (east of the centre on Via Crispi) by regular #1 city buses. The tourist office (Mon–Fri 9am–1pm & 3–6pm, Sat 9am–1pm; 0861.244.222, www.abruzzoturismo.it) is on Via Oberdan 16–17, near the Museo Archeologico. Heading off Piazza Garibaldi at Via del Castello 62 there is a reasonable hotel, the Castello (0861.247.582; €60 and under), which has simple, old-fashioned rooms and its own restaurant, while the tourist office (and its website) has a list of B&Bs.
Restaurants include the Antico Cantinone at Via Ciotti 5 (0861.241.774; closed Mon), which has good local fare like grilled lamb with herbs and fixed-price menus at €13 and €20. The bustling Enoteca Centrale, Corso Cerulli 24 (0861.243.633; closed Sun), has a great wine list – 350 labels – backed up by excellent local dishes, such as the winter dish scripelle, thin crêpes filled with grated cheese and a sprinkle of cinnamon covered in chicken broth, while in summer much use is made of seasonal vegetables. All primi cost around €7.
The Abruzzo coast
Abruzzo’s coastline stretches for 125km from the border with the Marche region down to the seaside resort of Vasto. Heading south, the first town of any significance is Pescara. Its beaches and cultural sites are enough to hold your attention for a day or two and it makes a logical base for excursions to two atmospheric medieval villages, Loreto Aprutino and Atri. Next stop along the coast is Chieti, home to a superb archeological museum. Further south, the coast becomes less developed, though the long ribbon of sand continues, followed by the train line and punctuated with mostly small resorts. Here, hilltop Vasto and the seaside resort Marina di Vasto are attractive destinations for a beach holiday and a good jumping-off point for trips to the Trémiti islands.
Pescara and around
The main town and resort of the Abruzzo coast is PESCARA, a bustling, modern place that’s the region’s most commercial and expensive city. If you’re looking for somewhere to sunbathe there are much quieter – and cleaner – places than Pescara’s sixteen-kilometre beach; but if you are taking a ferry to Split or Stari Grad for the islands of Croatia’s Dalmatian coast, you might find yourself using the city as a departure point. It’s also the nearest town to the new Abruzzo airport, where low-cost flights from the UK touch down.
Arrival and information
Pescara has two train stations, though unless you’re leaving the country you only need to use one, Stazione Centrale, at Piazza della Repubblica (the other, Porta Nuova, is more convenient for ferry connections). Buses to Rome (quicker than the train) and Naples, as well as regional buses, leave from outside Stazione Centrale. Ryanair flights from London Stansted land at Abruzzo Airport (www.abruzzo-airport.it), around 3km southwest of the city; from the airport, the #38 bus leaves for Piazza della Repubblica every fifteen minutes (€1).
The tourist office is in Piazza della Repubblica in the ex-silos of the old station (May–Oct Mon–Sat 9am–1pm & 4.30–7.30pm, Sun 9am–1pm; Nov–April Mon–Sat 9am–1pm & 4–7pm; 085.4212.5462, www.abruzzoturismo.it).
Accommodation
Most hotels are on the beach front, north of the river and the old town. The Alba, Via M. Forti 14 (085.389.145, www.hotelalba.pescara.it; €91–120), is a fairly upmarket choice – the rooms here have a baroque touch that takes them beyond the average business hotel, and there are often discounts at weekends. The Marisa, Via Regina Margherita 39 (&085.273.45; €61–90), is a friendly, family-run place two blocks in from the sea, and just a short walk from the train station.
The tourist office and its website have a list of B&Bs. Of these, Villa del Pavone (085.421.1770, www.villadelpavone.it; €61–90), Via Pizzoferrato 30, offers the opportunity to spend a few days in Liberty-era splendour, occupying an Art Nouveau villa with a magnificent garden, complete with peacock. There are four double rooms, one of which can sleep four, making it ideal for families. As well as breakfast, lunch and dinner are available on request. It’s a little way out, on the far side of a railway tracks a five-minute walk from the station, or a fifteen-minute walk to the beach.
The nearest campsite is Francavilla (085.810.715, www.campingfrancavilla.com; June 15–Sept 15), 10km south of Pescara at Francavilla al Mare – buses #1 and #2 stop outside.
The Town
Pescara was heavily bombed in World War II and architecturally there’s little of distinction here. Opposite the Stazione Centrale, the main street, Corso Umberto, is lined with designer boutiques and packed with the label-conscious Pescaresi, who also hang out in the elegant cafés on Piazza Rinascita, known as Pescara’s salone. In the little that remains of its historic streets, the town boasts an excellent and child-friendly museum, the Museo delle Genti d’Abruzzo at Via delle Caserme 22 (June–Oct Mon–Sat 10am–1pm, Fri & Sat 9.30pm–12.30am; Nov–May Mon–Sat 9am–1.30pm, Sat, Sun & hols 5–8pm; www.gentidabruzzo.it; €6, including food and drink for up to €3 at the Caffe Letterario a couple of doors away), dedicated to the life and popular traditions of the region. Perhaps the most enchanting room is one devoted to the nomadic shepherds, containing books of their poetry, carved objects and volumes of Ariosto’s chivalric romance Orlando Furioso.
Admirers of eccentric poet Gabriele d’Annunzio may want to visit his birthplace at Corso Manthonè 116 (daily 9am–1.30pm, July & Aug also 6–11.30pm; €2; www.casadannunzio.beniculturali.it), while devotees of Art Nouveau and later twentieth-century art should head for the Museo Civico Basilio Cascella at Viale Marconi 45 (Wed, Fri, Sat & Sun 9am–1pm, Tues & Thurs 9am–1pm & 4–8pm; €2.50), home to five hundred lithographic prints, paintings, ceramics and sculptures, including a stunning set of portraits (mounted on dinner plates) by the prolific Cascella family who lived and worked here.
Eating and drinking
For meals and nightlife, head for the little that remains of the old town of Pescara near the river. Along Corso Manthonè and Via delle Caserme there are more than fifty bars and restaurants, including the Cantina di Jozz at Via delle Caserme 59–65 (085.451.8800, www.jozz.it; closed all day Mon & Sun dinner), which does great Abruzzese food such as maialino arrosto (roast suckling pig) for €12. Otherwise, try the slow-food advocate La Lumaca, just down the road from the Cantina at no. 51 (085.451.0880; dinner only; closed Sun) – one of their best dishes is agnello porchettato (lamb cooked like an aromatic hog roast) – or the Locanda Manthonè, Corso Manthonè 58 (085.454.9034; closed Sun), loved by the Pescarese for its reasonably priced, quality food such as slow-cooked lamb with saffron.
Loreto Aprutino
LORETO APRUTINO is a quiet, medieval hilltop settlement 24km inland from Pescara. The labyrinthine old town is home to a dwindling number of artisans’ workshops specializing in hand-crafted knives. There are also tiny cantinas in the old town selling olive oil, for which the area has been awarded a DOP (denominazione di origine protetta), the equivalent of the DOC designation for wine. Loreto heaves with people on market day (Thurs 7am–1pm) and in the evenings during the late-running passeggiata, when it’s a pleasure to simply do nothing and soak up the atmosphere. At the top of the old town, on the end of a row of nineteenth-century palazzi, stands the church of San Pietro Apostolo, with medieval origins and an elegant Renaissance portico. Inside are the relics of the town’s patron saint, San Zopito, who is venerated on the first Monday after Pentecost with a procession led by a child riding a white bull.
Regular buses make the trip from Pescara, dropping you on Via Roma, 150m from the tourist office at Piazza Garibaldi 1 (May–Oct Mon–Sat 9am–1pm & 4.30–6.30pm; Nov–April Mon–Sat 9am–1pm & 3.30–5.30pm; open first & third Sun of the month 9am–1pm; 085.829.0213). It’s a good day-trip from Pescara but if you decide to stay, the B&B Lauretum, Via del Baio 3 (085.829.2000, www.bedbreakfastlauretum.com; €61–90), is fantastic value for money, with accommodation in a family house near the Castello. The huge, frescoed rooms come with antique furniture and there’s a billiards room too.
You can eat very well at the reasonably priced Ristorante Carmine (085.820.8553; closed Mon) on Contrada Re Martello 52, just west of the centro storico, where fresh fish from Pescara is served with care. The coda di rospo con patate e rosmarino, monkfish with potatoes and rosemary – a typical dish hereabouts – is sublime.
Atri
Buses from Pescara also head to the pretty little town of ATRI, 30km north, well worth a visit for the pleasure of wandering the town and exploring the surrounding countryside, as well as for the fifteenth-century frescoes in its Duomo. Approaching the town is like travelling through the background of a Renaissance painting, with gently undulating hills planted with orderly olive groves giving way to a surrealist landscape of sleek clay gullies known as calanchi, water-eroded into smooth ripples, wrinkles and folds.
The Riserva Naturale dei Calanchi
If you want to explore the calanchi, follow the itinerary marked with porcupines (the Riserva Naturale’s logo), or take a look at the website of the Riserva Naturale dei Calanchi di Atri (www.riservacalanchidiatri.it, 085.878.0088) to find out about the excellent guided walks; these depart in summer at 5.30pm (dates vary), and at 9.30pm when there is a full moon, from the visitor centre at Colle della Giustizia, site of an ancient necropolis, to the west of town.
The Town
Buses drop you off on Viale Gran Sasso, from where stairs lead up to the centre and towards the main piazza, dominated by the thirteenth-century Duomo. Its facade is understated, pierced by a rose window and perforated by the holes in which scaffolding beams were slotted during construction. The highlight is the cycle of frescoes in the apse by Andrea Delitio, known for his sophisticated and realistic portrayal of architecture and landscape. The Birth of Mary, for example, has servants giving the newly born baby a bath. The most emotionally charged scene is the Slaughter of the Innocents, in which the horror is intensified by the refined Renaissance architectural setting and the fact that the massacre is coolly observed from a balcony by Herod’s party of civic bigwigs.
There is a very interesting historical trail marked out around town (with signs based on the design of a local Roman coin) taking in Roman relics, including the foundations of what may have been a dye-works, some spooky tunnels, and several museums, including the Museo Archeologico (Thurs–Tues 10.30am–12.30pm & 3.30–5.30pm; free), with local prehistoric and Roman finds, and a huge folk museum, the Museo Etnografico (Tues–Sun 4.30–7.30pm; €1), which conjures up traditional peasant life with replicas of a bedroom and kitchen, and over two thousand domestic and rustic objects.
Practicalities
If you want to stay, there are several B&Bs. Arco di San Francesco, Via San Francesco 8 (085.87762, www.arcodisanfrancesco.it; €91–120), in the old town, has four rooms on the second floor of an early twentieth-century palazzo; families might prefer to stay a little outside town, in one of several B&Bs with a garden. Particularly lovely is the outstanding L’Albero di Antonia, a kilometre outside town at Via A. Pacini 5 (340.928.7626, www.lalberodiantonia.it; €61–90), which has four stylish rooms (two with en-suite bathroom), and a large garden where you can laze around with views to mountains and sea. Children are welcome (there’s a friendly dog and cats to play with) and the owners can organize horseriding excursions and bike hire.
Chieti
Twenty minutes by train or bus southwest of Pescara is the relaxed and appealing town of CHIETI. Spread over a curving ridge, the town offers great views of the Majella and Gran Sasso mountains and – when it’s clear – out to sea. It also holds Abruzzo’s best archeological museum by far.
Largo Cavallerizza, where buses from the train station drop off, is 50m from the chunky and much-reconstructed cathedral, from where the main Corso Marrucino cuts through the town centre to Piazza Trento e Trieste. Behind the post office, off Via Spaventa, are the remains of three little Roman temples. However, it’s the Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Abruzzo (Tues–Sun 9am–8pm; €4) that is of most interest, beyond Piazza Trento e Trieste and laid out in the dignified Villa Comunale. It holds finds from Abruzzo’s major sites: a massive and muscular white-marble Hercules from his temple at Alba Fucens as well as a miniature bronze statue of him, one of several Roman copies of the Greek original by Lysippus. Most interesting is the Capestrano Warrior, a statue of a Bronze Age warrior-prince with strangely feminine hips and thighs.
Further digs in Chieti have uncovered the core of Teate – the main town of the Marrucini, an Italic tribe – that became a Roman colony in the first century BC. The site lies on the edge of central Chieti west of the Villa Comunale at the Civitella archeological park (Tues–Sun 9am–8pm; €4), which comprises the amphitheatre, thermal baths (under restoration) and a new museum with restored temple fragments and remains from Chieti and the nearby river basin.
Practicalities
Buses and trains drop you at Chieti Scalo down in the valley, from where it’s a ten-minute journey on bus #1 up the hill to Chieti proper, 5km away. The #1 makes stops in the centre along Via Herio and at Largo Cavallerizza near the cathedral. Chieti’s tourist office is at Via Spaventa 47, just off Corso Marrucino (Tues & Thurs 9am–1pm & 3–6pm; 0871.63.640, www.abruzzoturismo.it). For accommodation, try Garibaldi, Piazza Garibaldi 26 (0871.345.318; €60 and under), which has affordable and central, if ordinary, rooms. Very good value meals can also be had in central Chieti at Trattoria Nino, Via Principessa di Piemonte 7 (0871.63.781; closed Mon), near Piazza Trento e Trieste, where the service is slow but the family atmosphere and full meals of regional specialities for €20 compensate. For a light meal, drink or dessert, head to the Casina dei Tigli (0871.69.509; closed Mon) in the Villa Comunale, where locals flock to see and be seen.
Vasto
VASTO, 75km southeast of Pescara and close to the border with Molise, is a fine old city, built on the site of the Roman town Histonium and overlooking the resort of Marina di Vasto. There are plenty of campsites, and a handful of reasonable hotels along the broad sandy beach – palm-lined and beach-hutted in the centre, wilder and rockier to the north (the ever-shrinking free beach area is central), with devices known as trabocchi installed every so often. These are Heath Robinson-ish crane-like contraptions of wooden beams and nets, with a complex system of weights, designed for scooping up fish.
The Town
Vasto is all about the beach, though if you’re here for a day or so you should definitely get a bus from the train station on the seafront to the upper town (#4 or #1 for the Marina and Vasto Centro; roughly every 30min, more frequent in summer; 10min), whose rooftops and campaniles rise above palms and olive groves. The centre of town is Piazza Rossetti, its gardens dominated by the massive Castello Caldoresco.
Just off the piazza, next to the small Duomo, stands the Renaissance Palazzo d’Avalos and its enchanting Neapolitan garden, a courtyard with orange trees and pillars and gorgeous sea views. The palazzo was once the home of the poet and friend of Michelangelo, Vittoria Colonna, who was famous in her time for the bleak sonnets she wrote after her husband’s death; nowadays it houses the town museum (Sat & Sun 10.30am–12.30pm & 4.30–7pm; usually opens daily in summer; archeological museum €1.50, art gallery’s permanent collection free, costume museum €1.50), a somewhat sparse collection of archeological objects and beautiful old clothes, as well as some paintings by the Palizzi brothers.
Piazza del Popolo opens onto a panoramic promenade that takes you to Vasto’s most memorable sight, the door of the church of San Pietro, surrounded by Romanesque twists and zigzags, standing isolated against a backdrop of sky, sea and trees, the rest of the church having been destroyed in a landslide in 1956.
Practicalities
The tourist office (June–Sept Mon–Sat 9am–1pm & 4–7pm, Sun 9am–1pm; Oct–May Mon, Tues & Thurs 9am–1pm & 3–6pm, Wed & Fri 9am–1pm; 0873.367.312, www.abruzzoturismo.it) is on Piazza del Popolo.
Pleasant as the upper town is, it doesn’t offer much in the way of accommodation. One place to try is Hotel San Marco, Via Madonna dell’Asilo 4 (0873.60.537, www.hotelsanmarcovasto.com; €61–90), a recently renovated, friendly three-star with a bar and restaurant. Some rooms have sea views. Otherwise, most of the action is down by the beach in Vasto Marina and further south in San Salvo. Note that hotels insist on half-board in July and August. For something more intimate than the impersonal four-stars, choose the Villa Vignola (0873.310.050, www.villavignola.it; €91–120), a small white villa outside town with a tiny pebble beach, a garden for lounging in and a romantic terrace restaurant serving such delicacies as stuffed baby squid (€50–60 a head excluding wine). If your budget won’t stretch that far, La Bitta, Lungomare Cordella 18 (0873.801.979; no credit cards; April–Sept; €60 and under), is a spacious and welcoming hotel with good home cooking. Parking and a place on their beach are included in the price. There are also numerous campsites along the coast, most off the SS16 towards Fóggia. Il Pioppeto is right on the beach and has pine trees for shade (0873.801.466, www.ilpioppeto.it; mid-May to mid-Sept).
For eating and drinking, there are plenty of pizzerias and pubs in Vasto Marina, although you might consider splashing out at Villa Vignola. If you have a car, be sure to eat at the Trattoria Da Ferri (0873.310.320; closed Sun dinner & Mon), above the old port 7km north of Vasto, where you can feast on fish caught from the nearby trabocchi. Otherwise try Ristorante Castello Aragona on Via San Michele 105 in the upper town, where fresh Adriatic fish is artfully prepared and served on a panoramic terrace (0873.69.885; closed Mon).
Térmoli and around
Just 6km separate Vasto and the brief stretch of the Molise coast, which is less developed than Abruzzo’s. Its only real town, TÉRMOLI, a fishing port and quiet, undistinguished resort, makes for a relaxing place to spend a day. The beach is long and sandy and the old town, walled and guarded by a castle, has an interesting cathedral. It’s also a departure point for ferries to the Trémiti islands and in striking distance of the interior towns of Portocannone, Ururi and Larino.
Térmoli is the place where Italian and Central European time is set – from the observatory inside the stark castle built above the beach in 1247 by Frederick II. Beyond the castle the road follows the old walls around the headland, holding what’s left of the old town, focus of which is the Duomo. This is most notable for its Romanesque exterior, decorated all the way round with a series of blind arcades and windows – a feature introduced by Frederick II’s Norman-influenced architects. Inside are the relics of St Timothy, best known for the letters he received from St Paul, who advised him on how to go about converting the Greeks. That he ended up in Térmoli is thanks to Termolese Crusaders, who brought his bones back from Constantinople as a souvenir. The Termolese hid them, fearing that if the Turks ever succeeded in penetrating the city they would seize and destroy them. In fact the relics were hidden so well they weren’t discovered until 1945, during restoration work to repair bomb damage (the sacristan will show them to you).
Practicalities
Long-distance buses pull up in Via Martiri della Resistenza, 1km from Térmoli’s centre and the train station. A local bus service connects the bus station with the port and historical centre. The tourist office (June–Sept Mon–Fri 8am–2pm & 3–6pm, Sat 8am–1pm; Oct–May Mon & Wed 8am–2pm & 3–6pm, Tues, Thurs & Fri 8am–2pm; 0875.703.913) is on Piazza M. Bega 42, near the train station. In the summer the comune installs kiosks in main tourist points around the old town, which promote local crafts and Molise in general.
Central accommodation includes Locanda Alfieri, Via Duomo 39 (0875.708.112, www.locandalfieri.com; €61–90), a homey bed and breakfast 50m from the port – one of the few options in the Borgo Antico – and Hotel Santa Lucia (0875.705.101, www.santaluciahotel.it; €91–120), on Largo Pie’ di Castello below the castle, where each room is warmly furnished and embellished with local contemporary artwork. About 5km from town along the SS16 is the campsiteCampeggio Azzurra (0875.52.404, www.camping.it/molise/azzurra; June–Sept), with a bar, restaurant, mini-market, and free beach. In the high season, there are buses every hour from the town centre.
While here you should certainly have a meal in one of Térmoli’s seafood restaurants. Of these, Ristorante Z’Bass on Via Oberdan 8 (0875.706.703; closed Mon; booking essential in summer) does excellent, reasonably priced fresh fish – leave room for their home-made pasticceria secca (sweet pastries). There are plenty of pizzerias and simple trattorias along Via Fratelli Brigada, the seafront and the parallel Via Emanuele III; later on, try the wine barSpirito di Vino on Largo Pie’ di Castello 27 (0875.703.676; evenings only, Wed–Mon).
The Albanian villages
PORTOCANNONE, 12km south of Térmoli, and URURI, another 15km beyond, are isolated villages, most easily reached by bus from Térmoli. Their isolation is such that, six hundred years after their ancestors emigrated from Albania, the locals still speak an Albanian-Italian dialect incomprehensible to outsiders. Portocannone’s Romanesque church contains an icon of the Madonna of Constantinople, brought over by the original émigrés, and in Ururi, at the beginning of May, the Carresse festival is staged: a fierce and furious race through the village streets on gladiator-style carts, pulled by bulls and pushed by men on horseback with spiked poles. It’s a ruthless business: the horses are fed beer before the race to excite them, and although the riders are supposed to push only the back of the carts, they are not averse to prodding the flanks of the bulls, who have already been given electric shocks to liven them up. The race itself is terrifying, but unforgettable, with bulls, carts and spikes hurtling past the frenzied crowds, nowadays protected by wire fences. There are almost inevitably injuries, and at least one person has been killed. The comune (0874.830.130, www.comune.ururi.cb.it) has information.
Larino
Some 15km due west of Ururi, LARINO’s attractive medieval centre is clasped in a valley. The highlight is its cathedral, but there are also some minor Roman relics in its small museum and a neglected amphitheatre in the modern town.
To the left of the train station, Via Gramsci leads down to old Larino. The main street widens out at Piazza Vittorio Emanuele, backing onto which is the Palazzo Ducale, whose museum (Mon–Fri 8am–2pm & 3–6pm, Sat 8am–2pm; free) contains large Roman mosaics and a hoard of coins. On Via Gramsci, about halfway between the station and the centro storico, there’s a garden that also has Roman ruins, including capitals and columns, and a sacrificial altar called the Ara Frentana. Close by is the Duomo (daily 9am–noon & 4–8pm, opens and closes afternoon earlier in winter; free), a lovely building with an intricately carved Gothic portal built in the early fourteenth century just after the town had been flattened by an earthquake and sacked by the Saracens. The oldest part of the town starts beyond the Duomo, and the streets around it offer a glimpse at centuries-old street life: women making lace and preparing vegetables outside their houses, while the kids play in the alleys with makeshift toys.
If you take the hourly bus from Piazza Vittorio Emanuele to the upper city, you’ll jump a couple of centuries in five minutes. Modern Larino is a bustling place, built on the site of the original Samnite/Roman town. The large and overgrown amphitheatre off Via Viadotto Frentano is visible from the street (Mon–Fri 9am–1pm; free) and gives some idea of the importance of early second-century-BC Larinum. If you want to stay, your only choice is the Park Hotel Campitelli 2 (0874.823.541, www.parkhotelcampitelli2.it; €61–90) at Via San Benedetto 1, a four-star about 1km from the station.
Isernia
Inland, ISERNIA is a useful entry point into western Molise, with good train connections from Rome and Naples. The first settlement dates back to the Samnites, yet very little of old Isernia survives. Earthquakes – the most recent in 1984 – and wars have wreaked havoc on its historical monuments; much of the centre was destroyed in a bombing raid on September 10, 1943, and a monument to the four thousand who were killed – an anguished nude, ankle-deep in fractured tiles, bricks and gutters – is the centrepiece of the square called, understandably, Piazza X Settembre. In spite of it all, the city has rebuilt its commercial centre so that it’s now comparatively busy and bustling.
The city’s most iconic monument is the Fontana Fraterna in Piazza Celestino V. The Romanesque fountain was built in the thirteenth century by the Rampini family from marble stripped from Roman tombs. The city’s main attraction is a prehistoric site called La Pineta, an easy 1.5km from the centre, or a short ride on the #3 bus from the station. Visits are by reservation only (0865.413.526; Mon–Fri 9am–1pm & 3–5pm; free). In 1978 local road-builders unearthed traces of a Palaeolithic settlement at least 700,000 years old – the most ancient signs of human life yet found in Europe. In the southern part of Isernia near the hospital (bus #2 from the station), the Museo Nazionale Santa Maria delle Monache (daily 8.30am–12.30pm & 3–7pm; €2), on Corso Marcelli 48, displays finds from the site. The exhibits are backed up by a video in English, which reconstructs the settlement and puts the ancient civilization in context. Contrary to the misleading publicity, there were no human remains found, just weapons, traps, traces of pigment thought to have been used as body paint, and animal bones, laid out to create a solid platform on the marshy land for the village.
Though unbeguiling in itself, Isernia is a good starting-point for exploring the rest of Molise: buses to local villages and longer-distance buses, including those to Rome and Naples, depart from outside the train station. The tourist office is at Via Farinacci 9 (Mon–Sat 8am–2pm; 086.53.992). You probably won’t need to stay, but if you do, head for Sayonara, a swish modern three-star at Via G. Berti 131 (086.550.992, www.sayonara.is.it; €61–90) or ask the tourist office about B&Bs and rooms. As for eating, try Osteria del Paradiso, near the cathedral on Via Occidentale 2 (0865.414.847; closed Sun), where you can eat good, cheap, local food such as pasta e fagioli (a thick soup with pasta and beans).
Campobasso and around
CAMPOBASSO, Molise’s regional capital, is a modern town that makes a good base for the remarkable ruins at Saepinum. If you happen to be around sixty days after Easter, don’t miss the town’s spectacular Corpus Domini Sagra dei Misteri procession, in which citizens are dressed as saints, angels and devils, inserted into fantastic contraptions and transported, seemingly suspended in mid-air, through the streets.
At any other time of the year the most notable attraction is the Samnite Museum (daily 8.30am–6pm; free) at Via Chiarizia 14, with statues and a scattering of archeological finds from the area, most notably the haunting contents of a Longobard tomb, a warrior buried alongside his horse. Steep alleys of the old upper town lead up to a couple of Romanesque churches – San Bartolomeo, which has eerily contorted figures carved around its main door, and San Giorgio, whose entrance displays a dragon surrounded by stylized flowers. At the top of the hill are a monastery and sixteenth-century castle. Call ahead or drop in at the city hall to visit the castle, from which there is a panorama over the environs and the historical centre’s borgo antico below. The tourist office (Mon & Wed 8am–2pm & 3–6pm, Tues, Thurs & Fri 8am–2pm; 08744.15.662) at Piazza della Vittoria 14 (Staircase C, third floor) in the new town has details of local events and bus routes to elsewhere in the province.
There are some excellent restaurants in Campobasso. Among them is La Grotta (also known as Concetta), Via Larino 7 (0874.311.378; closed Sat & Sun), where you can sate yourself on solid home-cooking for not much more than €20, and if you’re lucky you’ll get some of the family’s home-produced salami. Otherwise, Miseria e Nobiltà, Via Sant’Antonio Abate 16 (0874.94.268; closed Sun), does excellent, innovative local dishes.
Saepinum
SAEPINUM, a ruined Roman town to the south, close to the border with Puglia, is arguably the most interesting sight in Molise. Some 3km from the nearest village and surrounded by a lush plain fringed with the foothills of the Matese mountains, it’s the best example in Italy of a provincial Roman town.
The main reason Saepinum is so intact is that it was never very important: nothing much happened here, and after the fall of the Roman Empire it carried on as the sleepy backwater it had always been – until the ninth century when it was sacked by Saracens. Over the centuries its inhabitants added only a handful of farms and cottages, incorporating the odd Roman column, and eventually moved south to the more secure hilltop site of present-day Sepino. Some have now moved back and rebuilt the farms and cottages on Saepinum’s peripheries, contributing if anything to the site’s appeal. Their sheep graze below an ancient mausoleum, chickens scratch around the walls, and the only sounds are the tinkling of cowbells.
Saepinum is accessible by bus from Campobasso – either catch one of the three daily buses that stop right outside the site at Altilia (Mon–Sat) or take the more frequent bus to Sepino (12 daily Mon–Sat; www.lariverabus.it) and walk the remaining 3km to Saepinum. Buses return to Campobasso from the archeological site (enquire at ticket office for times). By road, look for signs to Sepino.
The site
Depending on whether you arrive by bus or by car, the entrance to Saepinum (daily 8am–7pm; free) is through the Porta Terravecchia or the Porta Tammaro, two of the town’s four gates. The site is bisected by the cardo maximus (running north–south), still paved with the original stones and crossed by the decumanus maximus. In Roman city planning, this intersection marked the centre of town, home to the public buildings and trading quarters. On the left, grass spills through the cracks in the pavement of the forum, now used by the few local kids as a football pitch, bordered by the foundations of various municipal buildings: the comitium (assembly place), the curia (senate house), a temple, baths, and in the centre a fountain with a relief of a griffin. Beyond the forum, on the left of the decumanus, the Casa Impluvio Sannitico contains a vat to collect rainwater, a remnant from the Samnite town that stood on the site before the Romans sacked it in 293 BC.
Back down the decumanus on the other side of the crossroads is the well-preserved basilica that served as the main courthouse. Beyond is the most interesting part of the town – the octagonal macellum (marketplace), with its small stone stalls and central rain-collecting dish, and a series of houses fronted by workshops, with the small living quarters behind. This leads down to the best-preserved gate, the Porta Boiano, flanked by cylindrical towers with a relief showing two barbarians and chained prisoners. There is also a small museum with artefacts and artwork recovered during excavation (Tues–Sun: April–Oct 9am–1.30pm & 3–6pm; Nov–March 9am–1pm & 3–5pm; €2).
Travel details
Trains
Campobasso to: Naples (4 daily; 3hr); Rome (5 daily; 3hr); Térmoli (9 daily; 1hr 45min).
Isernia to: Campobasso (12 daily; 1hr); Rome (5 daily; 2–3hr).
L’Aquila to: Rome via Terni (10 daily; 3hr–3hr 30min); Sulmona (10 daily; 1hr 40min); Terni (10 daily; 2hr 20min).
Pescara to: Ancona (25 daily; 1–2hr); Rome (4 daily; 4hr); Sulmona (18 daily; 1hr–1hr 10min); Térmoli (hourly; 40min–1hr 10min); Vasto (15 daily; 50min).
Sulmona to: Avezzano (10 daily; 1hr 15min); Celano (9 daily; 1hr).
Térmoli to: Fóggia (18 daily; 1hr).
Buses
Atri to: Pescara (8 daily; 1hr).
Avezzano to: Pescasséroli (5 daily; 1hr 30min).
Chieti to: Rome (4 daily; 2hr 50min–4hr 55min).
Isernia to: Campobasso (9 daily; 1hr).
L’Aquila to: Bominaco (4 daily; 1hr); Rome (14 daily; 1hr 40min); Sulmona (5 daily; 2hr); Téramo (11 daily; 1hr).
Pescara to: Atri (11 daily; 1hr); Chieti (every 20min; 40min); L’Aquila (11 daily; 1hr 50min); Rome (6 daily; 3hr–4hr 20min); Sulmona (3 daily; 1hr 30min).
Sulmona to: Cocullo (1 daily; 40min); Scanno (7 daily; 1hr–1hr 30min).
Téramo to: Atri (5 daily; 1hr 10min).
Térmoli to: Isernia (4 daily; 1hr 25min–2hr).
Ferries
Pescara to: Stari Grad (daily; 3hr 45min); Split (daily; 5hr 45min).
Térmoli to: Trémiti islands (2 ferries & 2 hydrofoils daily in summer, 1 ferry daily in winter; 40min–1hr 40min).