Viterbo: The former little Vatican in Northern Lazio
In the two-plus years we’ve done TraveLazio, dedicated to day trips from Rome, we have gone almost exclusively to small towns. They are little gems with a lot to offer for a day. This week we stepped up in scale. Viterbo is the largest Lazio town we’ve explored with 70,500 people. Sitting in Northern Lazio 50 miles (80 kilometers) north of Rome, Viterbo’s history can be seen all over town.
It was founded by the Ancient Etruscans in the 9th century B.C. which explains all the esophaguses literally laying around. Viterbo also hosted the pope’s conclave in the 13th century and still boasts a thermal bath complex where Michelangelo once soaked. While 70 percent of the town was destroyed in World War II, its medieval center remained remarkably well preserved and Viterbo was one of the first cities outside Rome to begin post-war reconstruction.
Today Viterbo is big enough to have a thriving restaurant scene where creative chefs use rich local ingredients to make exotic dishes you can’t find in the capital. It’s well worth a day trip – or even an overnight stay using it as a base to explore the zone.
Things to do
1 • Palazzo dei Papi. The popes lived in Viterbo from 1257-1281 when Pope Alexander IV wanted a respite from the hostility of the Roman citizenry and urban violence of the city. The popes held their conclaves in this Gothic palace on Piazza San Lorenzo before the Sistine Chapel was completed in St. Peter’s in 1512.
Going inside the room where they held the conclave, I walked up a long, wide staircase past the balcony where the elected popes would greet the people. I entered the huge conclave room and the walls are lined with names of the local cardinals and their family coat of arms.
An audio guide provided looooong bios of each pope who lived in Viterbo. At the end of the hall is the Gualterio Hall which features frescos and a beautiful polyptych, a multi-paneled painting showing the Madonna with child flanked by various saints. Adjacent to the palace is St. Lawrence, somewhat of a dull 12th century church with a crude wooden ceiling.
But you can see the tomb of Pope Giovanni XXI (1276-77). Included in the ticket is a fascinating museum on the other side of St. Lawrence. It features a pre-Etruscan urn dating back to 10th century B.C. and an esophagus from nearby Tuscania where the production of clay esophaguses began in the 3rd century B.C.
Info: Piazza San Lorenzo 1-8, 39-393-091-6060,
Polo Monumentale Colle del Duomo
10 a.m.-1 p.m., 3-6 p.m. Wednesday-Friday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday-Monday, €10.
2 • Viterbo Sotterranea. In the middle of Viterbo’s charming Centro Storico, the ancient Etruscans built underground tunnels to channel water down from the surrounding countryside. You can enter those tunnels today. They are built on two levels: three and 10 meters underground and while the stairways are dark, the tunnels are not narrow.
Claustrophobia is not an issue. In the 13th century when the popes lived in Viterbo, the underground was turned into a shelter in case of siege. They remained in use until the present day where you can see the indentions in walls where Etruscans placed their esophaguses, the passageways where the water passed through and some ceramics. One underground is for families and another nearby is by reservation.
Info: Piazza della Morte 1, 39-07-61-220-851,
www.tesoridietruria.it,
welcome@tesoridietruria.it,
€7.
3 • Terme dei Papi. Located three miles (five kilometers) west of Centro Storico, this 2,000-square-meter pool has piping hot water at 136 degrees Fahrenheit (58 Celsius).
It dates back to the 3rd century A.D. and attracted the likes of Michelangelo, Dante Aliegieri and, of course, in the 13th century, all the sitting popes. Dante even mentioned the baths in his “Divine Comedy.” Bathrobes are provided. Take a cab or drive.
Info: Str. Bagni 12, 39-07-61-3501,
9 a.m-7 p.m. Wednesday-Monday, 9 a.m.-7 p.m., 9 p.m.-1 a.m. Saturday, €12 three hours.
Etruscans in Viterbo:
A place they called home
Sitting on a hill, Viterbo was the perfect place for the Ancient Etruscans to establish a city. Setting up shot in Central Italy in the 9th century B.C., the Etruscans could defend assaults from below and also get water from the countryside. You can still see evidence of the Etruscans around Piazza San Lorenzo, also known as Cathedral Hill.
Stone blocks remain around the piazza. Inside the Palazzo dei Papi museum are ancient esophaguses, artifacts from ancient funeral rites and ceramics. The museum also has an urn from the 10th Century B.C, during the time of the Villanovan civilization which predated the Etruscans and who introduced iron works to the Italian peninsula.
The Etruscans stayed in power in Viterbo until the 2nd century B.C. when the Romans conquered them. The Etruscans moved to nearby Sorrina Nova but were granted Roman citizenship in 27 B.C. Besides the collection of Etruscan artifacts in Palazzo dei Papi, more can be found at the Museo Nazionale Etrusco at Piazza della Rocca 21b. Open 8:30 a.m.-7:30 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday.
Where is it:
50 miles (80 kilometers) north of Rome.
Trains leave Rome’s Ostiense Station every hour.
The 1.hour, 50-minute trip is €5.60 one way.
Where to eat:
7:30-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 12:30-2:30 p.m. Sunday.
Lunch for two, including wine and service charge was €53.50.
For more information:
Municipality of Viterbo,
Piazza Martiri d’Ungheria, 39-07-61-325-992, 10 a.m.-1 p.m., 3-7:30 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday.